M.I.A., a new crime drama series set in South Florida, has arrived. It’s created and executive produced by Bill Dubuque (Ozark), with Karen Campbell (Outlander, Dexter, Raised by Wolves) acting as showrunner and executive producer. Alethea Jones (Spider-Noir and High Potential) directed the first two episodes and also serves as an executive producer.
The series revolves around Etta Tiger Jonze, who’s restless in the Florida Keys. When her family’s drug-running business shatters in tragedy, Etta embarks on a dangerous journey through Miami’s neon-lit underbelly that will define who she is and what she’s ultimately capable of.
After Etta’s entire immediate family, including her parents, is murdered, she makes it to Miami, where she tracks down her Aunt Carmen. To Etta’s surprise, as well as to the surprise of viewers, Carmen is not just Leah’s sister, but her identical twin. (Leah and Carmen were estranged throughout Etta’s life.)
And the twins are both portrayed by Garcia. The actress didn’t know during the audition process that the part she was reading for would ultimately mean playing twin sisters.
“I was auditioning for Carmen and then when I get Carmen, I find that I also got Leah,” Garcia told Peacock Blog in an interview before the show’s premiere. “The entire thing of this job is to take it a day at a time and focus on what’s in front of me today, because if I would think like two weeks ahead or a day ahead, it would be overwhelming.”
In flashback scenes in Episode 6 of Peacock‘s M.I.A., titled “Original Sin,” viewers learn that Etta’s father Dan was dating Leah’s twin sister Carmen first. Then, when Leah came to visit her sister, Leah and Dan began an affair that forever damaged the sisters’ relationship.
The flashback scenes take place before Etta was born, and viewers learn that Leah and Dan’s trysts lead to Leah becoming pregnant with Etta.
“Twenty years ago and we see their flaws and then you understand how far they went,” Garcia told Peacock Blog. “Leah was just a beautiful mess, just a great mess, and Carmen was figuring herself out. She was trying to be in control, but then she realized she wasn’t.”
M.I.A., is an action-packed show set against the scenic backdrop of Miami and Key Largo. All nine episodes of the binge-drop series are now streaming!
Series regulars include Shannon Gisela, Cary Elwes, Danay Garcia, Brittany Adebumola, Dylan Jackson, Alberto Guerra, Maurice Compte, Gerardo Celasco, and Marta Milans.
And the guest cast includes Edward James Olmos, Billy Burke, Sonia Braga, Loretta Devine, Tovah Feldshuh, Tyler Perez, Paul Ben-Victor, and David Denman.
