New episodes of The Game, featuring a mix of the original series cast and exciting fresh faces, are coming to the Paramount+ streaming service on November 11. What began as a spinoff of the iconic UPN series Girlfriends, focused on the stories of football players and the women who build them up, took on a life of its own. It lasted a total of nine seasons across its time on The CW and BET. Now it's back with original series creator Mara Brock Akil (Black Lightning) behind the wheel, alongside her husband Salim Akil and showrunner Devon Greggory (American Soul).
One of the fresh faces in the cast is Adriyan Rae, who previously led the SYFY series Vagrant Queen, although her character is one longtime fans will immediately recognize. Brittany Pitts, daughter of football superstar Jason and reality TV icon Kelly, is all grown up and looking to strike out on her own. And who better to take her under their wing than management queen Tasha Mack (returning star Wendy Raquel Robinson), who is looking to help her son Malik (Hosea Chanchez) make a comeback?
Rae spoke to Screen Rant about coming on board the legendary franchise, exploring Brittany as an adult, and incorporating her real-life skills into her on-screen persona.
Screen Rant: How did you first hear about The Game revival and what was your first reaction when this became a possibility for you?
Adriyan Rae: When I first heard about it, I was like, "Oh, wow! The Game is coming back," which I always felt like it should. I heard about it through my agents, and they submitted me for the role of Brittany Pitts. When I got the breakdown, I was like, "Okay, I think I might love her." I just instantly connected with her and really fell into her character very easily, which is always a good sign.
When that happens, you don't have to force anything, so the audition process wasn't too terrifying. That was really, really nice. We just went through the whole process of sending in self-tapes, since the world of COVID doesn't have us auditioning in person like that anymore. And it was just a really fun thing. I just had fun in the audition, we got to do some comedy, and I just went for it.
You're obviously familiar with The Game and, I assume, Girlfriends before that. What was it like for you to share the screen with some of the franchise legends like Wendy Raquel Robinson and Hosea Chanchez?
Adriyan Rae: The first scene I did with Wendy, I was so nervous. I was like, "Oh my God, I'm doing a scene with Wendy Raquel!" We did the scene and afterward, I said, "Wendy, I did it!" She was like, "Girl, what?" and I was like, "I just finished a scene with you."
She and Hosea and Pooch [Hall], they're all just great. They have so much experience, and so much for us to learn from. I just take the time to converse with them and pick their brains to see how they break down the script and the scenes and to learn about some of their choices.
It's really cool to see how they fall back into these characters and how these characters are genuinely theirs. But also, they evolve with these characters, and they've done the work to make their characters evolve. So, it's a really great learning experience.
Speaking of evolution, where do we find Brittany at the start of the series? Can you give us a general idea of her relationship with her parents now?
Adriyan Rae: We start with Brittany a million dollars in debt, basically. She's trying to make her own way and name, but her parents are Kelly and Jason Pitts, so it's hard to have her own shoes to fill. Everybody just refers to her as Jason's daughter.
But I think that the way that we'll learn about her, compared to previously, is that you'll really indulge in her storyline. You really get to know her thoughts on what growing up with these parents was like, and all the things that we didn't get to see in the original.
I'm also really excited about the mentorship that you're gonna have with Tasha, which seems both a little bit adversarial and a whole lot of fun. Can you talk about that back-and-forth baby boss we're getting from them?
Adriyan Rae: Brittany really is a baby boss. I just love that. If you guys hear all the nicknames that Tasha comes up with for her, it's hilarious.
The mentorship is really cool. It's a really different dynamic, because Tasha is Tasha, and she goes about things in the Tasha Mack way. But it's always with a good heart and for a greater good, so the dynamic is actually a surprising one. At first, I was like, "I didn't expect it to be like this," and now I'm like, "Oh, I see why it's like this."
But essentially, Tasha is this beautiful Black woman that stands in her power and knows who she is. She uses her voice and knows her voice, which are essentially the things that Brittany is trying to do as well. As a young adult, she's trying to find her voice and trying to find her own power outside of Jason Pitts. So, what a great mentor for her to have.
I love to have a side of romance with my sports, so can you share what romances may be in store for Brittany?
Adriyan Rae: Well, you know, Brittany is very much an entrepreneur. She's very focused on getting herself out of debt and making her name for herself. But if someone stumbles across her path, and he happens to really strike her attention, and they have a true connection... I think she'll take time out to at least try and build it where it can be built.
The fact that you studied the sciences is so fascinating to me. Has there ever been a role or time in your career as an actress where you were able to call on your own medical or scientific knowledge for help, such as on Chicago Fire?
Adriyan Rae: It's helped me more for auditions. I can tell you, I have so many times for so many doctor roles. What they call medical jargon is really just like talking to me. "Yeah, your neutrophil count is high because you have a bacterial infection. It's not the lymphocytes, because that's viral." All those things. While other actors are like, "I don't know what this word means," I'm like, "That word is eosinophil, the allergic reaction cell for your white blood cells." So, it's helped me in that way.
But I haven't been able to really use it, outside of being a paramedic on Chicago Fire. And that's okay because it also allowed me to have a different part of my brain that I can use. I might not use it with those terms or words, but the analytical part that you need to understand medical science really helps me with my script analysis, with memorization of my lines, and with breaking down my character. So, it's helpful in its own way.
You're also very athletic. Have you gotten to exercise that on set?
Adriyan Rae: I have. It's really cool because our showrunner, Devon Greggory, genuinely gets to know us. He does his research on all of the cast, and the writers' room will write towards what we can and can't do.
There's a stunt that you will see in episode 2, I believe, where Brittany is doing something extremely athletic. We read it on the page, then we got to the set when it was time to do it, and they were so concerned. "Oh my God, Adriyan, do you think you're gonna be able to do this? We have a stunt person for you. Do you want to try it? Let's try it really slow. Let's walk through it." And I was like, "I think I can do it, guys. I think I can do it."
I tried it on the first time and aced it, and they were like, "Alright! Let's shoot." My showrunner comes up later, and he's like, "I knew you could do it. That's why I wrote it."
You showed them how it's done! What are you most excited about when it comes to the return of The Game and your place in this legacy?
Adriyan Rae: I just left ADR yesterday and, honestly, the acting is so grounded. It's still in the same world, but modern to today - because The Game has been around for a while. It's familiar but fresh; it's beautifully shot, and the whole aesthetic just pops. Our DP is just amazing.
I'm excited for all of it: the aesthetic and the realism of it. And for people to get these realistic storylines that they can relate to and spend time together watching and making great conversations about. We're hitting things like racism, classism, sexism, and colorism. We're talking about all these amazing topics and getting the discussions going, so I'm excited for the world to see what we're creating.
The Game premieres November 11 on Paramount+.