She’s living live like a Pogues! Carlacia Grant became the breakout star of Outer Banks season 2 with her role as Cleo, and fans are sure to be seeing more of her character when the third season hits Netflix.
During the early episodes of Outer Banks season 2 — which premiered in July 2021 — John B (Chase Stokes) and Sarah Cameron (Madelyn Cline) were on the run in the Bahamas when they befriended Cleo. After helping the couple get the island unharmed, it seems like that’s the end of Cleo. But, she later makes her return to the screen as a crew member on Ward Cameron’s (Charles Esten) boat and, once again, comes to the rescue.
“Me being of Caribbean descent, I really understood [this role],” the actress told ELLE in July 2021. “I knew that I could pull off the accent very, very well. I sent the tape, and I watched it and I just kept watching. I was like, ‘This is good.’ The person who taped me, my friend: ‘Yeah, you got this.’ I don’t know. It was just a feeling that I was just like, ‘This one feels right.’”
When describing her character in the same interview, Carlacia said Cleo is “smarter, faster, better than everyone else, but she’s smart enough to not show it.” This is exactly how she finds herself saving the Pogues more than once. During the season 2 finale, the character finds herself on a deserted island with the rest of the Outer Banks natives. She’s even sparked a bit of a romantic interest in Pope (Jonathan Daviss).
“I’m really interested in seeing this whole Cleo and Pope thing happen, if it does happen,” Carlacia said in the same ELLE interview. “And I would love to see more of Cleo’s backstory. I, personally, really want to see more of her, more of where she came from. And I want her to be more badass, definitely more badass.”
When Outer Banks season 3 was confirmed in December 2021, it was revealed that Carlacia would be promoted to a series regular, meaning there’s a lot more of Cleo to come.
“I never thought people were going to like Cleo the way they do,” the Netflix star told HelloGiggles in September 2021. “She’s such a badass character and doesn’t give a heck about what anyone thinks. I didn’t know if it was going to be too much, so I’ve been overwhelmed by the love. I’m really proud of that character; I love that she represents the West Indies and that she doesn’t care and people love her for that.”
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