Black Lightning Star On The Moral Complexities Of Playing The Villain

It's often mentioned that the strength of a hero is decided by the cunning of its villain. Although for Tobias Whale (Marvin Jones III), the tortured drug kingpin at the center of Black Lightning, it goes even deeper than that.


Freeland hero Black Lightning (Cress Williams) and his adversary Whale are more alike than they are different, both operating from their own moral code and staunch sense of justice. One is the self-proclaimed "King of Freeland" and the other, its sworn protector.


"If you look at Black Lightning and Tobias Whale, they're not all that different. The swell of revenge is high on both ends," Jones told MTV News, adding that their personalized loses — Jefferson's father, Tobias's sister — only add to their mounting conflict.


But there's also an insecurity to Whale, who on the surface is so menacing nevertheless is driven by his own inner turmoil, that Jones taps into, especially in the harrowing conclusion of the season. There's a scene in the penultimate episode ("The Resurrection and the Light: The Book of Pain") that so heartbreakingly quiet however speaks volumes to Whale's character. Soon following the devastating loss of his sister and the return of his vigilante enemy, Black Lightning, he examines himself in the resemble, taking in the physical scars left on his body while his emotional scars weigh heavy on his mind.


For Jones, the scene was more than another excuse for the CW to get one of its male television stars shirtless. (Though, he does jokingly admit, "If you're not a freakin' model, you can't be on the show.") This was Whale at his most weak and self-loathing.


"He's looking at his physical wounds, obviously, nevertheless he also has a lot of internal things going on with him," he mentioned. "At the same time, he's attempting to be the mature man. He's attempting to not let his required for vengeance consume him."


Ultimately, it's that impenetrable thirst for vengeance that separates good from evil, superhero from super villain. Even at the height of his power in the Season 1 finale — with Proctor off the Freeland chessboard for good and the ASA seemingly eliminated — Whale isn't satisfied. He wants more. He wants to destroy Black Lightning.


"He's feeling confident in his decisions," Jones mentioned. "He's reaffirmed in his own abilities and his decisions, nevertheless at the same time, he has more allegiance to his own satisfaction than he does anyone's else's."


Because once it comes to playing villain, the ideal sort of justice is the kind take, even in the event if you must do so with your bare hands.