‘Tom Swift’ Cast Calls ‘Nancy Drew’ Spinoff a ‘Dream Come True’

Tom Swift arrives on the small screen on Tuesday, May 31. And ahead of the series premiere, stars Tian Richards, Ashleigh Murray, and Marquise Vilsón teased what’s to come in the Nancy Drew spinoff. Speaking with TV Insider at The CW Upfront presentation on May 19 at the New York City Center, the stars introduced their characters and shared the emotional impact of starring in a series that centers Black, queer joy and success.

Richards stars as the titular character in the series, based on the Edward L. Stratemeyer books. Tom is a gay Black billionaire who’s part of an exorbitantly wealthy family. His family’s riches were built upon groundbreaking technological innovation of Swift Enterprises, making Tom’s world, as Richards describes to TV Insider, an “explosion of tech, beautiful people, fashion.”

But don’t conflate the opulence with a lack of drama. The Tom Swift series premiere will propel Tom — a genius inventor himself — into an unexpected adventure following the disappearance of his father. He’ll face sci-fi conspiracy and unexplained phenomena as he tries to uncover the mystery of his father’s disappearance. And Richards says the series is all about “being human and still being heroic at the same time.”

“We talk about some harrowing issues dealing with his family, acceptance, community, coming into yourself,” he says. “Not so much coming out. Coming into yourself. Like after you come out, what does that look like to exist in the world around people? We can present a face of comfortability and having stuff figured out, but even the person with the strongest armor has their own issues and pieces of kryptonite that can affect them.”

Murray (Katy Keene, Riverdale) stars as Zenzi Fullerton, Tom’s childhood best friend whom she describes as “the gravity of Tom’s orbit.” As he goes against an Illuminati-like group determined to stop his efforts, Zenzi will be his closest confidant.

“She’s like his Jiminy Cricket. She is his conscience. She is his guide. She is the one who is always going to make sure he’s on the right path,” Murray explains. “And whichever path he chooses, even if it’s difficult, she’s going to support him. He does the same thing for her.”

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Like Tom and Zenzi, Richards says he and Murray have a “brother-sister dynamic.” Murray agrees.

“From the moment that we had our chemistry read, I knew. I was like, ‘I know him!'” she shares. “I’d never met him, but we had this bond that was immediate. And you see it on camera. You see it in our characters. You see it in life.”

“We truly speak the same language,” Richards adds. And in terms of what it means to be starring in a series that’s definitively Black and queer — specifically one that depicts a wildly successful Black family — the actors say it’s the representation they always wanted.

“From the time I got the audition for this, it’s something I would’ve wanted to see in my young age,” Richards shares. “I’ve seen variations of representation, but for them to look the way that we do, to know that we can be beautiful and successful and rich and opulent and boundless in what they have is going to show another generation that it’s possible, that it’s not always about pulling yourself up from your bootstraps. You can already be sitting in your eminent power and go out and accomplish so many more things the world told you you weren’t getting.”

Quantrell D. Colbert/The CW

“For me, being able to step into this role, I feel very thankful because there are a lot of things that I’ve wanted to portray and have lived in my own life just existing in humanity,” Murray adds. “Being able to realize that on screen in the skin that I’m in, and the hair that I have, and the clothes that I wear — all of the emotions that I experience are not gender specific, they aren’t race specific. It’s just me having a true, honest existence. And being able to show that and have it not be diluted or watered down or questioned, everybody’s going to be able to relate. Because underneath it all, we’re all the same. The culture makes us different and appreciate one another, but at the heart of it, we’re all human.”

Also joining Tom and Zenzi on their search for the truth is Vilsón. Vilsón plays Isaac, Tom’s body guard, who the actor says is “here not only to do his job, but I think to explore some other things along the way.”

“What I love about my character the most is that he fully exists in this world self-actualized,” Vilsón shares. “His story is not centered specifically around his trans-ness, he just happens to be trans. He exists in this world. There’s no trauma related to it or anything like that. It’s a dream come true.”

Quantrell D. Colbert/The CW

In Tom Swift, the lives of LGBTQIA+ people are not only centered, but their joy and success are the main event. There’s no queer tragedy trope to be seen here, according to the cast.

“Typically, Black people, queer people in general are kind of like sides. We’re lucky to even sit at the table, and if we are, it’s the kiddie section. So the fact that we’re the centerpiece of this conversation, these are the kinds of stories I want to be a part of telling,” Vilsón says. And he thinks fans are going to fall in love with the depiction of the Swift family.

“To see a Black family exist like this on television, a family that is connected to generational wealth — they’re not just rich, they live in a manor, not a mansion. It’s a story about a Black, gay billionaire who’s smart as hell, all things tech, we get to make science sexy and cool,” Vilsón says. “That’s the swag of it all. It’s beautiful. It’s a wonderful story to be a part of, especially as a Black trans person.”

Tom Swift, Series Premiere, Tuesday, May 31, 9/8c, The CW