Here’s everything you need to know about Lovecraft Country’s Letitia Lewis.
Warning! Spoilers for Lovecraft Country episode 3 follow below.
HBO’s Lovecraft Country is full of unique characters with their own strengths, weaknesses, and special quirks. And because of that, it’s worth breaking down and analyzing all of the show’s main characters to understand more about them.
In our last character profile, we introduced you to the late, great Uncle George, played by the even greater Courtney B. Vance. He went along with Atticus and Letitia in their journey to Massachusetts, but he, unfortunately, died out there before anyone was able to heal them. Episode 3 dealt with the consequences of his death and this time put the spotlight on Letitia. So much was revealed about this character that we absolutely must break down what Letitia’s got going on.
Read on below to learn more about the character Jurnee Smollett portrays in Lovecraft Country, Letitia Lewis.
Letitia Lewis Lovecraft Country character profile
Letitia Lewis: Introduction and overview
Letitia “Leti” Lewis is the old childhood friend of protagonist Atticus Freeman (Jonathan Majors). Leti is a confident, driven, and fashionable, photographer and civil rights advocate. She traveled around the country doing what she loves after leaving Chicago when she was younger. Just returning home in search of her own home, Leti decided to travel with Atticus and his Uncle George to find his father. Leti is in search of home and family, but first, she needs to confront the demons of her past. Leti must amend her relationship with her sister and figure out what kind of person she wants to be in this world.
Relationships
Leti is the younger half-sister of Ruby and Marvin Baptiste. When we’re first introduced to Leti, we see how her relationship with Ruby is shaky and in a bad place. Ruby didn’t want Leti to stay long, giving her a two-day notice. To help, Ruby tried suggesting that Leti get a job –but she didn’t want to clean houses.
When Leti finally came back from her trip with Atticus, we think we finally got to see Ruby and Leti could actually be sisters. But when things started to happen at the house, it quickly went sideways for both sisters. Leti seems to resent her sister because she actually had a relationship with their mother — as flawed as it was. Initially, she didn’t even tell Ruby where she got the money to buy her new house in the first place. It’s almost the same argument that Leti got into with her brother Marvin over the money he sent her when she was in Washington. Marvin thought she was going to use the money to come home for their mother’s funeral, but instead, Leti used it to bail a friend out of jail.
Atticus, of course, is Leti’s childhood friend. Leti and Atticus were a part of the Southside Futurists Science Fiction Club. And in the first episode, she decided to join Atticus and his Uncle George on a road trip to find Atticus’ father. Leti and Atticus both shared similar trauma in their lives dealing with their parents, in addition to sharing this connection that’s tied by what they’ve experienced in the first few episodes — and it’s all centered on a secret. Leti is connected to him, but he pushes her away to try to protect her. As the episodes go on, Atticus and Leti’s relationship changes dramatically when faced with ghosts from her haunted house. They both have to face these ghosts to get out of her house. Their relationship changes from being friends to something more…
Motives
Sure, Leti joined Tic on his journey to help find his father, but she also just wanted to get out of Chicago. She seems to be in search of finding people that won’t leave her. Leti wants her siblings to see her as a new person who is not selfish and wants to serve her community. For example, she gets this inheritance money, and the first thing she does is buy a big old house on Chicago’s all-white North Side for her Black friends to live in. Leti even invited Ruby to come live with her, trying to make amends for all the times she’s borrowed from her in the past.
Leti wanted to turn the rundown house into a boarding house, basically “a safe haven for colored folks.” And even when her white neighbors started to cause problems for Leti and her family, she didn’t just give up, she fought back for them. She’s determined to stay in this all-white neighborhood by any means necessary, and she wants her Black friends to know that they belong there, too.
Strengths and weaknesses
Leti has a lot of confidence but at the same time, she seems to be running in search of something. When her mother is brought in conservations, she seems to be running instead of facing the problem. When she got into an argument with Marvin about not being at her mother’s funeral, she avoided the matter and tried to change the subject. She even knew about the money her mom had left for her, but she chose not to tell Ruby.
Additionally, Leti is strong and steadfast in her desires but also a bit of a wanderer. She told Atticus at a diner that she’s trying to avoid everything from her sister to the church. She thinks the world is one way but she finds out that it isn’t and that terrifies her. Leti doesn’t back down from anything, whether it’s the neighbors trying to push her away or the ghosts in the basement.
Letitia’s future
In the third episode, we saw Leti come to a sense of certainty with herself, confronting the ghosts of her past and her own selfishness to become a better person. It’s going to be interesting to see how she stops living in fear and embraces this new world she sees head-on. Hopefully Leti and Ruby repair their relationship before the season is over. Even though Ruby doesn’t know what truly is going on with Leti, maybe Leti will come clean to her sister about everything.
Leti and her mom’s relationship seems to be a big part of her journey, so maybe the show will dive more into the entire situation and how it influences some of Leti’s choices. (How she put her focus into serving the community and providing a safe haven for the Black people in Chicago may be the key to helping her community.) Plus, we can’t wait to explore more of her relationship with Atticus and how his magical powers will play into their relationship.
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