'Raising Dion' star TJ Wright promises 'Stranger Things' fans will love Michael B Jordan's upcoming Netflix series
‘Raising Dion’ is one of the most anticipated Netflix series in October. It is the unique superhero origin story of 7-year-old Dion (Ja'Siah Young), who has multiple, constantly changing superpowers. Raised by his single mother, he has a lot going on around him, but thankfully he has a couple of people who love him and protect him.
One of the areas he struggles with, beyond the effects of his superpowers is his status in school, and unfortunately, the “cool kids” in school, especially the leader of the pack Chris (TJ Wright), do not want him hanging around. “Chris and Dion aren’t really vibing with each other. Dion really wants to be Chris’ friend and one of the 'cool kids', and Chris doesn’t want to be his friend,” Wright explained to MEA WorldWide (MEAWW).
There will be a lot of tension between the duo, but we wonder if Dion will use his powers on Chris at some point. That will definitely be one of the big questions the show will answer. As Wright points out, “The show will have a lot of cliffhangers because Dion is a kid with superpowers - we don’t see that a lot. My character, Chris, is a bit of a bully which is very different than who I am in real life. I think he’s just trying to get Dion to leave him alone and Dion just wants to be a part of Chris’ crew.”
Wright also believes ‘Stranger Things’ fans will like ‘Raising Dion’ because Dion has special powers which connect with the powers in ‘Stranger Things’. Moreover, as a fan of ‘Stranger Things,’ he hopes to get some of those fans crossing over fandoms.
Although Wright considers himself a cool kid, he does not relate to his character to a large extent. “To me, being cool is being unique and being yourself. Also, I am very welcoming and I like to meet new people,” he said, adding how he considers it a privilege to work in a film co-produced by and starring Michael B. Jordan.
“I am a very big fan of Michael B. Jordan - especially his role in 'Black Panther'. Even though he was technically a villain, he had a huge impact,” said the rabid ‘The Office’ fan, who is watching the entire series on Netflix for a second time. “I’m to the point of driving my parents crazy,” he said, adding, “I’m on season 8...again. There are a lot of layers to the show including things that aren’t very realistic so that makes it even funnier.”
The ambitious young actor, is hopeful of moving to Tokyo, and to go there for an acting job would be great, he said and added he would love to play a flashback character if they ever made a movie based on ‘The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.’
“The show is amazing because of the 90s vibes and Will Smith is hilarious. My dad is from Philly so it would be cool to have a project with Will Smith since he’s from Philly too (Will Smith also has one of my favorite Instagram pages),” he exclaimed.
He also wants to write and direct a feature film and show other people his work. “Besides Will Smith, I hope to work with George Tillman, Jr., again, and really the whole cast of 'The Hate U Give'. I’d also like to work with Spike Lee, Jenna Fischer and Angela Kinsey,” he revealed, before teasing that he starts working with a new project next month.
Don’t forget to watch ‘Raising Dion’ October 4 on Netflix.