Gabriel Darku – October Faction

By starrymag | February 17, 2020

By: Malasha Parker

 

 

Q) How would you describe your character, Geoff Allen, from “October Faction?” What aspects of this character drew you to the role? 

 

A) Geoff has a very charismatic personality. He’s intelligent, witty and very blunt; not at all afraid to tell you what he really thinks. I think that stems from a life of honesty, never feeling the need to hide or be fake. So, when someone isn’t being upfront with him (especially someone close to him), he’ll take much more offense than most. This character is highly intellectual, he’s book smart, he speaks multiple languages and REALLY talks his mouth off. He’s gay. He’s lived all around the world. He’s just different from me in so many ways and has experience such a different life and yet he still felt very relatable to me. I knew I could find an emotional connection with this guy. Getting to play someone so different from yourself is always exciting.

 

Q) Were you privy to the October Faction comic series before joining the show?

 

A) I wasn’t familiar with the comics beforehand, but I did grab a copy of the first issue when we started. I love it. It’s such a great story and the art is incredible. The characters are very nuanced and I love how the show is trying to flesh them out and focus on making them relatable. There’s a lot of material in the comics that would make for great TV and I’m excited at the prospect of getting to dive deeper into that world.

 

Q) Did the family dynamic easily come together both on and offscreen? 

 

A) So easily. We were very fortunate that our chemistry came together so well; it really did feel like a family. A lot of the times we’d find ourselves feeling or acting like our characters while hanging out on set. And especially with Aurora [Burghart], we immediately clicked into a vibe that very much felt like siblings. I genuinely miss getting to see them almost every day.

 

Q) What do you love most about being able to play the role of Geoff?

 

A) Well, first of all, I get powers. I mean, come on. That’s pretty darn cool, right? But in all seriousness, getting to play a character that’s mixed race AND homosexual?! That means a heck of a lot to so many people that deserve to see themselves represented in the stories we tell. Especially portraying a BLACK homosexual. I didn’t have to grow up in a ghetto to understand and feel what is expected of black teenage boys in our society and the pressure we place upon our own men to be hyper masculine, to shun the idea of being emotionally sensitive and all this other crap. Being gay automatically puts a target on your back. And, for me, being a part of an effort to break down those walls and showing that people of all types deserve to exist in full, in every community, that’s very important.

 

Q) The scenes between Geoff and his twin sister, Viv are great to watch. What do you like about the dynamic between the two?

 

A) I think the reason the rapport between Geoff and Viv works so well is because they sort of complete each other and they know it. It feels very much like a yin and yang thing with them, always balancing each other out. I love that about them. No matter how much they get on each other’s nerves, the understanding and love they have for each other always prevails.

 

Q) Talk about the relationship between Geoff and Phillip.

 

A) The relationship between Geoff and Phillip (Praneet Akilla) is interesting in a lot of ways. I’ve heard opinions that people couldn’t make sense of how quickly the two of them wanted to jump into a relationship, but I don’t think those people understood, say, what it was like for Philip to be closeted for so long only to meet someone who saw who he really was and who instantly understood him and could relate to him. And once Geoff peeled away the first impressions given by Philip and saw who he really was, how could he not be charmed by him? Let alone the struggle that Geoff is having with his family at the time. He feels on the outside with them, a little lost, and so he immediately attached himself to the person who not only showed him respect and appreciation, but to a person who needs him as much as he needs them.

 

Q) Will we eventually get to delve more into Geoff’s powers? 

 

A) Well, I sure hope so!! It would be very nice to get to see Geoff and Viv embrace their heritage and become knowledgeable in their powers. Not to mention getting to see how their powers differ and how they would continue to complement each other.

 

Q) What is something that your character didn’t get to do in season one that you would like to see explored in season two? 

 

A) Starting the family business! In reality, we have yet to see the actual October Faction in action. I want to watch Fred (J.C. MacKenzie) and Deloris (Tamara Taylor) teach the kids how to do what they do. I want to see them go in missions as a family.

 

Q) There was a significant death at the end of season one.How do you think this new dynamic will affect the characters going forward? 

 

A) Well there’s no doubt that losing this particular character will have a massive effect on those remaining. But the thing to keep in mind is that we’re dealing in a world where magic exists, and there are other planes of existence, meaning death doesn’t have to be the end of a character regardless of the writer’s plan to bring them back or not. The simple fact that it’s a possibility will affect the choices made by the remaining characters. Will they seek out methods to return the dead to the living? I think that would be a very interesting struggle to watch.