deion smith talks journey to stardom + outer banks season two

How did you get into acting?

As a young kid, around the time YouTube was just starting to get popular, I would watch people make their own skits/short films. And I began to become infatuated by the idea of being able to pick up a camera and create motion pictures. 

I found my parents old VHS camera that was just laying around the house, and at first I just started making little movies with my action figures. It quickly grew into incorporating my friends and family, as well as myself, to occasionally to fill in the gaps. At the time I didn’t even know what I was doing was acting, I was just trying to fill in the empty spaces with characters to move the story along. I was obsessed with the process of creating these pictures. It’s funny because I remember at the time not even knowing how to upload the clips to my computer, let alone YouTube. The camera took literal VHS tapes so I would just record in sequences, edit within the camera, and then play them on our TV. It’s pretty crazy when I think about it. I was a little guerrilla filmmaker at the time haha.

I got more into acting specifically when my mom made me audition for a dramatic arts school in my hometown where I studied theatre from 7-12th grade. At first I didn’t know what the heck I had gotten myself into, but I remember immediately having a blast doing it, and then it eventually grew on me. And well, here I am now. My mentor/brother Terrance actually noticed the YouTube videos I was making and he was working with a local talent agency at the time as a photographer. He encouraged them to sign me, and that’s how I started auditioning for film/television roles. He was very instrumental as well to my career as well in both filmmaking and acting.

I really can’t thank my parents (Herbert & Minnie Smith) enough for all the support they’ve given me when it comes to pursuing this dream. I mean they did everything in their power to help me get to where I am. Especially my mom. She drove me up and down the road for countless auditions and never complained once. Always had a smile on her face and provided me with a warm feeling of assurance always. I love them both.

What was your experience on the set of Mr. Mercedes like? 

Working on that show was nothing short of a surreal experience. It really propelled my career because it was my first opportunity to act on a network show. 

I was standing in for Emmy award winning actor Jharrel Jerome and was on set basically everyday as a stand in, just soaking up everything I possibly could about acting and filmmaking. I think there’s no better class than actually being on the set. I got the opportunity to watch Brendan Gleason and Jharrel Jerome up close every day, and I learned so much from the both of them. 

How I got my role on the show is crazy actually. It was just a normal day on set, and then all of a sudden the director/executive producer Jack Bender shouted my name out. I went up to him and he was like, “Hey man I heard you’re an actor.” And I was like “yessir...”, and then he asked me if I wanted to write my own poem in the season finale of Season 1. That was one of the best days of my life, because one of my goals was to be upgraded to a speaking role and it happened! It was a surreal day for sure. I still have a great relationship with the producers/creators of the show to this day. Specifically Jack Bender, Nicole Jackson, Kat Werner, and Conner Dodenhoff. They were all instrumental in my growth on that set and they are all like family to me now. 

You played Kelce in one of Netflix's biggest breakout shows Outer Banks, how did you hear about the role and what has this entire experience been like?

So I initially heard about the role through my agency. I was self taping a ton at the time and working 10 hour over night shifts at an Amazon warehouse in Atlanta. Not a fun time in my life. I had just auditioned for The Walking Dead and was so certain I was going to get that role. When I realized it wasn’t panning out the way I wanted, I remember being super down and discouraged. Then the audition came in for Outer Banks. I remember literally seeing the breakdown and being like “I’m so not getting this. I didn’t get The Walking Dead so I’m definitely not getting this”. I honestly didn’t even want to do the audition but I pushed through, and did it with my acting coach Malik J. Ali (Acts of Freedom, ATL) and I thought my tape was horrendous. I remember being at work a few days later and my manager Trina called me. She said I was up for studio approval for the role and I was like “huh?”. It was crazy. I had to leave my job that night to go home and pack to head to Charleston the next day to start filming and well, the rest is history. 

Cast of Outer Banks

The experience has been amazing. I’ve learned so much about myself as an actor, acting as a whole, and also filmmaking in general. The first season was obviously a lot more going on because there was no Covid. There was a lot more freedom for us all to hang out outside of set. Things have changed a bit since then, but I still just love love love being on set pursuing my dreams.

I understand that originally your character was only supposed to be in one episode, how do you think Kelce became a recurring character?

Yes, when I got the audition it stated on the breakdown that the role was originally only supposed to be in one episode but it had just been added to 4 more episodes. So it literally got bumped from co-star to a recurring role which was crazy. Once I started working, I guess the Pate brothers liked what I was doing and loved having me around so they also wrote me into 3 more episodes- making that 8 out of 10 for my first season. It’s wild the arc my character had on Season 1. I’m super thankful to God and also to Netflix/Pate Brothers for giving me the opportunity of a lifetime like this one. 

Cast/Crew of Outer Banks

It's no secret the entire cast of Outer Banks quickly became one big family. Is it true you knew Madelyn Cline (Sarah Cameron) and Madison Bailey (Kiara Carrera) before filming? How do you think working with such a close-knit cast had an effect on the filming experience itself?

Oh yeah, it’s funny because we all kind of grew up together. Cline and I are both Charleston natives. We started out in the same agency as kids and just got closer as we got older.

Bailey and I worked on Mr. Mercedes together and have been friends ever since. It’s crazy how this industry works sometimes.

What do you do in your free time?

Oh boy. When I have free time I’m usually just chilling. I like to take trips with my brothers when I can, go fishing, and spend quality time with my family/dogs. 

You and your brothers own a photography company, can you tell us about it? 

Yes, me and my two brothers have been shooting both video and photography for close to 10 years all together. My oldest brother/mentor Terrance Antonio founded the company and brought me on when I was 15 which launched the video side of the company. He was just doing photography at first. Then my other older brother Aaron Bush came on and really propelled the company forward as a whole. We primarily shot weddings but are making a huge transition into production. We’ve been working on a handful of commercials/documentary work and it’s only growing. I hope as I grow in the acting industry it opens doors for us to start working with bigger Hollywood production companies with larger scale budgets. I really see us all producing blockbuster films one day. I think that’s definitely in our future. 

What’s next?

I just booked a role on Queen of the South, catch me on USA Network! I also just wrapped on a short film being produced by Lena Waithe’s Production Company that’ll be premiering at Tribeca next month.

Congratulations on Outer Banks being renewed for a second season! What can we expect?

Thank you! Well first off, expect a little more Kelce, but also expect a lot of crazy things to happen with all the characters this season. Crazy stuff, that’s all I’m saying. Don’t wanna get sued haha. I think Season 2 should hit harder than Season 1. I’m hoping and praying it does. We have a huge and supportive fan base and we just want to produce something that’ll keep them coming back for more.