All this to say, Reis has never been afraid of hard work and discipline.
My brother had just passed away from brain cancer, and boxing was our thing, she says.
Boxing has been an outlet, its been a job, its been everything to me.
Kali Reis in ‘True Detective: Night Country.‘Max
But for once in my life, it just wasnt really doing it for me.
I needed something else.
The solo aspect of boxing and the self-accountability aspect have always intrigued me.
Kali Reis andJodie FosterinTrue Detective: Night Country.Max
He saw that I was bringing awareness to it and reached out to me via Instagram, she says.
He was like, Do you ever think about acting?
And Im like, This weirdo in my DMs.
What is going on?
From a thought to an avalanche, basically, thats how my acting career began.
Although Reis role was tailor-made for her, she still found the endeavor challenging.
It wasnt a tough transition as far as having the mentality to do something new, she says.
But it meant that I was going to learn something about myself.
Its me against me.
It was hard as hell.
My first thought was, People will be like, What does she get Best Actress for?
And theyll watch the movie and see the message that we were trying to convey.
Thats really what it meant, she says.
But it also meant, I have something here.
I really wanted to do this.
It just gave me more motivation to get better.
In the ring, you have corner people that see what you dont see.
Everybody in your corner has the same goal, they want to see you win, she explains.
Whenever she doubted herself onCatch the Fair One, Wladyka was the one to raise her up.
Josef kept saying, Yo, Homie, you got the sauce, you got the juice.
Im like, what sauce?
But he was genuine.
He saw something in me that I couldnt see in myself.
Its that little look of people that you trust, and I dont trust many.
OnTrue Detective, it was series creator Issa Lopez and costar/producer Jodie Foster that manned her corner.
Issa is such an amazing mind, Reis says.
Her explanation of the story, and who Navarro was, was very clear.
Theres a fight she has to fight within herself before she can fight outside.
I thought that was very brave [of Lopez].
When it comes to going toe-to-toe with Foster, Reis cant get over the Oscar-winners lack of airs.
Its freaking Jodie Foster, she laughs.
But there was no hierarchy, it was How can we tell this story?
She was also interested in my process.
And Im like, Process?
I dont know how I got here, what you mean process?
Here I am just showing up, and Im welcomed with opened arms.
For Reis, inhabiting Navarro was in some ways like slipping on a familiar pair of gloves.
Ive learned that I do darkness and troubled very well, she acknowledges.
Her mission is now to excel at her new craft.
It is challenging being so new, learning terminology, learning how things move.
And just learning myself in this has been cathartic, she says.
Just like the first time I got my ass whooped in boxing.
Im like, OK, how do I make that not happen again?
Its the same mentality.
And I really want to be the best.
