When fictional sorority sisters Valerie, Cassandra, Simona, and Dominique, played by a star-studded cast of award-winning singers and actresses LeToya Luckett, Kierra Sheard-Kelly, Ta’Rhonda Jones, and Drew Sidora reunite for a Black Greek weekend celebration, it’s not long before the girls’ getaway is plagued with a series of weird and unexplainable events and things take a deadly turn.
The sisterly bond appears tight-knit following the mysterious death of the dean of pledges more than a decade prior. However, their relationship will soon be tested when their past comes, threatening to unravel it all.
That’s the plot outline of “Lifeline,” a Lifetime thriller that strikes several chords as its characters tackle several real-life issues, including marriage, motherhood, and friendship. Atlanta Black Star recently sat down with the award-winning cast to discuss the upcoming film and how their own life experiences help elevate their on-screen performances.
For “Empire” star Jones, starring in this film turned out to be reassuring for the actress.
“So for me, I’ve always been somewhat of an outcast, so it kind of hit close to home for me, with my character. Latoya’s character kind of cast her out and didn’t wanna make amends with her. And I remember feeling that way with a few of my friends a few years ago, and being able to convey that on-screen and actually watching it — it gave me this sense of self-perseverance,” Jones shared.
“Because watching it and watching Samona, how she persevered, even though you might hate me for what I did in the past, I’ma still move how I moved and, and watching that kind of reminded me. It was a reminder: It’s OK. Keep it pushing, keep it moving,” she added.
For Grammy Award-winning singer Luckett, the film mirrored an image she’s seen in her circles. “The way the sisters, like, came together, like, that is how my real life is whenever there’s something going on in one of our lives,” the “Not Anymore” singer said. “I’m so blessed that I actually have women around me, a wonderful tribe that actually care and are there for me, um, for whatever that thing is.”
“That was a super bonding moment for me,” Sheard-Kelly later added. After getting stuck in a dangerous situation, Sheard-Kelly’s character feels hopeless, unsure if she and her sister will make it out. “I was losing my sisters. I didn’t know which one I was gonna lose … but in real life, I was losing my grandfather,” she said.
“And so I didn’t have a moment to share that with my sisters, but even the support that we had while on film, they didn’t know it, but they were giving me that support,” she continued.
“Spiritually, just having seen tears come from all of us. It was something that we were really into. So it’s a special moment for me. Um, and it delivered, and that’s, that’s kind of the connectivity for me personally and as Cassandra and as you know, just kind of connecting with my sisters. ”
Despite their various entertainment backgrounds, the connection seen on-screen echoed throughout the journey of filming the ladies shared.
“I think for this show, I will have to say the bond that you see on screen is a bond that was really actually happening and developing off-screen,” Luckett explained. “You don’t find that on every series that you work on, every movie that you work on, and that’s a blessing.”
Luckett recalled a special ceremony she and co-star Jones did together during filming. “I feel like we were all at this different, like different points in our life. And we were able to minister to each other or love on each other in a moment.”
She added, “We could tell when a sister was having a moment, you know. Sometimes women can be catty. Sometimes movies like this are challenging because, for some weird, odd reason, everybody isn’t clicking, but this was different. This was different.”
Sidora jokingly inserted, “Don’t go to a lake house cause you may not come out. I was like, I mean, that’s really it,” referencing a scene in the film before highlighting why viewers should tune in.
“It was really an underlying tone of us supporting one another, leaning on one another, depending on one another, And it really was threaded beautifully.
“And to just a reminder, to just whoever’s in your life, whoever you deem is special, whoever you deem as the person you love, just make sure you always show up, just show up for them no matter what,” Jones added.
The Lifetime film “Line Sisters” premieres on Feb. 12 at 8 p.m. ET.
NFL Financing Rules Are Holding Back Black Ownership of Teams
