Billie Eilish's Swarm character is inspired by a real cult

The episode of Swarm featuring Grammy-winning singer Billie Eilish has delivered one of the series’ craziest appearances. Swarm, co-created and co-executive produced by Janine Nabers and Donald Glover, features a slew of celebrity cameos, including Rory Culkin and Paris Jackson.

Set between 2016 and 2018, Swarm follows Dre (Dominique Fishback), a fan of the fictional Beyonce-esque music icon Ni’Jah, whose love for her favourite singer crosses the line from obsessive to murderous. After setting off on a cross-country journey, she meets a slew of characters and commits a slew of crimes.

Alongside killing a string of haters in the name of her icon, Dre hits the road to see her favourite star at Bonnaroo despite not having a wristband, but gets pulled over in Tennessee by a racist cop. Eilish, who is making her acting debut, was suggested by Swarm casting director Carmen Cuba, Nabers told.

“When she pitched (Billie Eilish) for the role of Eva, we were like, ‘Oh, she’s really cool! Let’s go with it!’ And it worked out,” said Nabers. “She was great,” he added. While Eva said she “feels so drawn” to Dre and suggests she’s “part of the tribe now,” it becomes clear as Dre spends more time that Eva’s setup is less a commune and more a cult.

The women wear the same colours and share the same body brands. It’s reminiscent of several Hollywood-adjacent cults, most clearly the NXIVM cult, which involved actresses like Alison Mack, who is currently serving a three-year prison sentence. Nabers has said Eilish’s character was inspired by that cult and its leader Keith Raniere, who was sentenced to 120 years in prison and fined $1,750,000 in the high-profile sex-trafficking case. —IANS