‘Lanterns’ Writer Tries Explaining Controversial ‘Alien Racism’ Scene

HBO’s new comic book series, Lanterns, continues to face criticism over its political themes after writer Vanessa Baden-Kelly revealed that she spent about 10 years working as a left-wing community organizer. Baden-Kelly discussed her background during an appearance on the New Rockstars podcast with hosts Erik Voss and Jessica Clemons. She also addressed a scene from Lanterns that features a character explaining racism to an alien. WE INTERVIEWED THE LANTERNS WRITER! Before becoming a television writer, Baden-Kelly worked as a child actress on Nickelodeon’s Gullah Gullah Island. She later played Kyra Rockmore on Keenan & Kel. After 2000, she took a roughly 10-year break from entertainment and became a community activist. By 2011, she was again seeking work as an actress and writer. Baden-Kelly said her acting career slowed when “diversity” began “slipping backwards” around 2000. “I was working for Karen Bass while still trying to audition, but nothing was really moving because we had slipped backwards in the diversity revolution. And so I started to write,” she said. She also explained why she wrote the scene involving racism. “It’s 1986 and this lady knows nothing about nothin...