Getting Lost Helped Harold Perrineau Find From

Surprising no one more than himself, Harold Perrineau has found his footing once more in supernatural sci-fi territory. It’s a place he hasn’t ventured to since working on one of the genre’s most beloved entries, ABC’s Lost, but there’s a simple explanation for what brought him back: The MGM+ series From — created by John Griffin and returning for a 10-episode fourth season on April 19 — counts Lost vets Jack Bender and Jeff Pinkner among its executive producers. The platform’s most-watched series, From follows the residents of a mysterious, inescapable town that is surrounded by terrifying creatures. Perrineau plays Boyd, that town’s self-appointed sheriff.

Since his breakthrough in the 1995 film Smoke, Perrineau has worked steadily for more than three decades in dozens of movies and series, with runs on Sons of Anarchy, Constantine, Goliath, Criminal Minds, The Rookie and Claws. In 2022, he co-led The Best Man: The Final Chapters, a Peacock miniseries that gathered stars of the Best Man movies for an epic epilogue.

From is only one project on Perrineau’s plate. He’s developing others both as an actor and as a producer, including the film Slay the Dreamer, about the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. Off-screen, he cofounded the bourbon brand Sable in 2024 with his Best Man costars Morris Chestnut and Taye Diggs and series director Malcolm D. Lee. Here, Perrineau chats with emmy contributor Neil Turitz about From, how he’s found fun in horror and appreciating life in a "flow state."

What drew you to From?

I knew Jack Bender and Jeff Pinkner from Lost, so that made me interested in reading, and John Griffin’s work is just great. The Covid lockdown had just started, and we were struggling with this idea: Do you live life like it’s your last day, or do you have rules? The truth is, we all have to work together to figure it out, and in the context of this horror television show, it all resonated so loudly — people behaving poorly and responding poorly, but all trying to fight for the same thing.

What has you excited about season four?

This season is exciting because it continues down that journey. The trailer says, "Knowledge at a cost," and that’s what the whole season is about. You find out one thing, and then, Jesus, it all just goes to hell. They’re fun ideas to play with in the context of a horror story. The thing that continues to inspire me about the show is that we can watch it from a safe distance but still contemplate these heady ideas about what your life is about. I really like that.

Do you find it’s more fun to do horror?

I didn’t, because I was always of the opinion that I don’t want to see more terrible people doing terrible stuff than I’ve already seen. I’ve seen enough. I’m good. So, horror wouldn’t be the genre I would have naturally picked, but I’m having more fun watching it now than I was, especially being part of it. It is an interesting way of telling stories and making you think — how does one respond when facing the absolute worst possible scenario? Also, while asking yourself questions and being entertained and scared. So, the short answer is, I am enjoying it a lot more than I used to. [Laughs]

Do you find it’s more fun to do horror?

I didn’t, because I was always of the opinion that I don’t want to see more terrible people doing terrible stuff than I’ve already seen. I’ve seen enough. I’m good. So, horror wouldn’t be the genre I would have naturally picked, but I’m having more fun watching it now than I was, especially being part of it. It is an interesting way of telling stories and making you think — how does one respond when facing the absolute worst possible scenario? Also, while asking yourself questions and being entertained and scared. So, the short answer is, I am enjoying it a lot more than I used to. [Laughs]

Your character, Boyd, is the town’s authority. You seem to have graduated to such roles. Is that by design?

I think it’s my evolution. Part of who you are as a human being often comes out in the work, and that’s why it feels like art. It’s a real human experience, and it’s my experience. I still like to play this wild and crazy guy, but as I get older, I feel a little heavier emotionally, and that’s why I wind up with these roles like Boyd. Authority is tricky, so I’m not afraid to show right and wrong and vulnerable and scared and authoritative — all those colors — and they come up in the work and with Boyd. He spent a life in the military, which is a life of service, and when no one else stepped up, he chose to. Now, if he’s been successful, we don’t know, but he certainly is trying.

What haven’t you done as an actor that you still want to do?

I’ve been pretty lucky. I’ve done so many things that I didn’t even expect to do. I want to keep exploring. I want to keep trying things. I didn’t see Boyd coming, and I’m so glad it came. In the first two seasons of From, actors were asking, "How are you doing what you’re doing?" And I was saying, "I don’t know, it just seems to be coming out lately." It’s years and years of work, and now I’m in this sort of flow state, where I don’t have as much second-guessing as I used to. I don’t exactly know what’s happening, but I’m digging it. [Laughs]

Are you doing your best work?

Is there ever your best work? I don’t know. I did The Cherry Orchard on Broadway with Diane Lane [in 2016]. I thought, "That’s the best work I’m ever going to do." But was it? Hopefully not. Hopefully, the next thing is going to be better. Yeah, hopefully my best work is still coming.

This article originally appeared in emmy Magazine, issue # 3, 2026 under the title "Flow State."

From is now streaming on MGM+.