The first episode has only been out for a few hours, but it looks like Donald Glover’s new show Swarm is already the internet’s favorite show to dissect, discuss, and debate. He might just have another hit on his hands. Fans have been enamored with the acting of the show’s stars like Billie Eilish, flustered by co-star Chlöe’s first-ever sex scene, and grooving to the psychedelic soundtrack, which features new Childish Gambino tracks like “Sticky.”
Another moment that has viewers gagging is a joke in the show in which Paris Jackson compares herself to Halsey. During a conversation between Jackson’s character Hailey and the show’s protagonist, Dre, portrayed by Dominique Fishback, Hailey mentions that she had to “run away” from a relationship because her partner didn’t like that she was Black. Of course, we’ve all seen Paris Jackson (who’s had to address this topic in the past in real life), and Dre is understandably a little thrown by this assertion.
“You’re Black?” she asks incredulously.
“Yeah,” Hailey replies. “My dad’s half.”
“Half what? Black?”
“Yeah,” Hailey says, winding up for the pitch. “That’s why my stage name’s Halsey. You do know who Halsey is, right?” Here’s the clip:
Halsey catching a stray from Paris Jackson via Donald glover & Janine Nabers is crazy https://t.co/gXSpsxJUIt
— haaniyah angus (@_haaniyah_) March 17, 2023
I’ll give you a minute to process Halsey being Black, in case that’s a revelation for you (Halsey’s father is Black, while her mom’s Italian). Honestly, it’s a pretty good joke, playing on a shared attribute between Halsey and Paris, as well as a discussion that both have had to have probably more times than they want to remember.
Meanwhile, it’s clear that Swarm is already becoming the next Euphoria, which may owe to its satirical premise of an out-of-control, serial-killing stan of a famous pop star. The funhouse mirror version of fan Twitter is, of course, already fan Twitter’s favorite new toy, and you can check it for yourself now on Amazon Prime Video.