‘Insecure’ Star & Creator Issa Rae Discusses Her Dramatic Blowup With Molly & Plans For Season 5

Issa Rae says the recent fight on HBO‘s Insecure isn’t as one-sided as fans may think.

Fans of the comedy watched on Sunday, May 10, as Issa Dee (Issa Rae) and Molly (Yvonne Orji) were involved in an explosive fight at Issa’s block party. She had been working on the party since Season 3 and the major event was finally underway. Prior to the event, Issa asked Molly if her boyfriend, Andrew (Alexander Hodge), can find a guest to headline the festival since he works for Live Nation. Molly said she wouldn’t ask for her friend because she wants to protect her relationship with Andrew.

However, Issa found a loophole in the boundary by asking her former boy toy Nathan (Kendrick Sampson) to ask Andrew instead since the two are roommates. After learning that Andrew helped Issa get rapper Vince Staples to headline the show, Molly decided to confront Issa at the event. The confrontation soon escalated in a screaming match between the two friends, which almost became physical.

Rae spoke about the episode with Variety on Wednesday, May 13. She said one of her goals from the season was to see why the friends have had underlying issues with each other throughout the series. The writers also wanted to illustrate how people who have known each other for years sometimes neglect it when their friends are changing, which can cause disagreements. Since the show ended, many social media users have mostly blamed Molly for causing the fight. After seeing the comments about the altercation, Rae said she doesn’t feel Molly is solely responsible for their current dynamic.

“I don’t think that Issa is blameless by any means,” Rae said. “Whether you think that’s the time or place for Molly to confront it, people have boiling points, and I think for her, it came down to this — [sharing Molly’s thoughts] ‘You don’t respect the boundaries that I set for myself.'”

While she didn’t share if Issa and Molly will resolve their issues by the Season 4 finale, Rae did tease that the rest of the season will have some star-studded directors. Her fellow castmate Jay Ellis is set to direct for the first time in Episode 7. Kerry Washington also directed Episode 9 of the season.

Rae also said she’s currently working on Season 5. She and her team are figuring out how they will film the season in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. The show films in Los Angeles, California, which is currently under lockdown for the next three months.

“Obviously we have a schedule where we’re supposed to shoot, but who knows if we’re going to meet that,” Rae admitted. “Who knows if we’re even going to be able to come out next year, so there’s just so many ‘if’ factors.”