Lovecraft Country Reveals the Dark Truth About Its Body-Changing Potion

Tonight's Lovecraft Country answered some questions that have been looming since two episodes ago. During "Strange Case", Ruby (Wunmi Mosaku) was gifted a magic potion from William (Jordan Patrick Smith), which gave her the ability to transform into a white woman. However, the end of the episode reveals that William wasn't William at all, but rather Christina (Abbey Lee) using the same potion. The episode ended with Ruby learning the truth, and "I Am" picked up where they left off. Not only did Ruby learn why Christina was pretending to be William, but she got a glimpse at how the potion works. Warning: Spoilers Ahead!

Christina reveals that both William and Dell (played by Jamie Neumann, who we saw in the second episode and then became the face of Hillary in "Strange Case") were killed and she's been using their blood to create the potion. She reveals that William was killed by Captain Lancaster (Mac Brandt).

Ruby is understandably upset with these revelations, but Christina assures her that she never lied to her, and that she meant every word she said as William (we're hoping that means their romance will continue to blossom). Christina also explains that since her father refused to teach her magic, she used William to do so and while part of her plan is to get revenge for the death of her dead lover, she's also learning that there's so much more she can do with the magic. Originally, she was learning as a way to impress her father but grew beyond that when she learned what she was capable of.

Ruby and Christina's conversation ended with Christina bringing up the Book of Names and hinting that it all ties together with Ruby's family. Ruby, of course, doesn't know everything her sister Leti (Jurnee Smollett) has been up to.

We don't see Christina again for the rest of the episode after Ruby leaves, so it's currently unclear if Ruby will go back to her or use the potion again. Either way, we look forward to Ruby and Leti finally getting on the same page about all the crazy adventures they've been experiencing.

Recently, Lovecraft Country's showrunner, Misha Green, revealed how she pitched the series to HBO.

"H.P. Lovecraft wrote some of the most celebrated pulp horror, fantasy, sci-fi, and weird stories of the last century," Green's notes read. "You've probably read something by him, or seen something influenced by him (anything by Guillermo del Toro). He even has an entire subsection of the genre named after him. Google 'Lovecraftian horror' and you'll be scrolling for days."

Lovecraft Country airs Sundays at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT on HBO and is available to stream on HBO Max.