Lesley-Ann Brandt, the actress who portrayed the demons Mazikeen and Lilith on the Netflix series Lucifer, published an essay Monday in which she revealed that she had an abortion in 2014. The actress used her story to advocate against the Texas Heartbeat Act, which makes abortions illegal after a baby’s heartbeat can be detected.
“At age 32, my abortion gave me choice, autonomy over my own body, and opportunities in my career,” she said.
In Lucifer, Satan leaves Hell to open a nightclub in Los Angeles. Brandt’s character, Mazikeen, is a pansexual archdemon with a “voracious sexual appetite” who was previously the Devil’s head torturer. She comes to Los Angeles with Satan to be his bartender. In one episode, she also portrays the demon Lilith.
In her essay in Self magazine, Brandt tells the story of her abortion, which occurred while she was a guest star on the series Killer Women.
At the time, she was living with her boyfriend but said that “neither one of us was ready for parenthood.” Brandt had a “weird headache” and “felt really tired” while working on the set of Killer Women, so she stopped by CVS on the way to the set to purchase a pregnancy test. After finding out the result on the set of Killer Women, she called her boyfriend Chris. “I could hear the panic in his voice,” she said, “but I quickly allayed his fears. I had already called a private abortion clinic and booked my appointment.”
Brant said that people have abortions “for many reasons” and that she “simply wasn’t ready.”
“That’s it, and that’s good enough. I didn’t want to be a mother at that moment in my life, so I made a decision that was best for me and my relationship.”
Brant went on to say that she will “fight to ensure” that “we are treated as more than just ‘host bodies’ in every aspect of society.”
“The truth is that banning abortion will not stop abortion, it just makes already vulnerable people’s lives more difficult.”
She finished her essay by noting her love for the son she gave birth to, Kingston. “I love you,” she said. “I chose to have you when I was ready. And it’s the best decision I’ve ever made.”