First things first: The attention-seeking creatures that inhabit Niko (Yuyu Kitamura) in Dead Boy Detectives have names, thank you very much — Litty (Caitlin Reilly) and Kingham (Max Jenkins). So if you even think about calling them Sprite 1 and Sprite 2, they’ll find it really offensive and roast you into oblivion. Actually, they’ll do that anyway. 

We meet the 2-inch-tall, foul-mouthed Sprites in Episode 2, “The Case of the Dandelion Shrine,” when the Dead Boy Detectives help remove the paranormal parasites from Niko’s body and trap them in an enchanted jar. From their fishbowl prison, the Sprites lovingly taunt Niko and her friends for the rest of the season. (Particularly memorable digs include Kingham comparing Niko’s face to “roadkill.”) Think of them as the series’ savage Greek chorus, commenting on the goings-on of the characters and cases. 

Get to know the actors who play the darling “pests,” — as costume designer Kelli Dunsmore calls them —below:

How were the Sprites initially described to you?

Caitlin Reilly: First of all, when Max and I did our callback together, it was immediate, where I was like, “I love him.” We had the same energy, like sassy Tweedledee and Tweedledum, but, like, hint of c***.

Max Jenkins: And then we started acting.

Were you encouraged to improvise on the show?

Jenkins: We were discouraged.

Reilly: At first we were encouraged and then we kind of went crazy and they were like, “Maybe we need to adjust.”

Jenkins: We were in an airplane hangar and felt miles away from any members of the crew or creative team. So we felt empowered to do a three-act play.

Reilly: Which we did do.

Are there any lines you know you thought of that stayed in?

Reilly: There’s one bit where we start screaming at each other, and I think that’s very much in there. He says, “I hate you.” I say, “I hate you, too.” That was all us, baby. 

Jenkins: What we were privately working out was whether our characters are brother and sister or married.

Reilly: Yeah, and we still don’t know —

Jenkins: I’m not sure if we got anywhere on that.

Reilly: And we’re going to keep it that way.

Jenkins and Reilly: It could be both.

Reilly: We could be the male/female version of each other of the same DNA structure. Same person, but different.

Jenkins: Separated Siamese twins.

Who are your parents though?

Jenkins: I’m not opposed to Parker Posey being in Season 2 of Dead Boys. I want her to have given birth to us.

But who’s daddy?

Jenkins: She can do it herself.

Reilly: Rupert Everett.

What insights did showrunners Steve Yockey and Beth Schwartz give you about the igloo scene at the end?

Jenkins: The logic of this world only exists within Steve Yockey’s brain. He has tried to explain it to us and we definitely nodded and acted like we understood what was happening.

Reilly: We were excited and we would love a Season Deux.

Jenkins: Look, the point is that our bodies are not always in the same place as our spectral presences. We astral project, potentially.

You two and Niko are all the same size in that scene, which is not typical of the rest of the show…

Jenkins: Did you know that Dandelion Sprites can grow? Much like dandelions grow sometimes where you don’t want them. They’re the weeds of the fairy world. And not only do they grow, but they can teleport and travel to different geographic places. And they like to see the sights. They particularly enjoy Asia. I mean, they’re Japanophiles.

Courtesy of Caitlin Reilly

And Niko does have some family back there…

Reilly: She does? That’s crazy.

Jenkins: Wow. Interesting. But the fact that Dandelion Sprites are such clotheshorses and tend to be really decked out —

Reilly: Imagine what their outfits would look like. A shopping montage in Japan? Stop it right now.

Jenkins: Sprites lend themselves to a makeover. We have a very strong look now, but just wait for look No. 3.

Reilly: A montage set to “No Air” by Jordin Sparks.

Jenkins: The Glee version of “No Air.” The Dandelion Sprites were in Glee. I don’t know if you saw that.

Speaking of shopping, who else would be fun for the Sprites to inhabit aside from Niko? 

Reilly: I mean, the possibilities are endless. Lukas Gage is great.

Jenkins: We’d have fun if we became cat people.

Reilly: I can’t film with cats.

Jenkins: No, me neither. I’m allergic.

A scene with the Sprites and Cat King would have been too powerful.

Reilly: We did talk a lot though. We were long-distance set buddies, but we never filmed together. He and I were already Instagram buddies. Then I think you [Max] were actual friends with him in some capacity, so we called him on our first day of set and had a gab.

Jenkins: The Cat King gets thwarted and we somewhat get thwarted. If we joined forces, perhaps we could come out on top in the end.

Reilly: Teacher, is Tudum the sound that Netflix makes?

Absolutely right.

Reilly: Because for a while, I’m like, what the f*** is Tudum? I was like, “Is that an emirate?”

It’s behind the scenes of your favorite Netflix shows and movies.

Jenkins: That’s so fun. Ask us even more now.

Reilly: Ask us even more! 

Jenkins: What other scoop could we give?

Reilly: I’d love for the second season to revolve around us. I really just want to know their backstory. I want to know where they came from.

Jenkins: Who made them this way? Who hurt them?

Reilly: Yeah, stand-alone series would make sense. 

What are your other aspirations for the Sprites?

Jenkins: I think they’re going to become gay icons. Six months?

Reilly: In the next six months or so, come Halloween. Funko dolls?

Jenkins: That was really our goal, to become Funko Pop dolls. 

Reilly: It’s in our contracts.

Jenkins: We need to go to Comic Con. We’ll have a booth. We would like a crossover with Marni who made our [argyle] sweaters. 

Reilly: A capsule collection. Or do a collab with Sweetgreen. 

Jenkins: We thought Reneé Rapp’s [Sweetgreen campaign] was interesting, but we can go further. We have been working on a Sweetgreen salad. I can’t say much, but chickpeas.

Reilly: And all the green. It’s a green base.

Jenkins: Green Goddess dressing.

Reilly and Jenkins: Hairnets.

Reilly: Thank you for the support, and try out the focaccia.

Jenkins: We’re going to spit in every single salad.

Watch Jenkins and Reilly as the Sprites in Dead Boy Detectives Season 1, only on Netflix.