Montrose Freeman

**Montrose Freeman** is one of the main characters in *Lovecraft Country*. He is portrayed by Michael Kenneth Williams.

He is Atticus’ father who recently went missing. The secrets he harbors have taken a toll on his life and his relationship with Atticus.

## History

### Biography

Montrose was born with dyslexia. He was raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma along with his brother, George. They were under the constant threat of an abusive father, more so Montrose as he was younger. During his youth, he'd draw a lot. Every summer, he used to draw a colorful welcome sign, go down to the bus station, and cheer on all the Negro league players as they rode in for training camp. However, the summer before high school, their father caught him down at the station and beat him severely. At some point, he met Dora, got married, and had a son, whom they named Atticus.

## Throughout the Series

### Season 1

#### Whitey's on the Moon

Montrose is taken by the Braithwhites and locked in an underground cellar. He manages to tunnel his way out, where he finds Tic, Letitia, and George awaiting him. Montrose says that he didn't need their help. He exclaims that they haven’t spoken in over five years and that he didn’t think Tic was stupid enough to show up merely because he wrote a letter under duress. On their way back to the lodge, they crash into an invisible barrier. They exit the vehicle as Samuel and Christina Braithwhite pull up behind them. Samuel shoots Leti and then shoots George.

George remains in critical condition. He tells Montrose to break the window and escape with Leti, but Montrose doubts Leti would leave. She reminds him of Dora in that way. George questions why Montrose stopped drawing. He used to draw all the time when they were kids. Every summer, he’d draw a colorful welcome sign and go down to the bus station to cheer on all the Negro league players as they road in from training camp. Montrose reveals that their father caught him down at the station the summer before high school and beat him severely. George then says he wants Montrose to show Tic that he loves him before it’s too late. George even implies that Tic may be his son. Montrose reminds George that they settled this matter a long time ago and agreed not to speak of it.

Leti is healed by Samuel after Tic agreed to participate in the ceremony. He promised that he would heal George afterward, but they are forced to flee the lodge as it starts to collapse due to the ceremony. Montrose carries George to Woody, where he dies soon thereafter.

#### Holy Ghost

Montrose gets drunk and mumbles on about his past, specifically an incident where he and George were under attack. Tic throws a cup of water in his face to wake him up. The incident Montrose was dreaming of was when a group of white boys had him and George surrounded and out of nowhere came a mysterious stranger armed with a bat. He hit home runs on each of their heads. And after saving them both, all he said was "I got you, kid." When Montrose and Tic returned to Chicago, they told Hippolyta that George was killed by Sheriff Hunt. However, Tic regrets lying to Hippolyta. Montrose would rather let the truth die with George and slams his fist down on the table.

Montrose helps Hippolyta with the groceries. George’s favorite book, Dracula, falls out of the bag. Hippolyta claims that she spilled coffee on George’s copy. Despite seeing the body for herself, Hippolyta suspects that Tic and Montrose haven’t told her everything about George’s death.

#### A History of Violence

Montrose mourns the loss of his brother. His attempt to drink his sorrows away are futile. He sobs uncontrollably while looking through old family photos. He then grabs the Order of the Ancient Dawn bylaws. It reads “Adam named. Eve fucked. God brought forth Monsters. Monsters devoured. God smites Eve.” He proceeds to throw the book into a trashcan, douse it with liquor, and set the book on fire.

Montrose, Tic, and Leti meet at Sammy’s bar. Montrose warned him to stay away from the wizardry. They’re outnumbered and outgunned. He unintentionally mentions that there are 34 other lodges besides the Sons of Adam. Montrose initially tells Tic and Leti that he won’t help, but then reveals that Titus’ vault is in Boston at the Museum of Science.

They arrive at the Museum of Science. Montrose goes to meet with the security guard who agreed to help them sneak in after hours. Montrose has arranged for the security guard to let them in through the back at night. Tic questions how he knows the guard. Montrose claims that he’s a friend from the bar. More importantly, they only have a two hour window to get to the vault and get back out. In the center of the Titus Braithwhite wing, they see his statue. They suspect that the vault is located somewhere underneath.

Montrose, Tic, and Leti sneak into the museum after dark. They look for a way to open the door beneath the statue. Montrose tells them to turn off their flashlights. The light from the moon shines down on the statue, revealing the means to unlock the door. Tic climbs down a rope first, shortly followed by Montrose and Leti with the map of Titus’ voyages. The three tunnels relate to Titus’ expeditions. His voyage to the Caribbean was supposedly his last. According to the brochure, the first renovations were done to the museum after he returned from the Caribbean in 1810, three years before he founded the Sons of Adam. With that, they travel down the north tunnel.

The three of them reach the end of the tunnel. Below them is a black, seemingly bottomless pit. The only way to make it across to the other side is a single wooden plank. Tic ties a rope around Leti as Montrose ties a rope around Tic. Leti walks the plank first. She nearly falls to her death due to one of Titus’ booby-traps — a large, swinging anchor. Tic joins her on the plank. Montrose then alerts Tic that the plank is disappearing. Montrose jumps onto the plank with Tic, and they race to the other side with Leti. They then reach a locked door with panels that must be pushed in the correct order to open. Montrose recalls the quote from the bylaws and recites them to Tic and Leti, who manage to get the door open.

They have less than an hour to find the vault and escape before the water rises and they drown. The water is at their waist. Tic questions how Montrose knows so much about the Sons of Adam. Montrose admits that George gave him the Order of the Ancient Dawn bylaws the night he died. He read it and he burnt it afterward because George made him promise that he would protect their family. Leti screams after finding the body of her neighbor floating in the water. They discover that they’re just below Leti’s house as they come across her elevator. Given that Hiram Epstein was part of the Order, it stands to reason that he was chasing Titus’ pages as well.

The water reaches their shoulders as they near Titus’ vault. Tic puts on his Sons of Adam ring and sticks his hand into a hole, where his blood is used as a key the vault. Once inside, they find at least half a dozen corpses and Titus’ pages to the Book of Names. Tic reaches for the pages and the corpse of an Arawak woman comes alive. She has the genitalia of a man but the breast of a woman. She explain in Arawak, which only Tic can understand, that Titus has been dead for over a century. Her name is Yahima Maraokoti. Both woman and man. Two spirits. She comes from the land of many waters. Titus came on his ships searching for those who could read his book. She knew the symbols from the cave of Alomun Kundi. When she saw Titus for what he was, she refused to decipher another word, but he promised to reunite her with her people. And he kept that promise by killing them and imprisoning her in his vault. Tic asks for her help, but she doesn’t trust him. So Montrose grabs the pages from her hand, which causes the windows to crack and the vault to flood.

Montrose, Tic, Leti, and Yahima swim to the elevator. The water has risen above their heads. Leti goes back to get the pages that George dropped and then returns to the elevator. The elevator goes up and Tic kisses Leti. Yahima then lets out a high-pitched scream, forcing Tic to knock her out.

Montrose has come to understand the cause of Yahima’s scream. He suspects that Titus turned her into a siren so that she couldn’t speak if she ever escaped the vault. Tic wants to teach her English so that she can write down the words of Adam. Montrose tells Tic that he was brave and grew to be a good man. His mother would’ve been proud. Tic gets teary-eyed and tells Montrose good night. Once he is alone with Yahima, Montrose sneaks up behind her and slits her throat.

#### Strange Case

Montrose is savagely attacked by Tic after he killed Yahima. He is beaten to the point where he has to be forcefully removed. Montrose visits Sammy at the Cabrini Green projects. Sammy sees his swollen eye and asks if it was the “ofays or the n\*\*\*ers this time?” Montrose doesn’t reply. He simply unbuttons his pants, turns Sammy around, and has sex with him.

Montrose watches as Sammy performs at a drag queen club. He is mesmerized by Sammy’s performance and the atmosphere of the club. He displays moments of happiness and kisses Sammy for the first time.

#### I Am.

Montrose awakens to find Sammy cooking breakfast in the kitchen. Sammy ran into Montrose’s neighbor at the bus stop, but he assures Montrose that she didn’t see him enter the apartment. Montrose fears that they're getting too close and nitpicking at anything he can find until Sammy decides to leave. Montrose follows Sammy into the hallway, where Tic and Leti have just arrived. Tic refers to him as a “f\*ggot.” Montrose angrily rips off his shirt and demands that Tic respect him. Before leaving, Tic asks if his mother knew, which she did. Leti stays behind to ask Montrose about Dora's family.

#### Jig-A-Bobo

Montrose goes looking for Dee after she goes missing during Bobo's funeral. He finds her at the house, and she confronts him, asking about her mother and accusing everyone of lying to her. Montrose insists that she’s on a guide trip. Dee isn't convinced and hides away in the bathroom. Montrose can relate to Dee’s pain. They took his friend when he was around her age. He and George learned early on that no matter what they do, the white folks always take it from them. He tells her that when they come for her, she better make them work for it. He then opens the bathroom door to find that she left through the window.

Montrose sits on the curb. Tic joins him and asks if he ever cheated on his mother. Montrose had desires but he never acted on them. Not until Dora was gone. Montrose reveals that when he was 8 years old, the pastor of his church got caught with another man in the park. The police came and snatched him off the pulpit in handcuffs. They put him in an asylum and cut out half his brain. This is Montrose’s reason for hiding the fact that he is gay. Both he and Dora wanted a family and that’s what their love was built. Tic then reveals that Leti is pregnant. He found out when he went to the future. He hands Montrose the Lovecraft Country book he returned from the future with. It’s written by Tic’s son, George Freeman.

Montrose tells Tic he shouldn’t have given Christina the keys to Hiram’s machine, but Tic reveals that she won’t be able to use it as the machine is broken. Tic was only in the future for a short while before the woman in the hood, with the robotic arm, shoved the book in his hand, and pushed him back through the portal. The book is their family’s story, though some of the details differ. It ends with Christina sacrificing Tic on the autumnal equinox to become immortal, which is just five days away. Montrose tells Tic that he’s going to do whatever he can to save him and his grandson.

Montrose has trouble reading the incantation. He reveals to Tic that he’s dyslexic and that he has been since he was a boy, which Tic was not aware of. Tic draws the symbol in his blood and Montrose recites the incantation, but it doesn’t appear to work.

Montrose goes into the garage to find Dee randomly swinging a led pipe, though she’s the only one he sees. He restrains her, unaware that she’s under attack by two demon girls.

#### Rewind 1921

Montrose learns that Dee is dying from a curse. While Christina can't break the curse, she can perform a restoration spell to reset the curse to give Dee more time. However, the spell requires the blood of Dee’s closest relative. With Hippolyta gone, the task either falls on Montrose on Tic, depending on whether or not George is Tic's father.

If Montrose could go back in time and take that bullet for George, he would. Montrose gets drunk in the garage and reveals that his blood might not be able to save Dee as Tic might be George’s son, making him Dee’s closest relative. Tic becomes upset at this revelation after all the years he wished George was his father. Christina returns, and Hippolyta then suddenly returns and inquires about Dee’s health.

After Dee's curse is reset, Montrose, Leti, Tic, and Hippolyta drive to the observatory in Kentucky to retrieve the Book of Names from Tic’s family before it got lost in the Tulsa riots. Montrose and Leti tend to Dee. Montrose reveals to Leti that he and Tic are aware that she’s pregnant. Tic didn’t tell her because he also learned that he dies during Christina’s spell. Montrose, Leti, and Tic then travel to Tulsa, 1921 while Hippolyta maintains the portal.

They get dressed in time appropriate clothes to not draw attention and head to Dora’s house, the last known whereabouts of the Book of Names. Montrose comes to a stop as they near a park. He appears traumatized by the near sight of it. Tic realizes that he’s drunk and scolds him. He suffered under Montrose’s abuse for years only to learn that he may not even be his father. Tic tells Montrose that after Dee is safe, they’re done.

The three of them arrive outside of Dora’s house. Montrose and George stayed just next door. They watch as Verton, Montrose and George’s father, beat Montrose mercilessly with a switch after catching him in George’s prom jacket with a flower in his hair. While Leti and Tic are distracted, Montrose sneaks off. He makes his way to the park, where he comes across a vehicle filled with liquor. He breaks the window with a baseball bat and steals a bottle.

Tic catches up to him in alleyway near the park. He warns Montrose against informing George of his death, but that’s not why Montrose came. He had a "friend" named Thomas who got shot in the head that night, which Montrose is hoping to prevent. Montrose completely erased Thomas from his memory after that night as it was the only way he could move on, but given the chance, he has to save him. Tic reminds Montrose that if he saves Thomas, then he won’t end up with Dora and Tic will never be born. However, Montrose argues that this won’t be the case. He won't allow for it to be. It was that night that Montrose told Thomas that they couldn’t be friends anymore as they could never be together.

They watch as young Montrose and Thomas are surrounded by a group of white men and Thomas is shot in the head. George and Dora show up and the three of them attempt to fight off their attackers. Tic and Montrose wait for the stranger with the baseball bat to show up and save them but he never shows. Tic sees a baseball bat on the ground and realizes that he is, in fact, the mysterious stranger who saved them when they were kids. Tic races over to George, Montrose, and Dora’s with a baseball bat and fends off the group of white men attacking them.

Montrose and Tic make their way back to the portal. Tic jumps through the portal while George stays in 1921 and watches as Tulsa burns to the ground. He sees Leti in the streets below, slowly making her way closer. Walking through the fiery explosions of aerial bombs without so much as a scratch. The two of them then jump through with the Book of Names.

#### Full Circle

Tic and Leti fall to the ground unconscious after Tic opens the Book of Names. Montrose and Hippolyta try to wake them but they remain unconscious. Hippolyta then notices that Dee is healing. Moments later, Tic and Leti awaken, shortly followed by Dee, who’s arm remains decayed from the curse.

Tic is determined to go through with Hanna’s spell. The blood tie is the most important part. They need a blood connection between Tic, Titus, and Christina. In doing this, they’ll be able to use the energy from Christina’s spell against her. However, Montrose refuses to allow Tic to sacrifice himself as he recalls the book saying that Tic dies in the ritual. So Tic lies to Montrose and tells him that the book is wrong.

After refusing to trust Ruby or hand over the Book of Names to Christina, Montrose, Tic, Leti, Ji-ah, Hippolyta, and Dee pack up and head to Ardham. Ruby joins them at the lost moment with a vial of Christina's blood. They arrive in Ardham, and Montrose lays down a trail of salt while Tic makes the blood connection. He eats Titus’ flesh and drinks Christina’s blood. Montrose then joins Hippolyta and Ji-ah on the bridge. Suddenly, they find themselves surrounded by adamites armed with pitchforks and shovels. The trio attempt to fight them off but are outnumbered and taken to the Lodge. Montrose is unconscious when Christina sacrifices Tic and becomes immortal. He doesn't awaken until after the dark explosion caused by Leti and Ji-ah when stopping Christina and stripping white people of their magic. Montrose calls out to Tic, unaware that he’s dead. Hippolyta hands Montrose a letter written to him by Tic, apologizing for lying to him about the outcome of the spell. Having defeated Christina, Leti, Montrose, Hippolyta, and Ji-ah carry Tic home.

## Personality

Montrose is a confrontational and abrasive drunk. He spends a lot of time at the bar and has only shown himself to care for few people. He's also closeted homosexual, as he's in love with Sammy.

## Physical Appearance

Montrose is a middle-aged black man with a haircut and brown eyes.

## Relationships

* George Freeman - Montrose's older brother who looked after him and tried to protect him from their father's abusive ways.
* Dora Freeman - Montrose's late wife, with who he had his first and only son, Atticus.
* Atticus Freeman - Montrose's son, who he has an estranged relationship with due to Montrose being an abusive father. It was his unfair treatment of Tic that lead him to joining the army.
* Sammy - Montrose's boyfriend who he had a affair at the Cabini Green projects.

## Appearances

Season One
* *Sundown* (credit only)
* *Whitey's on the Moon*
* *Holy Ghost*
* *A History of Violence*
* *Strange Case*
* *I Am.*
* *Jig-A-Bobo*
* *Rewind 1921*
* *Full Circle*

## Quotes

> Boy, we ain't spoken over five damn years, and you fight me on everything. Obviously, I didn't think you were stupid enough to show up 'cause I wrote a letter under duress.
>
> Montrose to Tic, Whitey's on the Moon

> Because my brother told me to protect our family! That was his dying wish. And I did it the night I burnt that damn book, closing Pandora's box once and for good!
>
> Montrose to Tic, A History of Violence

> Hey, you know what your grandpa told me? Said, "Always have a love song for your woman. This way, when they get to fussin'... You just sing that song to yourself. When you're through, she'll be done and you can get back to what you want, the lovin'. 'Cause that's all that fussing is anyway. Whole lotta lovin'".
>
> Montrose to Tic, A History of Violence

> You were brave as hell out there today, boy. You grew to be a good man in spite of me. Your mama would've been proud.
>
> Montrose to Tic, A History of Violence

> Diana, I know how you feel. When I was your age, they took my best friend too. Thought that was the worst of it, you know? But white folks, they just keep coming. More vicious and evil than the last time. You know, your pops and I, we learned early on. No matter what you do or how well you do it, they always take it from us. It doesn't mean you have to give it to 'em easy.
>
> Montrose to Dee, Jig-A-Bobo

> You know, son... I always thought my death would come at the end of a white man's bullet or a rope. Magic's so much more jazz.
>
> Montrose to Tic, Jig-A-Bobo

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 *Jig-A-Bobo*
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 *Whitey's on the Moon*
3. ↑ *Holy Ghost*
4. ↑ *A History of Violence*
5. ↑ *Strange Case*
6. ↑ *I Am.*
7. ↑ *Rewind 1921*
8. ↑ *Full Circle*