Marissa Jackson shockingly kills herself in the first episode of Swarm after Dre, her sister, informs her that Ni’Jah’s partner tried to cheat on her. Dre then embarks on a killing spree, eliminating people who dislike Ni’Jah, a character based on Beyonce.
Janine Nabers and Donald Glover’s Swarm is an extreme portrayal of the dangers of stan culture. “This is not a work of fiction,” a message preceding every episode of Swarm reads. “Any similarities to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events, is intentional.”
The message has sparked curiosity about Marissa and whether she killed herself because of a pop star.
Marissa Jackson is not real; the internet created her
Marissa Jackson is a fake character created by Empire Herald, a satire website. The website claimed that Jay Z’s alleged infidelity inspired Marissa to kill herself. Janine Nabers told Shondaland:
“There was a rumor about a woman named Marissa Jackson who committed suicide after watching this visual album because it basically confirmed that a very powerful man [Beyoncé’s husband, Jay-Z] was cheating on one of the most incredibly beautiful and successful pop stars of our time.”
Janine stated that the story went viral, as typically, some netizens tweeted ‘really horrible things’ about Marissa. She said that the fake account and character were the basis of Swarm’s story. “We started the story from there and kind of built off it with real events that happened in America,” Janine stated.
Therefore, Marissa and her sister Dre are not real people.