00:00something else i'm excited to see you in is best man three i'm speaking it into existence i don't
00:05know girl speak it in yeah it's literally my favorite movie like not even my favorite rom-com
00:13like i will quote it i will watch it all the time what can you tell us about potential any
00:19conversations well hello melissa thank you so much for chatting with essence how are you
00:29i'm good thank you for having me good you know everybody's had like lighter kind of energy this
00:35year that i've been talking to i think once we're out of 2020 it couldn't get much darker i know
00:41but we are still in you know a pandemic how have you been holding up during this time
00:47it's crazy because when it first started i was like well this is just how my life is anyway
00:53i am a homebody and um you know and just being an actor you know when you're not working
01:01you have downtime and i literally i mean i am slightly reclusive so i i was just like okay
01:09well today's just monday you know right um but you know but then there's stuff going on and people are
01:14you know so it's the the things that are going on within the world that make it different so
01:20maybe my life hasn't changed as much thank god i'm healthy my family's healthy so that's been a
01:25blessing so and i also started writing um during the pandemic and i actually wrote a full script which
01:31i've never done before in my life and i'm really proud of it i really love it and it's it's been
01:37it's been good minus you know the horrible things that have been going on and all of the deaths
01:42and everything but i am grateful i am grateful that i have been okay and yeah good and i know
01:50you have some big news to share with us uh so i'm gonna let you share and then i'll have wait which
01:56one about your new role oh okay um yes yes i'm so excited to join the cast of black lightning their
02:06final season unfortunately but you know i got in just at the nick of time and i um played chief
02:11anna lopez who is the new chief of police for freeland and the mayor asked me to come in after
02:19you know there was a war at the end of last season and they lost their chief in that war he was murdered
02:25so i come in and i am going to bring peace and justice by any means necessary she's not being
02:33yeah she's one of those i was almost like oh uh um you know it's a bit much like the first thing she
02:43does is buys these you know she purchases these high powered weapons for her police officers
02:48she's not playing games she is going to protect the community she's going to turn things around
02:54and she's going to protect her people her officers so she is uh she's a kick-ass chick
03:01what's it like for you coming into a show you know fourth season and uh you know the cast has
03:08already kind of gotten to know each other and you're new what's that like uh well i've been in
03:13this situation before i mean it happens and um everyone's so nice you know crest williams who plays
03:20black lightning was very kind um when i got to the set my first day actually was with him
03:24and you know everyone's nice but you know my character you know she's mostly in her office
03:31and then she you know there's other things that go on but i'm kind of like secluded by myself anyway
03:36um so you know it's like it's like melissa again it's like i can't get it i gotta get to know people
03:44here i'm home alone i'm in the office i'm at work alone right um everyone's so nice everyone's so
03:52nice i couldn't have asked for a kinder cast and the hair and makeup the crew everyone's is really
03:57nice so it is really a blessing and i'm having a great time good and you know i mean obviously we
04:03always talk about diversity it's the word but i do think we truly are seeing more variety you know
04:09of shows and you know opportunities for people of color um to play specifically we with superheroes
04:15and the sci-fi kind of realm what's it like for you you know being in the industry and now you know
04:20seeing more opportunities for characters you can play does it feel like that for you it's like a
04:25double-edged sword it's you know there there are more opportunities i would like to see it seems like
04:32the women of color always put in these kind of commanding roles i would like to see uh more
04:39vulnerability from women of color um you know because we're not just hard you know we are strong
04:45women um but you know we're so much more than that so um as it is opening up i just hope that they
04:56just put more levels and you know colors and you know of of different facets of who we are yeah
05:03black women so you know but it is getting better it is getting better there's so there's like a rush
05:09you know to get you know color you know black and brown women of color you know just out there but
05:15you know i would just like to see the kind of roles and you know to maybe be a little bit more
05:21expansive for sure yeah well something else i'm excited to see you in is best man three
05:28i'm speaking it into existence i don't know speak it in girl speak it in
05:33yeah it's literally my favorite movie like that even my favorite rom-com like i will quote it i will
05:40watch it all the time what can you tell us about potential any conversation i know it's like uh like the
05:49best man police will come and get me if i see my um but i can say that it is in the works um we've
05:58been talking the cast has been talking uh studio has been talking but it's just it's been really fun
06:05actually you know getting to see the cast on zoom and um i didn't realize how much i miss them you
06:10know when we get together it's like we're just like a family it's like my brothers and sisters and we
06:14just fall right back into our rhythm yeah and it's rare because i've you know i've been in this
06:20business for um but um i have never had this kind of experience where i i stay in touch with these
06:30people they're my friends um they're my family like honestly i know people say that sometimes but
06:35it really truly is like we call each other you know i'm closer with others and you know more than
06:40others but yeah just seeing each other like i can't wait to like hang out with them again i mean
06:45it's fun and then we have this great working relationship too and everyone just respects each
06:50other and you know we love each other we really are a family so i can't wait but it's coming okay
06:56yeah and i think it was either sanay lathan or tay diggs i can't remember but you know i think they
07:00were saying you all are working so much like the scheduling is going to be crazy because you all have
07:05so much going on it is but trust and believe you know they'll they'll lock it down you know
07:10look they'll pay to lock it down so you know yeah that'll lock it down right there yeah yeah so it is
07:19going to be a little bit of you know work to you know work it out but you know it's going to work out
07:25i just know what it is because this is meant to be it just feels like the time is it's the perfect
07:29time actually for sure so we're going to work it out okay what else is coming from you
07:34um well there's that and um and like i said you know i've been writing so i you know have this
07:44project that i am very passionate about and so we're going to see what happens with that you know
07:49okay reaching out you know my reps will be reaching out to people and see if we can get this done
07:55because i i love it i mean i think it was kind of like just a pandemic miracle you know things have
08:01been happening to people like during the pandemic you see like what's that dj's name that dj nice
08:07yes and he was he brought everyone together and just like he turned into this you know what i mean
08:14just things yeah like magic was almost happening and i mean i don't say that disrespectfully because
08:18there are horrible things that are happening but um you know i just feel like something good came out of
08:24it as well um so we'll see i mean i'm excited about that too my writing career has that always
08:32been something you wanted to do um you know i always dabbled a little bit but you know what i have
08:36like you know known writers in the industry that have always been like melissa you really can write
08:41you know if i just talk to them or whatever i kind of like work with certain people and i actually
08:47tried this before like many years ago um i had a idea and i worked with it was felicia henderson
08:53actually um okay and we worked together and we went out and started pitching things something that
08:58i had created but it didn't really go anywhere at the time it was so long ago but i've always felt
09:03even psychics have told me you know yeah it's crazy that i you are a writer so when i just sat down and
09:10it just kind of flowed out of me and it just yeah i have this the script which is crazy and people read
09:15it and they're like it's good you can write i'm like really um so i i mean i was happy to hear that
09:21but i was open to hearing whatever it was going to be but you know i think it's just kind of meant
09:26to be so we'll see yeah that's amazing i know like essence atkins she just had her directorial debut
09:31you know regina king even so to your point everyone yeah you know with the pandemic is tapping into
09:38their other talents it's true because i mean you're just sitting home and your mind is just all over the
09:42place and you know like i said you do soul searching and you just discover things about
09:47yourself and yeah yeah it's actually been it's been good yes well we're excited to talk to you again
09:54when the project happens yes that into existence as well um and in the meantime congrats
10:01thank you so much thank you thank you take care bye
10:07thank you
10:15you
10:17you
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