Teyonah Parris

thumb Teyonah Parris (born September 22, 1987) is an American actress. A graduate of Juilliard School, she began acting in 2010. Quotes I never looked at it like that. What I do is look at the story and what it is that we are trying to say. If I’m doing an action, if I’m trying to illicit something from somebody, get something from them, and just being truthful, and knowing that I was under the direction of an amazing, talented visionary like Spike Lee, I didn’t really think about that part of it. For me, it’s debilitating in a way. Who could live up to that kind of pressure. I just focused on more tangible things like what is my character trying to do. I watched a lot of Pam Grier and Assata Shakur. I studied women who made change and were huge parts of movements and how they behaved in the world. Those are just a few names and things and they are very different. For the style aspect of it, it was Pam. For the content and context, it was more of the Assata Shakurs and women like that who affected change in their community. My cast is amazing talented. I don’t have to say that. In working with Nick Cannon, he’s such a generous guy, a generous actor, and he was very protective. The film deals with women in the community going on a sex strike. For certain scenes between us, Nick made sure I was comfortable. Everyone on set was very respectful of what we had to do and at the end of the day, it was in service to a larger message, which is going on a sex strike to get the community to put down their guns and stop all the senseless violence. Exclusive: Teyonah Parris Talks Spike Lee’s Chi-Raq;By Guest Writer on December 1, 2015, I try to be very particular about the roles I choose and what they say and put into the universe. I try to do my part There are black men dying for a lot less offensive things than that Let that be a black man walk up to a white woman and decide he’s gonna touch her hair. His ass might be dead right now Challenges Welcome: A Teyonah Parris Joint;By REBECCA HAITHCOAT on August 20, 2015 External links Category:Actresses from South Carolina Category:Living people Category:1987 births Category:Women born in the 1980s Category:Juilliard School alumni Category:African Americans