Whitney Cummings in a scene from ‘The Accused’ | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
At age 28, Whitney Cummings had a television show under her name. She went on to create the popular show, 2 Broke Girls soon after. During his meteoric rise in the comedy industry, he took on the roles of a stand-up comedian, writer, director, producer, talk-show host, and even a podcaster. Now, she is moving on to tackle acting.
Featured in episode 7 of Howard Gordon accusedIn the film, Whitney plays Brenda, a struggling stand-up comic who is raped by her ex-boyfriend and co-worker, Zeke Thompson. The 40-year-old spoke candidly about her journey working with the producer, acting in plays and more in an exclusive video interview with him Hindu,
“As a comedian, doing drama is scary”, Whitney confessed, adding that she draws strength and inspiration from her heroes, Robin Williams and Jim Carrey, who made a promising leap from comedy to acting in dramas. . Playing an amateur stand-up comedian who is not the “perfect victim” made her job more difficult. “I had to make sure I was working with someone who could protect me and guide me on how to handle this sensitive matter,” she says.
Whitney Cummings in a scene from ‘The Accused’ | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
She had not anticipated acting in plays until later in her career, but “voluntarily jumped into the project” when she realized she was working with the team. “I have a lot of respect for Howard Gordon…he created some of my favorite high-octane shows Homeland And 24 And I knew I could count on myself to do justice to the role under his tutelage.
Whitney says, “Howard gave me the freedom to perform. He sets up the sandbox, lets the actors play in it and doesn’t intervene unless he has to… If I was part of a movie, he’d let me do my work first and if he had notes, he’d gently pass them on to the director to keep me from being distracted from the space I was supposed to be in.
While one might assume that playing a comedian would be easy for a veteran, she explains that she had to delve into her prejudices and past to fully immerse herself in the role. “My character has a problem with alcohol and drugs; He’s desperate and reckless, and I worried what the team would think of me because I’ve had some of these qualities in my past.
A scene from ‘2 Broke Girls’
“There are many qualities in Brenda that I have worked hard to change. I was very hard on myself, I have tried to grow and mature and so for this part, I have to go back to who I was or who I could have been, I didn’t try to work on myself,” Whitney says that having a support team helped her through the process. “When you’re in Hollywood for too long, you get a sour taste in your mouth about movies and TV and everything starts to feel like a chore. So, I really look forward to collaborating with people whose work moves me and makes me forget I’m doing a job.”
To better understand her character, Whitney tried to research the social conventions governing American society and culture. “I tried to better understand the foster-care system and its impact on my character, Brenda.” He also focuses on understanding how children are raised in America and how their self-limiting beliefs are affirmed in the process.
Lastly, she explains how she wanted to pay tribute to comedians with her character, “I wanted to take the parts of every comedian I knew, not judge them, and incorporate them into this character. wanted to do To pay tribute to all the broken toys in our business and to all the nasty rivalry mechanisms that stand-up guys learn at an early stage.