“In the Envelope: An Awards Podcast” features intimate interviews with award-winning actors and other creatives. Join host and Awards Editor Jack Smart for a front row seat to the industry’s most exciting awards races, and valuable acting and career advice from contenders!
DeWanda Wise is a poet and a scholar. Not literally—she’s an actor first and foremost, but the way she approaches her craft and career is reflective of her ability to both feel and understand sensitively. It’s partly why, when Spike Lee came calling, she was ready (and not intimidated by his overly challenging auditioning).
Wise plays Nola Darling in the 2017 Netflix hit “She’s Gotta Have It,” adapted for episodic TV by the legendary Lee, whose 1986 film about this sexually woke Brooklynite artist put him on the map as a moviemaker. Prior to reinventing this juiciest of characters, Wise was known for her compelling performances in Fox’s “Shots Fired” and WGN’s “Underground.” Now, leading a critically acclaimed series means hard work and sacrifice (Wise had to turn down a part in an upcoming Marvel Studios blockbuster), but there’s no denying Nola is a dream role.
Originating from Maryland and training as an actor at NYU and Atlantic Theater Company, Wise has wisdom both philosophical and practical for her fellow performers. Check out her fabulous interview below. And don’t forget to follow “In the Envelope” on Twitter!