Show notes
Candyman and Soul Food star Vanessa Estelle Williams joins Keith Reza on Reza Rifts for a candid conversation spanning more than three decades in Hollywood. From breaking through as Keisha in New Jack City to returning as Anne-Marie McCoy in Candyman 2021, Vanessa opens up about guerrilla filmmaking in Harlem, why the anxiety never goes away for actors, and what movie star status actually means to her. She shares behind-the-scenes stories from One Fine Christmas with Marla Gibbs, directing her own award-winning short film Dance, working with Nia DaCosta and Jordan Peele's Monkeypaw, and the improvised Candyman line that went viral. Then it gets personal: 30 years vegan, the ice cream flavor she would be, what she would tell her 13-year-old self, and her advocacy for children on the autism spectrum. GUEST INFO Vanessa Estelle Williams (born May 12, 1963, Brooklyn, New York) is an American actress and producer who has worked across film, television, Broadway, and opera. She broke through as Keisha in New Jack City (1991), played Rhonda Blair in Melrose Place and Lila in Murder One, and is best known as Maxine Chadway on Showtime's Soul Food (2000-2004), a role that won her the 2003 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series. She played Anne-Marie McCoy in both Candyman (1992) and Candyman (2021). Her other credits include The Flash, 9-1-1, Days of Our Lives, and The L Word: Generation Q. She wrote, produced, and directed the award-winning short film Dance and serves on the advisory board of LA Speech & Language Therapy Center. GUEST SOCIAL LINKS Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/imvanessawilliams/ IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004539/ CHAPTERS 00:00 Welcome to Reza Rifts with Keith Reza 00:31 Disney Movies Are Secretly Scary & the Titanic Argument 03:48 New Jack City: Did You Feel Like You Made It? 05:24 Journeyman Actor: Going Wherever the Work Is 08:47 Movie Star vs. TV Star: Murder One, Melrose Place & the Stigma That Wasn't 11:59 Opera, Church Choir & Where the Singing Started 13:47 How a Kid from Brooklyn Got Her First Manager 15:58 One Fine Christmas & Working with Marla Gibbs 20:09 Dance: Directing and Producing Her Own Short Film 24:40 Candyman & the Horror Legacy 25:07 Candyman 2021: Nia DaCosta, Monkeypaw & Coming Home to Anne-Marie 26:46 The Line That Went Viral: "Hush, Don't Say That" 32:49 A Perfect Meal After 30 Years Vegan 35:26 If Vanessa Estelle Williams Were an Ice Cream Flavor 36:03 A Time Machine & Advice to Her 13-Year-Old Self 38:16 Autism in Her Family & the Doctors Who Said Never 42:39 Stand-Up Comedy, Speech Therapy & Finding Your Voice 44:02 Holly Robinson Peete, RJ & the Dodgers Bat Boy 45:51 Outro: Subscribe, Rate, Review CALL TO ACTION If you enjoyed this conversation, make sure to like, comment, and subscribe to Reza Rifts, and hit that notification bell so you never miss an episode. Share this episode with a Candyman fan, a Soul Food fan, or an actor who needs to hear Vanessa's perspective on staying in the game. Listen on your favorite platform: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4O83TYaUVPEWRxcP9ANPSm Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/reza-rifts/id955329738 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@RezaRifts Rate and review. Every review helps Reza Rifts reach more listeners. HOST LINKS Support the show on https://patreon.com/rezarifts61 Follow Keith on all social media platforms: FB: https://www.facebook.com/realkeithreza IG:https://www.instagram.com/keithreza ALT IG:https://www.instagram.com/duhkeithreza X:https://www.twitter.com/keithreza TT:https://www.tiktok.com/keithreza Book Keith on cameo at www.cameo.com/keithreza Check out my website for dates at https://www.keithreza.com/ Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. Tell a friend. Be a Rifter. #VanessaEstelleWilliams #Candyman #Candyman2021 #NewJackCity #SoulFood #AnneMarieMcCoy #HorrorPodcast #HorrorCommunity #ActorInterview #ActressInterview #Hollywood #BlackHollywood #MelrosePlace #MurderOne #OneFineChristmas #MarlaGibbs #NiaDaCosta #JordanPeele #Monkeypaw #IceSpiders #VeganActor #AutismAwareness #SpeechTherapy #StandUpComedy #Brooklyn #Podcast #ComedyPodcast #EntertainmentPodcast #CelebrityInterview #BehindTheScenes #FilmIndustry #TVHistory
