Brandee Evans | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | June 2, 1985 Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 2010–present |
Brandee Evans (born June 2, 1985) [1] is an American actress and former choreographer, best known for her leading role as Mercedes Woodbine in the Starz drama series, P-Valley .
Evans was born in Memphis, Tennessee. Her mother suffers from multiple sclerosis and Alzheimer's. [2] Before her acting career, she worked as a high school English teacher. [2] She began her acting career playing supporting roles in films including Beyond the Lights (2014), and appearing on TV miniseries The New Edition Story and The Bobby Brown Story. As a backup dancer, Evans appears with pop singer Katy Perry in 2010 with the music video of California Gurls as "Bubblegum Girl".
In 2020, Evans began starring as Mercedes Woodbine in the Starz drama series, P-Valley . She received positive reviews from critics for her performance. [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] She was nominated for the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series in 2021 and 2023. [8] [9] In 2023, she starred in the female stoner comedy film, Pretty Stoned. [10]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Note to Self | Sorority Girl | |
| 2014 | Black Coffee | Shea | |
| Beyond the Lights | Dancer | ||
| 2019 | Dear Santa, I Need a Date | Michelle | Television film |
| 2021 | B-Boy Blues | Michi | |
| A Rich Christmas | Carolyn | ||
| 2022 | Rolling Into Christmas | Celeste Franks | Television film |
| 2023 | Pretty Stoned | Tick-Tock | |
| 2024 | The Fabulous Four | Leslie | |
| TBA | Thirsty | Maya King |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | East Los High | Guest | Episode: "Caliente!" |
| 2017 | The New Edition Story | Soul Train Producer | Episode: "Part 2" |
| 2018 | Lethal Weapon | Nurse | Episode: "Diggin' Up Dirt" |
| The Bobby Brown Story | Tina Brown | Episode: "Part 1 & 2" | |
| 2019 | Ryan Hansen Solves Crimes on Television | Makeup Artist | Episode: "The Rhy Chromosome" |
| Games People Play | Cinnamon | Episode: "The Wrath of Grapes" | |
| 2020–22 | The Family Business | Sage | Recurring role, 6 episodes |
| 2020–present | P-Valley | Mercedes Woodbine | Main cast |
Sanaa McCoy Lathan is an American actress. She is the daughter of actress Eleanor McCoy and film director Stan Lathan. Her career began after she appeared in the shows In the House, Family Matters, NYPD Blue, and Moesha. Lathan later garnered further prominence after starring in the 1998 superhero film Blade, which followed with film roles in The Best Man (1999), Love & Basketball (2000), Disappearing Acts (2000), and Brown Sugar (2002).
Tracee Joy Silberstein, known professionally as Tracee Ellis Ross, is an American actress. She is known for her lead roles in the television series Girlfriends (2000–2008) and Black-ish (2014–2022) receiving nominations for five Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for the latter.
Deborah Kaye Allen is an American actress, dancer, choreographer, singer, director, producer, and a former member of the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities. She has been nominated 20 times for an Emmy Award, and two Tony Awards. She has won a Golden Globe Award, and received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1991.
Erika Rose Alexander is an American actress, writer, producer, entrepreneur and activist best known for her roles as Pam Tucker on the NBC sitcom The Cosby Show (1990–1992), and Maxine Shaw on the Fox sitcom Living Single (1993–1998). She has won numerous awards for her work on Living Single, including two NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series. Her film credits include The Long Walk Home (1990), 30 Years to Life (2001), Déjà Vu (2006), Get Out (2017), American Refugee (2021), Earth Mama (2023) and American Fiction (2023), for which she was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Performance.
Golden Brooks is an American actress. She began her career with starring role in the Showtime comedy series, Linc's (1998–2000), and later appeared in the films Timecode (2000) and Impostor (2001).
Regina Rene King is an American actress, director and producer. She has received various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and four Primetime Emmy Awards. In 2019, Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world.
Lynn Whitfield is an American actress. She began her acting career in television and theatre before progressing to supporting roles in film. She won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie and received a Golden Globe Award nomination for her breakout performance as Josephine Baker in the HBO biographical film The Josephine Baker Story (1991).
Carol Denise Betts, known professionally as Niecy Nash, is an American actress, comedian, and television host. Her acting career began in the late 1990s, with appearances in the films Boys on the Side (1995) and Cookie's Fortune (1999). She garnered recognition for her portrayal of Deputy Raineesha Williams in the comedy series Reno 911!, along with hosting the Style Network show Clean House (2003—2010), for which she won a Daytime Emmy Award.
Kimberly Elise Trammel is an American actress. She made her feature-film debut in Set It Off (1996), and later received critical acclaim for her performance in Beloved (1998).
Euphemia LatiQue"Tika" Sumpter is an American actress and producer. Sumpter began her career as the host of Best Friend's Date. From 2005 to 2010, she appeared in the daytime soap opera One Life to Live. In 2010, she made her film debut in Stomp the Yard: Homecoming and later featured in supporting roles for What's Your Number? (2011), Sparkle (2012), and A Madea Christmas (2013).
Tangi Miller is an American actress, model, director, and dancer. As an actress she is known for the role of Elena Tyler on the popular television drama Felicity. Miller has received two NAACP Image Award nominations throughout her career. Starting in the mid 2000s, Miller focused on indie films and has worked as a producer and director.
Melissa De Sousa is an American actress. She made her big screen debut playing the leading role in the 1998 comedy film Ride. She starred as Shelby in the 1999 romantic comedy-drama film The Best Man and later reprised her role in its 2013 sequel The Best Man Holiday and the 2022 Peacock series The Best Man: The Final Chapters.
Keesha Ulricka Sharp is an American actress and television director. She played Monica Charles Brooks in the UPN/The CW comedy series, Girlfriends (2002–08), for which she received a nomination for NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series.
Jacqueline Ruth Weaver is an Australian theatre, film, and television actress. Weaver emerged in the 1970s Australian New Wave through her work in Ozploitation films such as Stork (1971) for which she won AACTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role, Alvin Purple (1973), and Petersen (1974). She later starred in Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975), Caddie (1976) for which she won the AACTA Award for Best Supporting Actress in Film, Squizzy Taylor (1982), and a number of television films, miniseries, and Australian productions of plays such as Death of a Salesman and A Streetcar Named Desire.
Danielle Brooks is an American actress. Her breakthrough role was as prison inmate Tasha "Taystee" Jefferson in the Netflix comedy-drama series Orange Is the New Black (2013–2019).
Adrienne C. Moore is an American actress. She is known for her role as Cindy "Black Cindy" Hayes in the Netflix comedy-drama series Orange Is the New Black (2013–2019).
Teyonah Parris is an American actress. A graduate of Juilliard School, she began acting in 2010. Her first prominent roles were those of secretary Dawn Chambers in the AMC drama series Mad Men (2012–2015), and a starring role in the 2014 independent film Dear White People. Since then, she has appeared in the drama series Empire (2014), Spike Lee's crime comedy Chi-Raq (2015), and the drama film If Beale Street Could Talk (2018).
Elizabeth Folan Gilpin is an American actress. She is best known for portraying Debbie "Liberty Belle" Eagan in the Netflix comedy series GLOW (2017–2019), for which she was nominated for three Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. She also starred as Dr. Carrie Roman in the Showtime comedy-drama series Nurse Jackie (2013–2015). In 2023, she starred in the lead role as a nun who battles A.I. in the Peacock science fiction series Mrs. Davis.
P-Valley is an American drama television series created by Katori Hall. The series is an adaptation of Hall's play Pussy Valley, and follows primarily African-American women working at The Pynk strip club in the Mississippi Delta under the femme non-binary proprietor Uncle Clifford Sayles. P-Valley stars Brandee Evans, Nicco Annan, J. Alphonse Nicholson, and Elarica Johnson. It premiered on Starz on July 12, 2020, and was renewed for a second season two weeks after its premiere. The second season premiered on June 3, 2022. In October 2022, the series was renewed for a third season.
Nicco Annan is an American actor, dancer, and choreographer. He is best known for his portrayal of Uncle Clifford on the Starz drama series P-Valley, an adaptation of the Katori Hall play Pussy Valley, in which Annan originated the role.
