Rothwell was born on October 18, 1980 in Wichita, Kansas.[3] Her parents David and Sharon Rothwell are natives from Philadelphia.[4] She has three siblings, Tamika, Tiffany and David.[5] They were raised Christian.[6]
Due to her father’s career in the United States Air Force, Rothwell's family moved frequently when she was young, including to New Mexico, Florida, Illinois, New Jersey, Maryland, and Turkey.[3] Rothwell attended two elementary schools, two middle schools, and two high schools. Rothwell graduated from Westlake High School in Waldorf, Maryland.[6]
Rothwell attended Ithaca College as a journalism major, before transferring to the University of Maryland as a theatre major on a full creative and performing arts scholarship.[6] Rothwell credits the Langston Hughes's poem "Harlem" — which begins with the question "What happens to a dream deferred?" — as the inspiration that pushed her to change majors and pursue her dream to become an actor.[7]
Career
Upon graduating, Rothwell moved to Japan to teach english and performed at the Tokyo Comedy Store.[8] In 2009, Rothwell returned to the United States and moved to New York City where she worked as a high school theatre teacher for 4 years while pursuing comedy. She performed at Upright Citizens Brigade improv group and eventually landed a job as a writer on Saturday Night Live for the 2014-2015 season.[9] After 8 years in New York, Rothwell moved to Los Angeles, California in 2015.[10]
In 2016, Rothwell had her breakthrough role on the Issa RaeHBO series Insecure as Kelli Prenny, where she also served as a writer and supervising producer. The series ran for five seasons concluding in 2021.[11][12] Rothwell won Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her role at the 2022 NAACP Image Awards.
As of September2024[update], Rothwell is developing a TV adaptation of the viral TikTok series “Who TF Did I Marry” by Tareasa “Reesa Teesa” Johnson.[22]
In 2025, Rothwell reprised her role as Belinda in season 3 of The White Lotus.
Rothwell has ADHD, describing herself as "neurospicy," and has spoken about the importance of mental health.[24] She describes herself as a Type-A person and a nerd.[25]
Rothwell is a Democrat and an advocate for women’s rights, LGBTQIA+ rights, and civil rights.[citation needed] She is a vocal critic of Donald Trump’s administration’s and has marched against anti-immigration policies and police brutality. She has spoken about her passion for activism, telling GQ in 2018, “I lived in DC for almost 10 years. When you live there you kind of can’t help but be politically active.”[26]
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