Kimberly Nichole Wayans ( WAY-ənz; born October 16, 1961) is an American actress, comedian and director. Having made her television debut as Allison in the first season of The Cosby Show spin-off A Different World, she became known for her numerous roles on the Fox sketch comedy series In Living Color (1990–1993) and as Tonia Harris on the NBC/UPN sitcom In the House (1995–1998). Wayans starred as Audrey in the drama film Pariah, for which she was nominated for two Black Reel Awards and an NAACP Image Award in 2012.
Wayans has directed episodes for television shows such as the sitcoms My Wife and Kids and The Neighborhood as well as the Disney Channel original series Bunk'd and Just Roll with It.
She is the sister of Keenen Ivory Wayans, Damon Wayans, Shawn Wayans and Marlon Wayans, and aunt of Damon Wayans Jr., among others.
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Early life
Wayans was born in Harlem, New York City, the daughter of Elvira Alethia (née Green), a homemaker and social worker, and Howell Stouten Wayans, a supermarket manager. One of ten siblings, she and her family lived in Fulton Houses, a housing project in New York City's Chelsea neighborhood, and were Jehovah's Witnesses. Wayans graduated from Wesleyan University, where she studied English.
Career
Wayans made her film debut in Hollywood Shuffle (1987). Her earliest roles on television included a guest appearance on China Beach and as Allison on A Different World during its first season. In film, she portrayed minor characters in I'm Gonna Git You Sucka (1989) and A Low Down Dirty Shame (1994). Both films were directed by her brother Keenen Ivory Wayans.
She starred with her siblings on the Fox variety show In Living Color. Wayans was a part of the cast at its outset in 1990, where she did celebrity impressions of Naomi Campbell, Whitney Houston, Vanessa Williams and Oprah Winfrey.
Regarding original characters, one reviewer opined she was "hysterical" as Mrs. Brooks and another claimed Wayans played Benita Butrell "to perfection." She left the series along with her brothers Keenen Ivory and Damon in 1993, after a dispute between Fox and the three Wayanses regarding reruns and syndication.
In 1996, Wayans joined the cast of sitcom In the House as Tonia. She provided the voice of Mrs. Wayne on short-lived cartoon Waynehead. She appeared as Mrs. Johnson in Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood (1996), and had a starring role in the art film Talking About Sex. She also appeared in two episodes as Sheila on The Wayans Bros. starring her younger brothers Marlon and Shawn. Wayans co-starred in Juwanna Mann (2002) as basketball player Latisha Jansen.
Wayans then worked as a story editor on her brother Damon's sitcom My Wife and Kids. In 2008, she co wrote a series of children's books with her husband Kevin Knotts, titled Amy Hodgepodge, about a multiracial girl adjusting to life in public school after years of homeschooling.
Known predominantly as a comedian, Wayans claims to have struggled finding roles in other mediums. However, in 2011, she was cast as Audrey, a mother who struggles to understand her seventeen-year-old daughter in the drama film Pariah. According to director Dee Rees, Wayans was chosen in the role as she was the only actress to give Audrey "vulnerability" in her audition. Wayans was nominated for a Black Reel Award and NAACP Image Award in 2012, both in the category of Outstanding Supporting Actress.
In Living Color
Characters
Benita Butrell
Cousin Elsee
Laquita (I Love Laquita)
Lil' Magic
Mrs. Brooks
Reesie (Cephus & Reesie)
