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As smart as Mary Jane is, our favorite primetime news anchor has a lot to learn.
Has it been a challenge for you?
Credit: Guy D’Alema/BET
LORETTA DEVINE:It definitely has been, mostly because of the language of the role.
CeCe is well-spoken and has a lot to say about everything.
Was the role fully formed when you were approached about it?
No, which made it harder in the doing of it.
They were still hashing out a lot of things.
And every episode had a different director, which sometimes made the style of things change.
Some I had worked with, and others I hadnt.
It was a great experience to have her direct me after playing her mom and bossing her around.
What aspects of your character proved the hardest to take on?
I based my character on a man, and tried to focus on those habits.
Like the way my husband ties his shoes.
I tried to focus on those types of things more so than focusing on CeCe as a woman.
Thats incredible, especially knowing the role was originally intended for a man.
I was trying to be as male as I possibly could.
Thats all I ever thought about.
I even thought about, Is this woman attractive to me or not attractive to me?
I wasnt trying to do anything feminine.
Everything was the way a man would do it, straight up.
I think it worked, and Im very proud of what I did.
One of the things your character does is extort Mary Jane.
Does that make her a villain?
I never thought of her as a villain.
CeCe is doing a lot of good.
She really believes in what shes doing for her bookstore and for the community.
The people that watch the show though definitely think differently.
Thats definitely different from what Im used to.
I usually hear, I love your character, you remind me of my mom.
You know youre doing something right when people love to hate your onscreen persona.
Would you consider being a series regular?
Thats more important than my desire to work there.
Which of the topics mentioned on the show do you find the most relevant?
I think my character is helping show that there are people who sort of defy the typical character.
Its hard for some people to get used to.
