Actress Rita Rucker Shares Why Her Role On BET’s ‘Twenties’ Is Pivotal

“Honestly, I feel like that quote unquote moment happened for me in an acting class in Atlanta,” actress Rita Rucker told Glambergirlblog about how she first got the acting bug. The rising Georgia native starlet already has credits from shows like Being Mary Jane, Snowfall, TV One’s Fatal Attraction, and more recently a pivotal role on BET’s new series Twenties created by Lena Waithe.

Jonica T. Gibbs stars as Hattie, a queer black girl trying to make it in Hollywood and navigate her womanhood along with her straight best girlfriends Marie (Christina Elmore) and Nia (Gabrielle Graham). “This show in itself is the first of its kind. We’ve never seen a leading black, queer woman in any TV series,” Rucker said about Twenties. “It’s going to be something that people have never seen before. I’m really excited for how it’s going to be received by other people. I am also excited to see this group of people represented in such a big and powerful way. I think this show is doing that not just for the LGBT community but for the black community, and for us women. I love it. I’m excited for it.”

Photo: BET

Although Rita’s role is brief as Carrina in episode 7 titled “What Would Todd Do;” it’s mighty. There’s a writers meeting happening and without giving too much away Carrina makes a questionable comment that raises an interesting real life issue about the stereotypes we often keep in existence without knowing it. “I think it’s a pivotal episode because it’s like we don’t realize how we pigeonhole people or how we marginalize people with little comments we say.”

“Your Twenties Are A Work Of Art” is truly the perfect depiction of what to expect from the series as a whole with Rita explaining the impact Twenties can have on the culture. “I love the tagline because there’s so many things that you can say about your 20’s. It’s messy, it’s abstract, it’s here, it’s there. Maybe you get inside the lines a little for a little bit of it, but you really are just figuring it out. I think that Twenties just kind of encompass all of that. When you’re in it you don’t realize the mess and the art you’re creating for yourself later on. I think the show is going to do a really great job of depicting that. This girl in Hollywood, this black woman in Hollywood who just happens to be queer. We follow her trying to navigate Hollywood and tell her story as a queer woman and make sure that it’s heard and that it’s accepted as a universal story and not just as something depicted in one light or in one way. I think that it’s an opportunity for us to see that. You don’t have to be in your 20’s to watch it or relate to it. Younger people will have something to look forward to and the older people will have something to remember.

Switching gears to an equally important narrative to share, Rucker stars in the Janet Odogwu and Julia Verdin written, Verdin directed  drama “Lost Girls: Angie’s Story” depicting the realities of human trafficking in America. “I think that we often try to or we have this vision of human trafficking happening over there, overseas, and it’s something that we don’t really have to deal with, but it’s very much something that’s still happening today. That’s something that’s really happening in America.”

Rucker plays a character named Latisha whose story doesn’t end well, but the importance of all stories in this film are vital. “We follow Angie and her whole experience, her tragic experience, her traumatizing experiences of that. We’re able to see this jarring reality of human trafficking in America. It’s a special project to me because I feel like those kinds of films do more than just entertain us or make us cry. They wake us up like, damn what can I, what can I do about this. I feel like just knowing and educating yourself as a very first step is important. This film does a very good job of that.” Showing at the See It End It Festival in San Pedro, California on April 3rd, a panel discussion will follow to keep the conversation going on this subject matter. (Click HERE for more information about the festival)

Another thought provoking role on Rita’s roster is the Nakia Stephens directed and produced short film “Endangered,” set to premiere at the American Black Film Festival in June. “We follow this pregnant black woman and see the kind of thoughts that expecting parents have when they’re specifically expecting a black daughter or black son and what they will have to be faced with. I think just with it being so short, it’s so impactful. Just from reading the script I’m really excited. I think it does a great job just showing things that are unique to the black experience when you’re expecting a child.

Rita has many awesome projects coming up that you don’t want to miss. Stay in the loop with Rita Rucker by keeping up with her on social media @RitaRucker on Instagram and Facebook and on Twitter @RitaRuckerr ( don’t forget the second r).

Watch the trailer for Twenties in the clip below. The show airs Wednesdays on BET. Be on the look out for Rita Rucker mid season and all the projects she has coming up. Share your thoughts in the comments.

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Photo: Paisley Creative Co