Wanda Sykes has been in the entertainment business more than 30 years, performing for world leaders and working with some of the biggest names in Hollywood.
It being LGBT History Month, we asked Sykes .
PGN: You’ve had a long and impressive career as a comedian, writer and actress. Which moments stand out as the most pivotal in your career?
WS: Winning my first Emmy as a writer for “The Chris Rock Show.” Doing the White House Correspondents Association Dinner with President Obama. That was his first one. My HBO special, “Im’a Be Me.” There have been a lot of great moments and projects but those are the really huge things.
PGN: You were well established in your career when you came out. Did that have any effect, positive or negative, on your career?
WS: I think it’s been all positive for me. If there was anything negative, no one has ever told me. No one has ever said, “Oh, man, you could have had that part.” I think coming out improved my comedy immensely because I’m on stage now not trying to hide behind anything or wondering if I’m going to be outed on stage.
PGN: Do you think you coming out had any impact on the industry or inspired other comedians and performers to come out?
WS: I don’t know about other comics. Ellen [DeGeneres] helped open the door for me. A couple of comics have told me that I’ve helped them to come out. When people see someone else living their life and thriving at it, it’s encouraging.
PGN: As one of the head writers, you were the first person involved with the revival of “Roseanne” to quit the show after the scandal of Roseanne Barr’s racist tweets. Do you think you started the dominoes falling on the demise of that show or was it all going to fall apart anyway?
WS: I don’t know. I just had to do what’s right for me. For me, I just couldn’t be a part of it. If I did, it would look like: “Oh, Wanda is OK with that. She’s condoning that.” And I just could not sit in that room and be a part of that after that tweet. The thing is, honestly I don’t believe Roseanne is a racist. She wasn’t anything like that in our relationship. We worked together on “Last Comic Standing” and she was very supportive of all the comics. I just think she has some other issues going on and definitely social media does not help those issues.
PGN: Were you asked to come back to “The Connors,” and do you think it was right for the network to continue with the show without Roseanne?
WS: Yes and yes.
PGN: You have a deal for your upcoming special with Netflix. Did the controversy and issues brought to light by Mo’Nique about how women of color get paid by Netflix help you in your negotiations?
WS: I threw my name into that discussion because I though Mo’Nique had a valid point. I though Netflix had low-balled her. However, I just went and found another buyer because my point was that even if you feel that one place isn’t treating you fairly, there are other options. But I was not for the boycott of Netflix, and I don’t think that hurt the deal I did with them. Netflix is a major player worldwide, so I never had a bone to pick with them. It’s just business. This is what they offered me and Epix was offering me a better deal, so I went with Epix. This time around they stepped up, so I said, “Cool, I can work with this.”
PGN: Are there any plateaus you haven’t reached with your career yet or have all of Wanda Sykes’ dreams come true?
WS: I wouldn’t say all of my dreams have come true. I am looking and probably will write a movie or a screenplay.
PGN: Do you think the success of films like “Black Panther” and “Crazy Rich Asians” will make Hollywood more open to diversity in their films and the talent they put on screen?
WS: Yes, because those films are wildly successful. It’s all about the dollars. They are making money.
For more information about Wanda Sykes, visit www.wandasykes.com.