Nicole Byer is speaking about feeling uncomfortable around a casting director. Byer, who was speaking to fellow actress Laverne Cox during the pre-Emmy Awards special called “If We’re Being Honest” spoke about what it was like for her auditioning for roles during her 20s.
“Usually, they say ‘sassy, more street, more urban,” she said. “But I read [the line], and she was like, ‘Can you be Blacker?’ I was just playing a fairy. And she was like, ‘Be as Black as you can be. If you go too Black, I’ll bring you back.’”
The comedian also revealed that the casting director was white and said, “She was white like the snow.”
Since her uncomfortable encounter, Nicole Byer has made history by becoming the first Black woman to be nominated for outstanding host for a reality or competition program for Nailed It! She was also nominated for her special Nicole Byer: BBW (Big Beautiful Weirdo).