TMC
05-01-2026, 08:48 PM
https://www.aol.com/articles/vanessa-williams-responds-shes-asked-195602616.html
Vanessa Williams isn't afraid to go there.
Williams, 63, appeared on the April 28 episode of The Happy Grownup Podcast, hosted by Hal Rubenstein, and he asked her a simple question: “Why do you keep playing b!tches?”
Williams laughed as Rubenstein listed some of the roles out. From 2006 to 2010, she played Wilhelmina Slater, the creative director of Mode and a self-absorbed diva, on Ugly Betty. Williams earned three Emmy nominations for the part. Then, from 2010 to 2012, she played Renee Perry, a devious troublemaker, on Desperate Housewives. Now, she's playing Miranda Priestly in The Devil Wears Prada musical on London's West End.
Williams mentioned one other “b!tch” she's played. “A Diva's Christmas Carol, that was the first one, probably,” she said. The 2000 TV movie followed Williams as a gender-flipped Ebony Scrooge who's one of the biggest recording stars in the world.
https://s.yimg.com/lo/mysterio/api/79C07C71AA22F6BCEB920DC7B4A7AB13C2CB9C22B8AEB2C86A5685FA42F50009/subgraphmysterio/resizefit_w960_h640;quality_80;format_webp/https:%2F%2Fmedia.zenfs.com%2Fen%2Faol_people_articles_471%2F3be42e9c229cbef121c7416b6371e3e9
Williams said she also had the “chutzpah” and “gravitas” to pull these roles off — even if it takes her out of her comfort zone. “I take risks,” she said. “I think you have to put yourself out there when you're playing somebody who's larger than life and not afraid to step up to the plate and be a heavy hitter.”
Plus, the former Miss America adds, “They have the most delicious lines, always. I mean, every day, I'll read a script, I'm like ‘That's hilarious. Oh, that's really terrifying. I want to do that.' It's fun for me.”
Back in 2024, Williams said she's looked at the roles she's played and wondered, “Is it typecasting? Am I always going to play these strong women that have attitude?”
“I always find it fascinating,” she said. “My characters are formidable because they've worked their lives to create something that means something.” She added, “It's very comfortable to play.”
Williams first broke through in 1984 when she became the first Black person to be named Miss America. She gave up the crown after a nude photo scandal, but returned four years later with her debut album, 1988's The Right Stuff.
She's received 11 Grammy nominations during her career, including song and record of the year for her 1992 song “Save the Best for Last,” which also hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. She made her Broadway debut in 1994 with Kiss of the Spider Woman.
Vanessa Williams isn't afraid to go there.
Williams, 63, appeared on the April 28 episode of The Happy Grownup Podcast, hosted by Hal Rubenstein, and he asked her a simple question: “Why do you keep playing b!tches?”
Williams laughed as Rubenstein listed some of the roles out. From 2006 to 2010, she played Wilhelmina Slater, the creative director of Mode and a self-absorbed diva, on Ugly Betty. Williams earned three Emmy nominations for the part. Then, from 2010 to 2012, she played Renee Perry, a devious troublemaker, on Desperate Housewives. Now, she's playing Miranda Priestly in The Devil Wears Prada musical on London's West End.
Williams mentioned one other “b!tch” she's played. “A Diva's Christmas Carol, that was the first one, probably,” she said. The 2000 TV movie followed Williams as a gender-flipped Ebony Scrooge who's one of the biggest recording stars in the world.
https://s.yimg.com/lo/mysterio/api/79C07C71AA22F6BCEB920DC7B4A7AB13C2CB9C22B8AEB2C86A5685FA42F50009/subgraphmysterio/resizefit_w960_h640;quality_80;format_webp/https:%2F%2Fmedia.zenfs.com%2Fen%2Faol_people_articles_471%2F3be42e9c229cbef121c7416b6371e3e9
Williams said she also had the “chutzpah” and “gravitas” to pull these roles off — even if it takes her out of her comfort zone. “I take risks,” she said. “I think you have to put yourself out there when you're playing somebody who's larger than life and not afraid to step up to the plate and be a heavy hitter.”
Plus, the former Miss America adds, “They have the most delicious lines, always. I mean, every day, I'll read a script, I'm like ‘That's hilarious. Oh, that's really terrifying. I want to do that.' It's fun for me.”
Back in 2024, Williams said she's looked at the roles she's played and wondered, “Is it typecasting? Am I always going to play these strong women that have attitude?”
“I always find it fascinating,” she said. “My characters are formidable because they've worked their lives to create something that means something.” She added, “It's very comfortable to play.”
Williams first broke through in 1984 when she became the first Black person to be named Miss America. She gave up the crown after a nude photo scandal, but returned four years later with her debut album, 1988's The Right Stuff.
She's received 11 Grammy nominations during her career, including song and record of the year for her 1992 song “Save the Best for Last,” which also hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. She made her Broadway debut in 1994 with Kiss of the Spider Woman.