Niecy Nash-Betts Dishes About New Ryan Murphy Horror Series 'Grotesquerie'

Plus, why she initially tried to avoid comedy

Published Apr 8, 2024

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8:15pm

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I've always considered the great Niecy Nash-Betts a Comedy Queen. From her unforgettable stint as Raineesha on Reno 911! ("You can’t fight crime if you ain’t cute!") to her funny appearances on The Bernie Mac Show, the 54-year-old star has established herself as one of the best in the comedy world. But as much as I enjoy seeing her comedic chops, perhaps nothing compares to her layered, Emmy-worthy performance in Ryan Murphy's limited series, Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story.

Fortunately, Nash-Betts is teaming up with Murphy once again for his upcoming horror series, Grotesquerie, which, according to the teaser, focuses on a woman who discerns that something sinister is happening as a result of a mysterious incident. While speaking with PureWow, the actress, who's now partnering with the newly launched menopause platform, Versalie, opened up about her leading role in the upcoming FX series.

Nash-Betts said, "It's very dark. I've never played this character before. That's one of the things that's so exciting about it, is that I haven't played a character like this. I teamed back up with Courtney B. Vance. He's gonna play my husband. We were married in Uncorked. So the band is back together in this series, and I'm really, really excited for people to see it."

The California native revealed that her character is nothing like the dazzling and fashionable Nash-Betts that we all see in real life—and the actress prefers it that way. She continued, "I love being unglamorous, if you can believe that. I can save the glamor for, you know, the red carpets and all of those sorts of things, but when I go to work, I don't have to look like the shiny version of myself."

Courtesy of Netflix

As a longtime fan who was introduced to Nash-Betts through comedy, I couldn't help but ask about her recent shift to darker, more complex roles. As it turns out, the star originally wanted to stick with dramatic roles.

She explained, "I never wanted to be funny. That was just a series of events that happened. I didn't know that being funny was a gift because I got punished for it, for telling jokes in school, they put 'Talks too much' on my report card, or I got pinched in church for acting like the preacher. It just wasn't rewarding, so I didn't know it was a gift and a skill. And I always wanted to be a dramatic actress, and I couldn't get any work doing it. And the minute I went outside and said, 'Well, I am funny,' people said 'Yes, you are, come here.' And so, that was my gateway into entertainment."

She continued, "But I always saw drama. But sometimes people want to leave you where they meet you. So, everyone was like, 'Oh, she's a comedian and we know what you do.' And I said, 'No, she's a multi-hyphenate, she can do more than one thing.' So it took me a while to prove it. But now, I consider myself a very lucky girl because my peers know that they can count on me for whatever caliber of work it is."

Niecy Nash Betts teams up with Versalie a new digital destination providing menopause resources1

Michael Simon

In addition to Grotesquerie, Nash-Betts also discussed her partnership with Versalie, a menopause resource that was built in collaboration with healthcare professionals, menopause experts and everyday women experiencing different phases of menopause. According to the star, women can visit the digital platform for virtual care services from menopause-trained experts and access a curated storefront of holistic products.

She said, "Finding out about the platform and being able to understand what was happening with my body was such a gift. And you know me, I'm not selfish, so I wanted to share the gift and say, 'I would love to be a part of spreading the word about this.'"

The bottom line? Nash-Betts is a multi-hyphenate queen.

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Nakeisha Campbell

Associate Editor, News and Entertainment

Nakeisha has been interviewing celebrities and covering all things entertainment for over 8 years, but she has also written on a wide range of topics, like career...

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