Loretta Devine is slated to be the first star profiled on the new season of TVOne’s Uncensored. During her interview, she talked about her experience on the set of Waiting To Exhale and revealed that her leading man, Gregory Hines, once admonished her to lose weight.
Devine shared that Hines, a renowned tap dancer, was very sweet. He greeted her with red roses on the first day of filming, and they had a brother-sister relationship. However, as they were winding down, he advised her to lose weight to procure new opportunities in the future.
“I remember him telling me, ‘Now, as soon as this movie’s over, you have to lose all the weight so you can move into the next category,'” Devine recalled.
Waiting To Exhale was a blockbuster film with a majestic ensemble cast including Angela Bassett, Whitney Houston and Lela Rochon. Gregory Hines was joined by Dennis Haysbert and his drool-worthy baritone voice.
Although the movie is considered the production that put Devine on the map, many Millennials and Gen-Xers remember her stint on NBC’s A Different World. Those more advanced in age may have seen her in the original Broadway Play “Dreamgirls–” released in 1982.
Another interesting topic that Devine touched on was colorism in the industry as a dark-skinned Black woman.
The legendary actress opined that colorism really became an issue due to Spike Lee. There were rumors that during the making of School Daze, the director placed light and dark-skinned actresses in separate hotel rooms.
“I just never even thought about my looks so much. It was always about my talent,” she said.
The Houston, Texas native boasts over 100 acting credits alone and is a permanent member of Black Hollywood.
While Devine light-heartedly admitted that she has not lost any weight, her talent has made room for her.
Devine can currently be seen in the Netflix hit Family Reunion playing “M’Dear” alongside Tia Mowry.
Her episode of Uncensored airs on August 29.
