Debra Wilson facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Debra Wilson
Wilson at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival
Born	New York City, U.S.
Other names	Debra Wilson Skelton Debra Skelton
Alma mater	Syracuse University
Occupation	Actress comedian
Years active	1992–present
Spouse(s)	Cliff Skelton ​ ​ (m. 2006; separated 2010)​

Debra Wilson is an American actress and comedian. She is famous for being one of the first and longest-serving cast members on the funny sketch comedy show Mad TV. She was on the show for its first eight seasons, from 1995 to 2003.

Debra Wilson is also a talented voice actress. She has lent her voice to many characters in TV shows and video games. Some of her well-known voice roles include characters in Mao Mao: Heroes of Pure Heart, Baby Shark's Big Show!, and Spitting Image. In video games, she has voiced characters in popular titles like Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, Halo Infinite, and Diablo IV. In 2022, she became the voice of Daisy Duck in Mickey Mouse Funhouse, making her the first African-American actress to voice the character.

Early Life and First Steps

Debra Wilson was born and grew up in New York City, in a neighborhood called Ozone Park, Queens. She went to the New York City High School of the Performing Arts, where she learned acting. After high school, she studied television and radio at Syracuse University. Before becoming a full-time actress, she worked as a preschool teacher in the 1980s.

Wilson started her TV career on comedy shows like The Apollo Comedy Hour and The Uptown Comedy Club. She also co-hosted a show called Can We Shop? with Joan Rivers. She even appeared in commercials for Burger King and had a guest role in the TV show New York Undercover.

Her Acting Journey

Debra Wilson in 2010

Starring on Mad TV

Debra Wilson was one of the first eight actors chosen for Mad TV when it started in 1995. She already had experience in sketch comedy and improv, which are types of comedy where actors make up scenes on the spot.

On Mad TV, Wilson created many popular characters that fans loved. These included Melina, a funny character from "Lida and Melina," and Tovah McQueen from "Reality Check." She also played Bunifa Latifah Halifah Sharifa Jackson, a very fast-talking character.

Her most famous impressions on the show were of Oprah Winfrey and Whitney Houston. She played Oprah or similar characters in other shows and movies too, like Scary Movie 4 and The Proud Family. She also did impressions of other famous people like Beyoncé Knowles, Macy Gray, and Mariah Carey.

TV Shows and Voice Acting

After MADtv, Wilson continued to do a lot of voice acting for many TV shows. She had recurring roles on shows like Clone High and Family Guy. She also did puppeteer work on The Mr. Potato Head Show. She voiced Captain Lisa Cusak in an episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

Wilson has also appeared in many independent films. She was a doctor in an episode of Without a Trace and appeared a few times in CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. She also co-hosted TV shows like TV Watercooler and GSN Live.

Since 2020, Wilson has been the announcer for the game show Weakest Link, hosted by Jane Lynch. In 2022, she started voicing Headless Headmistress Bloodgood in the animated series Monster High.

On Stage

Debra Wilson has also performed in theater. She was part of an improv comedy group called Noo Yawk Tawk. They performed off-Broadway at The Village Gate Theater in New York City from 1988 to 1991.

Video Game Voices

Debra Wilson has voiced many characters in video games. She played Grace Walker in Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus and Cere Junda in Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order and its sequel Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. She was also General Lyons in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.

Her voice can be heard in many other games, including The Outer Worlds, Gears 5, Days Gone, Fallout: New Vegas, and Far Cry New Dawn. She is also the voice of Draka in World of Warcraft: Shadowlands, Savathûn in Destiny 2, and the Harbinger in Halo Infinite. She also plays The Doctor in Death Stranding 2.

Personal Life

Debra Wilson married writer and director Cliff Skelton in April 2006. They separated in 2010.

Film Roles

Television Appearances

Theatre Performances

Video Game Roles

Web Series

Awards and Nominations