Lena Waithe facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Lena Waithe
Waithe at the 2018 WonderCon
Born	(1984-05-17) May 17, 1984 (age 41) Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Education	Columbia College Chicago (BFA)
Occupation	Actress producer screenwriter
Years active	2007–present
Spouse(s)	Alana Mayo ​ ​ (m. 2019; div. 2021)​

Lena Waithe (born May 17, 1984) is an American actress, producer, and screenwriter. She is known for creating popular TV shows like The Chi, Boomerang, and Twenties. She also wrote and produced the movie Queen & Slim.

Waithe became famous for her role in the Netflix series Master of None. In 2017, she made history by becoming the first African-American woman to win a Primetime Emmy Award for writing a comedy series. She won for an episode called "Thanksgiving", which was based on her own life.

She has also acted in the movie Ready Player One and the TV show Westworld. In 2018, Time magazine named her one of the 100 Most Influential People in the World.

Early Life and Schooling

Lena Waithe was born in Chicago, Illinois. From the age of seven, she knew she wanted to be a television writer. Her mother and grandmother always supported her dream.

Waithe grew up on the South Side of Chicago. She went to Turner-Drew, a local elementary school. Later, she moved to the nearby city of Evanston for middle school and high school.

In 2006, she graduated from Columbia College Chicago with a degree in cinema and television arts. To learn more about the movie industry, she worked at a movie theater, a Best Buy store, and a Blockbuster video store.

Career in Film and Television

Getting Started

After college, Waithe moved to Los Angeles and got a job as an assistant on the TV show Girlfriends. Soon after, she had a small part in the show The Comeback.

She then worked as a writer for the TV series Bones and the Nickelodeon show How to Rock. She also produced the movie Dear White People. In 2014, the magazine Variety named her one of its "10 Comedians to Watch."

Breakthrough with 'Master of None'

In 2015, Waithe was cast as Denise in the Netflix show Master of None. The show's creators, Aziz Ansari and Alan Yang, changed the character to be more like Waithe after she was cast.

In 2017, Waithe and Ansari won an Emmy Award for writing the episode "Thanksgiving". The episode was based on Waithe's personal experiences. In her acceptance speech, she gave a special message of encouragement to her fans in the LGBTQ+ community. She said, "The things that make us different—those are our superpowers."

Creating Her Own Shows

Waithe is the creator of the drama series The Chi, which began in 2018. The show is about life in the South Side of Chicago, where she grew up. She wanted to show a more complete and realistic picture of her hometown.

She also created the comedy series Boomerang and Twenties. In 2019, she wrote and produced the movie Queen & Slim. The film explores important social topics and won a BET Award for Best Movie in 2020.

In 2020, Waithe was the voice of Officer Specter in the Pixar movie Onward. This was the first openly LGBTQ+ character in a Disney animated film.

Waithe started her own company, Hillman Grad Productions, to help create more opportunities for people of color and LGBTQ+ artists in film and television.

Personal Life

Waithe was married to Alana Mayo, a content executive, from 2019 to 2021. In 2024, her relationship with English actress Cynthia Erivo was confirmed.

Waithe has said that she is a believer in God and tries to be a good and honest person.

Filmography

Film

Television

Actress

Writer

Producer

Awards and Nominations

See also

In Spanish: Lena Waithe para niños