Black Nerd Problems Hits The Sticks With Lena Waithe From “Ready Player One”

Black Nerd Problems was blessed enough to speak to Emmy Award Winning actress, writer and producer Lena Waithe on her new role in Ready Player One. This Steven Spielberg directed sci-fi epic, set in the dystopian future on 2045 puts young Wade Watts and his friends in the quest of a lifetime to find a rare Easter Egg hidden deep within a worldwide virtual reality game before an evil corporation takes it for themselves. Lena Waithe plays one of Wade’s friends in the film. Our writer Lorenzo talks to her about her about her role in the film, her favorite games, and the road to being a successful creator.   Lorenzo: So let’s just jump right in. What is your favorite video game?   Lena: Hmm. Mario Bros. The original one. Cause’ I used to play it as a kid. That’s my shit.   Lorenzo: How did you go about getting the role in Ready Player One?   Lena: Well, apparently Ella Lewis saw my picture in The Hollywood Reporter, cause’ they named me “Top Ten People To Watch” and she said “Why haven’t I seen her?” It was because I wasn’t going out for stuff, Master of None was kind of a one-off. So she had me come in, and basically, I read, and I didn’t have a script, I didn’t have a book, it was very top secret. So her and Leslee Feldman, one of the casting directors for Amblin Entertainment, they were doing their best to advise me (laughs) give me direction without telling me what I was doing because it was very top secret. They did a really good job, so I came in and …