Susan Kelechi Watson’s heritage is accurately represented onscreen through Beth
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As Oprah mag notes, Watson is the child of Jamaican immigrant parents. Accurately representing her culture is hugely important to the actress, who told Ebony, “It’s no secret to Black people that we’re smart, that we have abilities.” She added, “We’re obviously very strong, powerful, resilient, inspirational, intelligent, phenomenally talented… I could go on and on about our culture.” Watson appreciates the positive representation on This Is Us, revealing she’s frequently consulted by the show’s writers’ room. “They don’t mind feedback,” Watson told MTV News. She explained, “They’ll come in and check with me about certain things about my culture because Beth is Jamaican and I’m Jamaican-American.”
As Watson told The Mary Sue, she takes the responsibility of sharing the richness of her culture with the world very seriously, especially since it’s still a relatively new concept on television. This extends to Beth’s natural hair, which Watson advised Oprah is important to get right so the character is fully authentic, noting, “As Black women, hair is such a big part of our lifestyle. That’s also why I make sure each style looks like something she could have done herself as a working mom and wife.” She may not be Beth, but Watson is adamant about making her characterization as real as possible.
The Trait Susan Kelechi Watson And Her This Is Us Character Have In Common
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By Joey Keogh/March 5, 2021 10:55 am EST
Susan Kelechi Watson’s heritage is accurately represented onscreen through Beth
Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
As Oprah mag notes, Watson is the child of Jamaican immigrant parents. Accurately representing her culture is hugely important to the actress, who told Ebony, “It’s no secret to Black people that we’re smart, that we have abilities.” She added, “We’re obviously very strong, powerful, resilient, inspirational, intelligent, phenomenally talented… I could go on and on about our culture.” Watson appreciates the positive representation on This Is Us, revealing she’s frequently consulted by the show’s writers’ room. “They don’t mind feedback,” Watson told MTV News. She explained, “They’ll come in and check with me about certain things about my culture because Beth is Jamaican and I’m Jamaican-American.”
As Watson told The Mary Sue, she takes the responsibility of sharing the richness of her culture with the world very seriously, especially since it’s still a relatively new concept on television. This extends to Beth’s natural hair, which Watson advised Oprah is important to get right so the character is fully authentic, noting, “As Black women, hair is such a big part of our lifestyle. That’s also why I make sure each style looks like something she could have done herself as a working mom and wife.” She may not be Beth, but Watson is adamant about making her characterization as real as possible.
As Watson told The Mary Sue, she takes the responsibility of sharing the richness of her culture with the world very seriously, especially since it’s still a relatively new concept on television. This extends to Beth’s natural hair, which Watson advised Oprah is important to get right so the character is fully authentic, noting, “As Black women, hair is such a big part of our lifestyle. That’s also why I make sure each style looks like something she could have done herself as a working mom and wife.” She may not be Beth, but Watson is adamant about making her characterization as real as possible.
