Keeping it real
OUT ACTRESS LENA WAITHE ON PLAYING GAY IN THE HIT NETFLIX COMEDY MASTER OF NONE
WORDS CARRIE LYELL
Lena Waithe is a writer, producer and actor who set our hearts alight in the Netflix series Master Of None as Denise, the coolest lesbian on TV. We caught up with her to find out more about being a queer black woman in Hollywood.
DIVA: For those who haven’t seen the show, can you tell us a little bit about your character?
LENA WAITHE: My character Denise is a queer, lesbian, black woman who is very laid back, is very matter-offact and shoots from the hip. She doesn’t suffer fools and is a really cool character that I don’t think you’ve seen before. She has her own swag and her own sense of style, and I really dig the character for that reason.
Lesbian and bi viewers have taken Denise to their hearts, thanks to the depth to her character. I read that you wanted to have a discussion about the nuances of queer women’s identity in season two. Did that make it in?