Nerdophiles had an exclusive 1:1 interview with Houston native and star of the Netflix series Tyler Perry’s Beauty in Black, Taylor Polidore Williams (Snowfall), to discuss all things Season Two, how Houston has shaped her artistry, and what her philanthropic work means to her and her future career choices.
Season Two finds Williams’ Kimmie, aka Mrs. Bellarie, living on the Bellarie family compound and stepping into her role as the newly appointed Chief Operating Officer (COO) of the Bellarie haircare dynasty, while her new husband, Horace (Ricco Ross, P-Valley), is off in Italy trying an experimental treatment to help cure his cancer.
Left at times without Horace’s physical presence, she is forced to fend off her former abuser, Jules (Charles Malik Whitfield, Chicago Med); her new stepsons, Roy (Julian Horton, Ruined) and Charles (Steven G. Norfleet, Watchmen); her brother-in-law, Norman (Richard Lawson, For Colored Girls); and Horace’s ex-wife, Olivia (Debbi Morgan, Eve’s Bayou), all of whom are trying to dethrone her to keep their shares and the money flowing.
But Kimmie’s singular focus is creating a better life for herself, her sister Sylvie (Bailey Tippen, Underground), her best friend Rain (Amber Reign Smith, Wu-Tang: An American Saga), and keeping Angel (Xavier Smalls, Madea’s Destination Wedding) out of trouble. It is her unlikely alliance with her stepdaughter-in-law—the other Mrs. Bellarie—Mallory (Crystle Stewart, Acrimony) that had everyone talking this season.
Williams spoke to us about Kimmie’s relationship with Horace by season’s end, her protection of Sylvie, her greatest lesson, Williams’ creative journey as a Houston artist, how Atlanta has shaped her career, philanthropy, and so much more.
On the unlikely alliance between Kimmie and Mallory, and if she saw it coming, she shared: “You know, I’m gonna say yes and no. I’ll say yes and no, because on one hand, or one part of me, thought that they would end up being enemies and somebody’s gonna kill each other, and the other part of me was like, they have to come together.”
On if she would define the core of Kimmie and Horace’s relationship as rooted more in power, protection, manipulation, or something more complicated by season’s end, she remarked: “At the end of the season, I think that their relationship is a bit more complicated than that, because, you know, he was giving her the tools over the phone while he was healing. And now that he’s back, and now that he’s healthy, and he’s gotten the other players, you know, sent away, I wonder what her function is for him. Now, you know, it would be great and easy to say, ‘Oh, they can run this world together, and Mallory and Kimmie are just running the business,’ but he’s not that nice of a person either. So, I think that, you know, their connection right now is definitely in power—they’re teammates, they’re working together. She’s working for him to get a specific thing done. But I think it is more complicated than that. I don’t think you’re just gonna ride off into the sunset. That wouldn’t be Beauty in Black style.”
On if Kimmie’s protection of Sylvie has helped to preserve her innocence or if Kimmie has unintentionally exposed Sylvie to more danger, she disclosed: “You know, I think that she has helped preserve whatever bit of innocence was left in her sister. They come from a very tumultuous home, and they talk about how Sylvie was being abused at home herself. So, you know, I can’t say that the innocence has been preserved, but she absolutely is trying to give her what she feels is a safer situation, which is with her. Now, have they walked into a new lion’s den? Probably. But I think she’s just trying to keep her sister as safe as possible, again thinking of her safety. And I think, you know, at first it was, ‘Oh, let me just get my sister to be with me, away from my mom,’ away from, you know, when she was kidnapped. And then now it’s like, ‘Oh, I need to get her away from me and into the safest place possible.’ So, she’s just constantly thinking of keeping her safe.”
On Kimmie’s greatest lesson so far, she told us: “I think the biggest lesson that Kimmie has had over this entire season is that even though she is not the most trusting person, at some point you’re going to need somebody, and you’re going to have to trust somebody. And, you know, she’s reaping the benefits of trusting Horace a little bit, and now she’s trusting Mallory a little bit, and hopefully it all works out for her.”
On how Houston shaped her grit, ambition, and confidence to prepare her to navigate the complexities, strength, and vulnerability as the lead in this series, she said: “I love that question. Being from Houston has shaped me entirely. That is my foundation. I’m a third or maybe even fourth-generation Houstonian, so that is where I began my creative pursuits, where I began acting. And I think, you know, Houston’s art scene is not talked about enough, but it’s all that I know. My uncle is an artist—he’s huge in the art car & slab community. That’s a big, big section of slabs where my family lives. So, you know, art was always, always very important to me—going to the Ensemble Theatre, participating in Theatre Under the Stars, doing church plays.”
Williams added: “And then after Katrina, when Louisiana was rebuilding, they had the tax credit, and it brought a lot of film and television sets to the South. That was where I got my first, I guess you could say, big role. I was already acting, doing a lot of modeling and commercial work, as is typically what was popular at the time in Texas. And that opened a whole new world. I was cast in my first feature film at 13. But prior to that, I had been acting and doing theater. I grew up in Katy, but in the summers my mom would take me to my grandmother’s house in Trinity Gardens, and I would go to Northeast Cultural Arts Camp. That is where I believe the real grit came from. In our suburbs, things are very nice—everything is very positive—and my mom was like, ‘She needs to get it together.’ So, I was sent to camp at Kashmere High School, where my mom and my grandmother graduated from.”
She continued: “I remember I was six years old the first time I went, and I’ve always been kind of short, so I was used to being on the front row in dance recitals. They were like, ‘Go to the back, Taylor.’ And I was like, ‘Why?’ They said, ‘You don’t know the moves. If you want to be at the front, you have to learn the moves, and you must prove it. You have to try out.’ And I kid you not, I practiced for hours after I got back to my grandmother’s house, and I made it to the front. I was able to dance for the mayor—like all these things—but it was just like, ‘Oh, I want to be the best that I can be.’ And that spirit, that hustle that comes from Houston, that being myself—my full, authentic self—when I go into these rooms and people are like, ‘Oh my gosh, you’re so different from your character,’ I’m inspired by the women in my family that I grew up around. My mom is an AKA, very involved in her chapter in Houston. That is what colors every character that I play and how I’m able to move in and out of any world. I think when you’re from Houston, you can be in any room, anywhere, and you will find a way to orient yourself. So, I have a lot of pride in being from there.”
On her new role in Season 4 of Reasonable Doubt, she teased: “I so wish that I could. We are actively filming right now, and I’m a big fan of the show as well—such a big fan of the show—and I’m very happy to be there, but I cannot say anything. It is my first time venturing over to Hulu, over to Onyx Collective. I don’t want to make the Mickey Mouse people mad. Know that it’s coming, and I’ll be on it.”
On her philanthropic work through her foundation, The Shelter Rock Foundation, and how that informs her current and future career choices, she echoed: “You know, I’ve spent a lot more time thinking about intention since Beauty in Black came out and I became the face of the show. For so long, you’re just trying to get a job and get things off the ground, and now that I feel like that’s happening, it shifts to, what do you want next? As I’ve grown and stepped into new phases of my life, I’ve become more aware of the responsibility that comes with having a platform. People are watching, and I don’t take that lightly—I do hope and believe I’m an inspiration to others. My philanthropic work feels like a civic duty, especially supporting young people in difficult situations like the child welfare system. That commitment to authenticity informs everything I do. It shapes the roles I choose—what I can and can’t do—and allows me to tell difficult stories, like Kimmie’s experience with sex trafficking. That reality is very real, especially in places like Houston, and knowing people who have gone through it makes the work even more personal. It all informs my choices because it’s a part of who I am.”
On Atlanta offering a safe creative space to grow and collaborate with some of her favorite peers, she expanded:“Atlanta has shaped me, and I think, more than anything, it gave me a deeper sense of cultural awareness—just being Southern, being Black, and understanding how far that reaches. Going to an HBCU, particularly a school like Clark Atlanta University, which I consider a creative arts hub, played a huge role in that. So many people I encounter on set now are people I knew or was simply friends within school—it’s always a full-circle moment.”
Williams concluded: “Back then, I knew I wanted to act and make films, and we were all just coming together to create. For example, the guy who was a second AD on Tyler Perry’s Beauty in Black was the DP for my senior thesis. One of my very best friends, Geffri Maya (All American: Homecoming), and I were neighbors—we were close, and our relationship continued to grow. She was my maid of honor in my wedding—that’s my best friend—and she went on to lead All American: Homecoming. I even had the opportunity to be on her show for an entire season. We were also on Snowfall together. These are the kinds of divine relationships that came from my time in Atlanta, especially within the film industry, and I continue to reap the benefits of choosing to go there after leaving Texas.”
Catch Season 2 of Tyler Perry’s Beauty In Black out now on Netflix!
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