

The dramatic reboot of the ‘90s classic sitcom Fresh Prince of Bel-air titled Bel-Airpremiered Sunday night after the Super Bowl. The cast is filled with newcomers such as Jabari Banks who plays Will and longtime actors such as Coco Jones who plays Hilary Banks. But while Coco is not new to the game, people are still discovering her talent after breaking away from the Disney Channel.
The 24-year-old is on the path to greatness while following in the footsteps of other successful actresses who came from Disney Channel fame such as Zendaya and Raven-Symoné. Her role as Hilary shows her in a new light as a grown woman who is determined to find her independence outside of her family.
Get to know Coco below:
Coco Got Her Start on Disney
Coco began her career on the Disney channel at just 12 years old. After winning Radio Disney’s “Next Big Thing” competition, she landed roles on the channel’s TV series such as So Random! and Good Luck Charlie. She also went on to star in the 2012 film Let It Shine alongside Tyler James Williams.
She Can Rap and Sing
The actress is also in her singing bag. She’s released singles like “Holla at the DJ” and “What I Said” which is from the film Let It Shine, but she can also spit a hot verse. While visiting The Terrell Show, which is a show where guests play a game of song association, Coco rapped Busta Rhymes verse in Chris Brown’s song “Look at Me Now.” She also likes to share videos of herself singing on TikTok.
She Believes Her Career was Stalled Because of Her Skin Color
While on The Terrell Show, she also addressed her career halting after achieving some success on the Disney Channel and citing the difficulties she faced being a dark-skinned Black woman. “I think it was just a matter of not the right team as well as not enough people pushing me to success through those barriers,” she said. “When I got these deals and things, etc. they weren’t catered to a Black girl. It was like, ‘you got this,’ but give it white. And I was like how though? I feel like they weren’t thinking how do we make this Black girl work, it was more so how do we make this formula work on this Black girl.”
Her Role as Hilary Banks in the Reboot Is Different from the Original
The original Hilary Banks, played by Karyn Parsons, was a stylish, yet stuck-up, entitled daddy’s girl who for a long time depended a lot on her parent’s wealth. Coco’s version, however, shows Hilary as a more independent woman who is trying to make her own path, but still has the fashions on lock. Coco spoke with HuffPost about her evolved character.
“Hilary is grounded. She’s a hustler. She’s determined. She has all these ideas of how she wants her life to play out,” Jones said. “Regardless of what people say, regardless of what happens, she’s going to make that happen. I think that mainly Hilary is relatable, and she’s hardworking, she believes in herself and she’s confident. I think people will love that.”
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Featured image by Leon Bennett/Getty Images for BET+
Eva Marcille On Starring In 'Jason’s Lyric Live' & Being An Audacious Black Woman
Eva Marcille has taken her talents to the stage. The model-turned-actress is starring in her first play, Jason’s Lyric Live alongside Allen Payne, K. Michelle, Treach, and others.
The play, produced by Je’Caryous Johnson, is an adaptation of the film, which starred Allen Payne as Jason and Jada Pinkett Smith as Lyric. Allen reprised his role as Jason for the play and Eva plays Lyric.
While speaking to xoNecole, Eva shares that she’s a lot like the beloved 1994 character in many ways. “Lyric is so me. She's the odd flower. A flower nonetheless, but definitely not a peony,” she tells us.
“She's not the average flower you see presented, and so she reminds me of myself. I'm a sunflower, beautiful, but different. And what I loved about her character then, and even more so now, is that she was very sure of herself.
"Sure of what she wanted in life and okay to sacrifice her moments right now, to get what she knew she deserved later. And that is me. I'm not an instant gratification kind of a person. I am a long game. I'm not a sprinter, I'm a marathon.
America first fell in love with Eva when she graced our screens on cycle 3 of America’s Next Top Model in 2004, which she emerged as the winner. Since then, she's ventured into different avenues, from acting on various TV series like House of Payne to starring on Real Housewives of Atlanta.
Je-Caryous Johnson Entertainment
Eva praises her castmates and the play’s producer, Je’Caryous for her positive experience. “You know what? Je’Caryous fuels my audacity car daily, ‘cause I consider myself an extremely audacious woman, and I believe in what I know, even if no one else knows it, because God gave it to me. So I know what I know. That is who Je’Caryous is.”
But the mom of three isn’t the only one in the family who enjoys acting. Eva reveals her daughter Marley has also caught the acting bug.
“It is the most adorable thing you can ever see. She’s got a part in her school play. She's in her chorus, and she loves it,” she says. “I don't know if she loves it, because it's like, mommy does it, so maybe I should do it, but there is something about her.”
Overall, Eva hopes that her contribution to the role and the play as a whole serves as motivation for others to reach for the stars.
“I want them to walk out with hope. I want them to re-vision their dreams. Whatever they were. Whatever they are. To re-see them and then have that thing inside of them say, ‘You know what? I'm going to do that. Whatever dream you put on the back burner, go pick it up.
"Whatever dream you've accomplished, make a new dream, but continue to reach for the stars. Continue to reach for what is beyond what people say we can do, especially as [a] Black collective but especially as Black women. When it comes to us and who we are and what we accept and what we're worth, it's not about having seen it before. It's about knowing that I deserve it.”
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
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Feature image by Leon Bennett/WireImage
Ryan Coogler Talks 'Sinners,' Black Ownership & The Deal That Has Hollywood Shook
Ryan Coogler isn't new to the acclaim, he's true to it. With his latest film, Sinners, a genre-defying vampire horror film set in the Jim Crow South, might just be his most personal work yet, and audiences are showing up for it! The film has already pulled in $163 million worldwide after just two weekends in theaters, according to Screen Rant (via The Numbers).
The Oakland-born filmmaker, who rose to fame with Fruitvale Station and reshaped modern cinema with Black Panther, has another bona fide hit on his hands with the R-rated story that blends history, horror, and deep-rooted Black storytelling in a way that only he can.
In a recent interview with Democracy NOW!, Ryan opened up about the inspiration behind Sinners, his longtime collaboration with Michael B. Jordan, who plays dual roles in the film, and why this project marks a turning point in his career.
“It’s ironic because what my grandmother and her mom before her and my mom are known for is their gumbo,” Ryan shared with the outlet. “They cook a style of gumbo that comes from Port Arthur, Texas... and this was my opportunity to make some cinematic gumbo. I took some things that might seem disparate in the description, but I think they go really well together.”
That gumbo? A moody, blood-soaked love letter to the blues, to his late uncle, and to the genre-bending power of Black art. After his uncle passed, Coogler turned to blues records for comfort, describing how it felt like conjuring his uncle’s spirit. That led him to Delta blues, and ultimately, to Sinners.
“Through my research into the music, I learned more about the music industry and how much the concept of genre is related to racism,” he said. “The classification of different types of music… even though it was the same song sung the same way, they were looking at the color of the skin of the person who was singing it and enforcing the apartheid even through the artistic business model.”
The film, in many ways, is his rebellion against that system. “I wanted to make a film that was kinda raging against the concept of genre,” Ryan explained. “Making the audience constantly question, even while they are watching it, whether genre is a music angle or a film angle.”
But Sinners is more than about transcending genres, it’s also a family affair. Ryan's wife and producing partner, Zinzi Coogler, helped bring the vision to life through their production company Proximity Media (founded in 2021 with producer Sev Ohanian). Currently pregnant with their third child, Zinzi remains an essential force behind Ryan’s work and his world. “Zinzi is my favorite person in the world,” he said tenderly.
“I’ve been around her a long time, and it still somehow feels like it’s not long enough. She knows me very well… We’re very different, which is very helpful. We got two different communication styles, two different ways of seeing the world. So in general, if I have an issue-situation that I can’t crack, because she comes at things with a different angle, normally she can crack it very easily.”
Their partnership is as spiritual as it is professional. When asked about how he got into filmmaking in the first place, Ryan reflected on Zinzi’s early support, calling her gift of Final Cut Pro the “kindest thing” anyone has ever given him.
(L to R) Zinzi Coogler and Ryan Coogler photographed at 'Sinners' premiere.
Jeff Spicer/Getty Images for Warner Bros. Pictures
And while Sinners is a love letter to the past, the business side of it is firmly about the future. His now widely discussed deal with Warner Bros. includes First Dollar Gross and IP ownership after 25 years, something that’s raised both eyebrows and excitement within Hollywood circles. “I’m not the first filmmaker to get any of these deals,” he told the host.
“And Warner Bros is not the first studio to provide these deals to a filmmaker. I think that a lot has been made of my deal in particular. I’m not totally sure why… I have my guesses, but I’ve been in the industry long enough to know what kind of deals are possible.”
When Democracy NOW! host Amy Goodman pressed further, referring to headlines like Vulture’s "Hollywood Execs Fear Ryan Coogler’s Sinners Deal Could End the Studio System," Ryan chuckled and offered a smooth but telling: “I’d rather not say.”
Still, he made it clear why securing that deal mattered:
“As a writer-director, I’ve made over $2 billion in the global box office, I’m not yet 40 years old. It’s taken a lot of time, commitment, energy, and I’ve missed out on a lot of things in my life on films that will always be owned by other people. For this one, because it’s so personal… I asked for a few things that were very important to me… Thankfully, I was able to get those things I was asking for.”
Sinners may be a film about blood, spirits, and survival, but more than anything, it’s a story of legacy.
For Ryan, it’s not just about the art or the accolades; it’s about reclaiming the stories, sounds, and soul of Black America and owning the narrative, both on-screen and off.
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Featured image by Tim P. Whitby/Getty Images for Warner Bros. Pictures