Ray Of Light

In fact 2022 has been a particularly momentous year for Palmer. In May, she joined the HBO Max ballroom competition, Legendary, as a guest judge (alongside Jameela Jamil and celebrity stylist Law Roach). She is also the voice of Buzz Lightyear’s friend Izzy Hawthorne in Lightyear, a prequel to the Toy Story movies. “I’m a very expressive person,” she says of the energy that doing a movie press tour requires. “I want to give everything I have, which can be exhausting.”

But the most notable addition to Palmer’s résumé has, of course, been her star-turning role as heroine Emerald Haywood in Jordan Peele’s latest blockbuster, Nope. Having ascended the ranks to become Hollywood’s favorite spectacle filmmaker, Peele’s movies often garner cult status and scores of fan theories swirling online. “I like sci-fi, but I don’t think it was something I was looking to do… But action [appealed to me], and Nope has a lot of action,” Palmer considers. “And, obviously, I wanted to work with Jordan Peele. I definitely think my manifesting energy went towards that.”

Peele’s extra-terrestrial film saw Palmer taking a leading role in a major studio project for the first time in her two-decade career. In a video posted on Instagram last December, she responded to people who were wondering when they would see her on screen again. “Well, I guess I should be asking where you’ve been, considering that I did three movies this year and you didn’t see any of them,” she chided.

I ask if she feels as if she’s been reintroduced into public consciousness with her leading part in Nope. “Totally! Fans notice me from different places all the time,” she says. “Some people don’t even know I’ve been performing since I was a kid.”

Palmer’s fame has been shaped not only by her acting career, but by the very many strings she has to her bow. Her accomplishments and milestones are more extensive than many people twice her age. As a child, she became the first Black girl to lead her own show on Nickelodeon with True Jackson, VP. At the age of 20, she became the youngest talk-show host in television history, with Just Keke; and then a few years later, she co-hosted Good Morning America’s afternoon program. In 2014, she was the first Black woman to play Cinderella on Broadway. And, more recently, she released a book series titled Southern Belle Insults, based on a character she created on social media – and she has even launched her own digital network, called KeyTV. In the video announcement for the network, Palmer shared the purpose behind it, saying it will be a place “where our stories matter and where we are represented as keys to the culture”.

That said, Palmer firmly believes that there are two versions of herself: the professional and the personal. “On the one hand, Keke Palmer is just a brand that I created… a story that I tell and express. She is my art. She is the avenue through which I tell stories.” Then there’s the off-camera Keke, who is family-oriented and loves a quiet life. “Keke Palmer is also that everyday girl who is just living and wanting the same things we all want – a family, a time for a personal life away from work, time with her nieces and nephews and her mom. And wanting to take road trips in a trailer to continue my Midwestern roots of enjoying the simplicity of life.”

Shortly after Nope was released, a discussion was sparked on social media about Palmer’s career, comparing it to that of fellow actor Zendaya, and saying that the latter’s apparent greater success is a product of colorism. In response, Palmer tweeted: “A great example of colorism is to believe I can be compared to anyone.”

Expanding on her tweet, she tells me about her experiences dealing with colorism and other forms of bigotry within Hollywood. “A lot of time, those topics are a lot more intricate, with regards to access and resources,” she says. “I think the lack of information we get on the industry contributes to that.”

Palmer points to the guidance and influence of two key figures in helping her navigate the politics of the business in her early career: her first agent, Nicole David, and Queen Latifah, who she starred alongside when she made her acting debut in Barbershop 2: Back in Business. When honoring Palmer in the Time100 Next list this year, Queen Latifah called Palmer “one of the most talented human beings I’ve ever met”.

“Queen Latifah, through example, has shown me how to be graceful and give back, in the way she was able to give back to me,” Palmer says. “Not just as an actress, but also as a producer and being in positions of power and giving me access.”

Looking ahead to the next stage of her career, Palmer, in turn, wants to share the wisdom she’s accrued over the years with the rising generation of talent. “In my position, the biggest thing I want to tell all little girls is to never carry the weight of being Black, or being dark-skinned, as something that’s going to hold you back.”

In a reflective mood, Palmer feels ready for what the future holds. “My thirties are probably going to be better than my twenties… There was a lot going down [in my twenties], but you learn so much. You feel so grown, but you’re really still a kid – learning and figuring things out. I’m looking for my thirties to be a breeze.”

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