Q: I read on your site that you attended military school, was there a reason behind this? It isn’t typically the school of choice for aspiring actresses.
by Timonthy Hines for The Next Big Thing Magazine
Photo by Nate Taylor
Buy your copy and read more here…
From crashing the audition and landing a part in the hit movie “Save the Last Dance” to her new role in the CW series “All American”. Karimah Westbrook learned you have to “Go For It”.
by Mario Barberio for Beyond the Spotlights.
Photos by Mario Baberio
Read more and watch behind the scenes footage here…
Some time ago, Chicago native Karimah Westbrook made up her mind to relocate to LA and has been active ever since….
by Krystal Luster for Twenty4Seven Magazine
Photo by David Higgs
Q: How would you describe the racial climate today? We are doing great things and doors are opening but at the same time, racism is becoming more “in your face” again.
A: Racism is as sad today as it was when our ancestors experienced it. I still believe it’s a spirit of some kind, living throughout the generations and beliefs taught in the households. Today technology can capture racist acts on video so it feels like it’s more in our faces but racism has never not existed.
Star style trends to watch for the new fall season.
Sophisticated Black Hair Oct/Nov issue.
Photo by Nate Taylor
“Actress Karimah Westbrook is a true All American beauty, which coincidentally, is the name of her new CW-TV show. Here, the Naturalista shows off her gorgeous curls worn loose and snipped into a graduated bob. A center part is all that’s needed to detail this camera-ready coif…”
by Kimberly Roots for TV Line
The CW has given a series order to All American, a football drama executive-produced by Greg Berlanti and Sarah Schechter. The series is inspired by the life of pro player Spencer Paysinger and formerly titled Spencer.
Logline: When a rising high school football player from South L.A. is recruited to play for Beverly Hills High, the wins, losses and struggles of two families from vastly different worlds – Crenshaw and Beverly Hills – begins to collide.
The cast includes Daniel Ezra (The Missing), Taye Diggs (Private Practice), Cody Christian (Teen Wolf), Samantha Logan (13 Reasons Why), Monet Mazur (Castle), Michael Evans Behling and Karimah Westbrook (Shameless, Aquarius). April Blair (Reign) will write and executive-produce alongside Berlanti, Schechter and Rob Hardy.
by Denise Petski for Deadline
Karimah is set as a series regular in the CW’s untitled April Blair/Spencer Paysinger drama pilot from writer April Blair, Greg Berlanti’s Berlanti Prods. and Warner Bros. TV. Written by Blair (Reign) and directed by Rob Hardy, the project is inspired by the life of pro football player Spencer Paysinger and produced by L.A. Galaxy soccer player Robbie Rogers.
Chicago natives Craig Robinson and Karimah Westbrook team up to send unserved children in the Chicago area homeless shelters and in foster care to see Marvel’s highly-anticipated Black Panther. The two bought out a Studio Movie Grill movie screening for February 16th to send children from Mercy Home and Teen Living Program to see Black Panther for free.
With celebrities like Octavia Spencer, Kendrick Lamar, Issa Rae, T.I, Regina King, Zendaya and even King T’Challa himself, Chadwick Boseman, treating kids to free screenings of what may be the most inspiring film to come out of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Black Panther has become so much more than a superhero movie.
The Suburbicon actress talks Tinseltown and her film’s relevance to today’s world
by Atalie Gimmel for Du Jour
Photo by Storm Santos
Suburbicon actress Karimah Westbrook was born and raised in Chicago, and made the leap to Los Angeles thanks to none other than Whoopi Goldberg. “At the time, she was like the black woman who looked like me,” Westbrook tells us. “She had natural hair, was a leading lady and she was funny. She did so many films and I just—it kind of took me out of my world.” Thanks to Whoopi (don’t we all she was our good luck charm?) and Westbrook’s undeniable talent, the actress went on to appear in projects like The Rum Diary, Mad Men and Shameless. Now, Westbrook’s shine continues to grow thanks to George Clooney’s latest directorial project: Suburbicon.
The film, also starring Matt Damon, Julianne Moore, Oscar Isaac, follows the Mayers, a black family that moves into a suburban Pennsylvania community in the 1950s and faces harassment and violence from their white neighbors. “We always thought it was good to remind ourselves that these are not new elements,” Clooney told The Atlantic about the film’s relevance to today. And to Westbrook, who portrays the matriarch of the Mayer family, the film’s historical significance is just as important. “This is a very important part of black history,” she says of the Mayers’ real-life story, “and a lot of people really aren’t aware of how they made changes within the housing institution as far as integration in that regard. They basically broke the color barrier during that time.”
The actress also says her audition process was a little unorthodox: Clooney called her in for a meeting, asked about her career thus far, and basically offered the job on the spot. So, it seems, Westbrook’s L.A. luck is far from running out.
The crime comedy “Suburbicon” from director George Clooney is set in a small suburban community in 1959. One of the storylines follows an African-American family that is the first to integrate the neighborhood.
by Nina Metz for Chicago Tribune
Photo by Nate Taylor
The mother is played by Karimah Westbrook, a native of Chicago’s western suburbs who has been based in Los Angeles for the past 17 years. Pursuing a career in acting is not without an awkward moment or two, she said.
“I like to give either thank you cards or gifts after I work on a project, especially to the director. And every day on set George would show up to work wearing a Casamigos tequila hat or shirt. Like, everyday. So I thought, ‘I’m going to find that tequila because he seems to really like it!’ I go buy a bottle, and I’m so happy about this gift! I got on set and I see George and I give it to him and he smiles and then I walk over to the makeup artist and she’s like, ‘That’s his company!’
“A few minutes later George came back over and he had signed the bottle and he said, ‘I think you should keep this!’ I was like, ‘Oh my God, I didn’t know it was your company! I just thought you loved that brand of tequila!’ ” (Clooney and his partners have since sold the company.)
Karimah Westbrook is one of those faces you know, with a name you’ll soon see everywhere. The Chicago actress has been making the rounds on television for decades. She’s had guest roles on Girlfriends, ER, Moesha, and Aquarius. Lately, she’s had a powerful run in cinema. She starred in the 2003 film Baadasssss!. She gave a memorable performance as Papa Nebo in The Rum Diaries opposite Johnny Depp.
by Joelle Monique for Blackgirlnerds.com
Photo by Alex J. Berliner
Now, Westbrook has taken on the interesting role of Mrs. Meyers, one-third of the first Black family to integrate the idyllic community of Suburbicon. If you’re Black, or have in any way paid attention to the news, the town’s reaction won’t surprise you. Westbrook spoke with West Coast Correspondent Joelle Monique about the true story that inspired the creation of her character, what it was like to be directed by George Clooney, and more.
It is no easy feat to to be a standout in a cast that includes Matt Damon and Julianne Moore, but Karimah Westbrook does just that in “Suburbicon,” the latest film to be directed by George Clooney. In the small town thriller based on a true story, the Chicago native plays Daisy Myers, who along with her husband William (Leith M. Burke), discover that the idyllic American Dream of settling into a peaceful suburban existence is not all that it is cracked up to me.
We recently sat down with Westbrook to discuss the secrets of the suburbs, why the film’s message is so timely, and how Daisy Myers never let hatred harden her heart.
by Trunkprc for Openthetrunk.com
Photo by Nate Taylor
TrunkSpace: The cast is amazing. The creative team is the best in the business. The story is compelling and timely. With so many great factors involved in your new film “Suburbicon,” what do you think the biggest draw is?
Westbrook: I think the biggest draw for the film “Suburbicon” is that it’s an interesting play in regards to what the suburbs is supposed to be, in the sense that, everyone thinks that the suburbs is the safest place to live, right? This movie turns that on its head in the sense that you find that there is murder, deceit, betrayal, and racism all happening in this one town. It’s just the unique play on the world, the suburbs, and how people look at the suburbs and what actually happens there.
Actress Karimah Westbrook owns the screen in the George Clooney-directed Suburbicon, a thriller set in Levittown, Pennsylvania in 1957. The dark comedy is inspired by the true story of the first Black family moving into the all-white planned community of Suburbicon. Westbrook plays Mrs. Meyers, completely unbothered by her racist neighbors in the town, who relentlessly targets her family.
by Yvette Caslin for Rolling Out
Photo by Alex J. Berliner
As an actress, sometimes it takes more than developing a character from scratch. In those rare moments, an actress must portray a real-life person. For actress Karimah Westbrook that day came when she accepted the role of Daisy Meyers in the George Clooney directed movie Suburbicon.
by Dana Abercrombie for The Koalition
Photo by Nate Taylor
Opening this Friday, Daisy Myers and her husband William (played by Leith M. Burke) were moved to 43 Deepgreen Lane in Levittown, Pennsylvania, in August 1957 which set off a violent racial conflict that lasted months.
Taking place almost sixty years ago, this African-American couple and their actions draw a strong parallel to the protests in Charlottesville, Virginia.
In Suburbicon, the Myers move into a picture perfect community, setting off racial violence the town has never seen before. As Daisy faces racism from the entire town, she remains unwavering in the basic human right to live wherever she wants.
The Koalition had an opportunity to speak to Westbrook about her role, her acting process and the unknown story of the Myers.
Check out the interview below.
We all need role models, inspiration, mentors. If you are blessed enough to find that spark out there, you will certainly light it in your own heart. Once your mind is mastered and your soul is pure, you can achieve anything. I can say this with certainty as I have experienced it in my own personal life. My mentor, Daisaku Ikeda, inspires me every day to look for those lights out there that can awaken the world. Those ordinary humans who bless us through their victories, the examples of how earthly desires can become enlightenment if wished for with a wise mind. Sharing stories of victory can motivate us to be better people and to never settle in life.
by Simonetta Lein for Huffington Post
Photo by Nate Taylor
“If someone like her can make it, I can make it too”. “I want to be just like him or her, and maybe better”. We need thoughts like these; we need the great leaders of the future. We need women to arise without jealousy or animosity. Your victory is my victory as I can be inspired to strive for more. Your successes are also mine, as we should know in our hearts how good it is to feel joy for the accomplishments of others.
I want to see success stories and to be motivated as I feel when I read the story of actress Karimah Westbrook.
As Chicago native Karimah Westbrook prepared for her role as the wife and mother of the first black family to move into the fictional Suburbicon — in director and co-writer George Clooney’s new film of the same title (opening Friday) — the actress looked to history for inspiration.
by Bill Zwecker for Chicago Sun Times
The project was sparked by the true story of Daisy Meyers and her family moving into the all-white planned community of Levittown, Pennsylvania, in 1957, so Westbrook first turned to Meyers’ memoir of that period, “Sticks and Stones.”
“I learned so much from reading her book,” said the actress, seen earlier in “Badasssss” and “The Rum Diary.” “You can understand how Daisy came to be known as the ‘Rosa Parks of the North,’ ” for sticking it out in Levittown for five years, despite constant harassment, intimidation, hostility and all kinds of racial bias.
