Lena Waithe
Biography
Lena Waithe (/weɪθ/; born May 17, 1984) is an American actress, producer, and screenwriter. She is the creator of the Showtime drama series The Chi (2018–present) and the BET comedy series Boomerang (2019–20) and Twenties (2020–21). She also wrote and produced the crime film Queen & Slim (2019) and is the executive producer of the horror anthology series Them (2021–present). Waithe gained recognition for her role in the Netflix comedy-drama series Master of None (2015–2021) and became the first African-American woman to win the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series in 2017 for writing the show's "Thanksgiving" episode, which was loosely based on her personal experience of coming out to her mother. She has also appeared in Steven Spielberg's 2018 adventure film Ready Player One and the HBO series Westworld. In 2023, she was nominated for Best Play at the 76th Tony Awards, her production work on the sketch-comedy play Ain't No Mo'. Waithe was named one of Time magazine's 100 Most Influential People of 2018 and was included on Fast Company's Queer 50 list in 2021 and 2022. Description above from the Wikipedia article Lena Waithe, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Personal Details
Also Known As
Movies (39)
Reclaim the Flag
as Self
2025
Long's Long Lost & Mini Mart
Executive Producer (Production)
2025
Window Cleaners
Executive Music Producer (Crew)
2025
It's Dorothy!
as Self
2025
Move Ya Body: The Birth of House
Executive Producer (Production)
2025
Tender Thoughts
Executive Producer (Production)
2024
Meal Ticket
Executive Producer (Production)
2024
Play Hard
Executive Producer (Production)
2024
Bitter Leaf
Executive Producer (Production)
2024
Sarajin
Executive Producer (Production)
2023
Kokomo City
Executive Producer (Production)
2023
Order for Pickup
Executive Producer (Production)
2023
Last Days of the Lab
Executive Producer (Production)
2023
My Nights Glow Yellow
Executive Producer (Production)
2023
Sorry Grandpa Hsiao
Executive Producer (Production)
2023
A Thousand and One
Producer (Production)
2023
Being Mary Tyler Moore
as Self (voice)
2023
Chang Can Dunk
Producer (Production)
2023
House Party
as Lena Waithe
2023
The 25th Filial Exemplar
Executive Producer (Production)
2022
Beauty
Producer (Production)
2022
100% USDA Certified Organic Homemade Tofu
Executive Producer (Production)
2022
Beast
Executive Producer (Production)
2022
Crooked Trees Gon Give Me Wings
Executive Producer (Production)
2022
Black Santa
Executive Producer (Production)
2022
Stand Out: An LGBTQ+ Celebration
2022
2021 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony
as Self
2021
The One and Only Dick Gregory
as Self
2021
Soñadora
Executive Producer (Production)
2021
Shoebox
Executive Producer (Production)
2021
Only the Moon Stands Still
Executive Producer (Production)
2021
Bad Hair
as Brook-Lynne
2021
The Beauty President
Executive Producer (Production)
2021
You Love Me
Screenplay (Writing)
2020
The Forty-Year-Old Version
Producer (Production)
2020
Graduate Together: America Honors the High School Class of 2020
as Self
2020
Onward
as Officer Spector (voice)
2020
Queen & Slim
Screenplay (Writing)
2019
Fragile.com
Executive Producer (Production)
2019
TV Shows (11)
Seen & Heard: The History of Black Television
as Self
2025
Sherri
as Self - Guest
2022
The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder
as College Maya (voice)
2022
Twenties After-Show With B. Scott
as Self - Guest
2021
Them
Executive Producer (Production)
2021
Amend: The Fight for America
as Self
2021
#blackAF
as Lena Waithe
2020
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire
as Self - Contestant
2020
You Ain't Got These
2020
Visible: Out on Television
as Self - Narrator (voice)
2020
Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
as Self
2019