Most fans know Natasha Rothwell as the hilarious, no-filter Kelly from HBO’s Insecure, but what many don’t realize is that Rothwell didn’t originally set out to be in front of the camera. She was hired solely as a writer.
During a recent sit-down with Variety’s Actors on Actors, Rothwell shared the full-circle moment with Emmy winner Sterling K. Brown, revealing how her pen turned into a spotlight, and how a character that wasn’t even hers to begin with changed her entire career.
“I thought I made one too many d*** jokes and was getting fired,” Rothwell told Brown.
The truth? Quite the opposite.
While sitting in the writers’ room for Season 1 of Insecure, Rothwell, who previously wrote for Saturday Night Live, was simply doing her job: helping shape the characters and reading lines during table reads. But every time the script called for Kelly, and Rothwell filled in, she didn’t just read the lines. She embodied them.
That’s when co-creators Issa Rae and Prentice Penny pulled her aside.
Natasha Rothwell and Sterling K. Brown reflect on their first meeting and Rothwell's trajectory from writer to actor on "Insecure." #ActorsOnActorshttps://t.co/gLIMJHTsiN pic.twitter.com/g0qblcpYEp
— Variety (@Variety) June 8, 2025
“We were about to get into auditions for Kelly,” they told her. “But we want you to be Kelly.”
The shock hit instantly. Rothwell says she “burst into tears,” overwhelmed by the opportunity to bring the bold, no-nonsense, ride-or-die friend to life. Her portrayal quickly became a fan favorite, thanks to Kelly’s quirky jokes and unmatched confidence.
Brown couldn’t help but hype her up, calling her a “murderer” for how she crushed the role. Rothwell laughed and returned the compliment.
Check out their Variety’s Actors on Actors conversation below.
