Tyler James Williams turned down roles and got an acting coach after Everybody Hates Chris ended
Words can be harmful when used in specific ways. That's why we often hear, "Be careful what you say." Speaking with ill intentions can negatively impact the person receiving those words and you.
In the television and film industries, actors, even children, hear the words "you'll never find work again" all the time. Tyler James Williams was a child star, portraying Chris on the hit series Everybody Hates Chris when he heard words similar to that quote. Instead of moping around and letting those words get to him, Williams decided to fight back in a way that helped his career in the long run.
During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter in 2023, the actor revealed that a producer from Everybody Hates Chris told him, 'I'll never see you as anything else, and you'll probably never work again.'
See Also
The producer may have been joking, but Williams took the statement seriously. "I realized at 17 that I didn't like the road I was on. So, I decided to stop and pivot. I got with a really good acting coach, and I turned down every single thing I was offered."
Growing up in the industry wasn't a smooth sailing experience for the child star—he calls it traumatic. "I still get triggered by things that are part of everybody else's childhood. Every time someone comes up to me, regardless of what it is they recognize me for, what that says to me in the moment is that I'm seen. I have to be on immediately because someone's watching."
Watch Everybody Hates Chris on Dabl
EVERY DAY AT 1p/12c | 1a/12c