Essence Atkins on Working With Damon Wayans in Poppa’s House

Essence Atkins said the opportunity to star in CBS’ new sitcom “Poppa’s House” alongside Damon Wayans Sr. completed her nearly 30-year-long career working with the iconic Wayans family.

“It was Damon. I never worked with Senior before; I worked with [Damon Wayans] Junior on ‘Dance Flick.’ I had worked with basically with the entire [first] generation,” Atkins told TheWrap of her decision to sign on for the series. “Like, everybody but Damon, who is iconic and amazing and has done such incredible pioneering work in the realm of comedy, and so I just felt like he was my last frontier in this family. I was like, ‘I got to work with Damon.’”

Atkins stars in “Poppa’s House” as Dr. Ivy Reed, a driven and confident psychologist who joins veteran radio host Poppa (Wayans) as his new co-lead in an effort to boost his show’s dwindling ratings.

“Dr. Ivy is, she is all heart, but masking it with achievement. She leads with the things that she has done, and I think that that’s a common place for independent, strong women,” Atkins shared. “But on the other side of it is that underneath that — and you even see it a bit in the pilot — she does care and she has such a big heart.”

The actress then explained Dr. Ivy’s intentions behind bringing herself onto Poppa’s show. After a few verbal scuffles and a hilarious impromptu rap diss cypher, eventually Poppa accepts Ivy as his newest addition along with all the fresh ideas she wants to introduce him to … at least for now.

“One of the reasons that she wants to be a part of ‘Poppa’s World’ is because [Poppa] means something to her, and she’s not afraid to say that. She’s not afraid to articulate, ‘I have great respect for you and a great affection for you in what you have done in this genre,’” Atkins said. “I think that’s an important thing for all of us to be able to acknowledge, is when we meet someone who has been a hero of ours, to be able to give people their flowers. We’re always talking about giving people their flowers, and I love that she is one who will give somebody their flowers in the moment and she’s also going to give them advice which they don’t necessarily want.”

Like Ivy, Atkins has been a fan and supporter of the Wayans family over the years, having starred in many of their projects — including “Dance Flick,” “A Haunted House,” “The Wayans Brothers” and, most recently, “Marlon” in 2017.

“I’ve worked with the family for so long. It’s literally almost 30 years since I first worked with this family,” Atkins noted. “My first time working with them was 1995 on the ‘Wayans Brothers’ with Kim Wayans and Shawn at the time, and obviously John Witherspoon was on the show as well, who played my uncle. And my first pilot that I ever did for NBC. So we’ve been in each other’s worlds for a long time.”

And while she’s become an extension of the Wayans family legacy, the star said there’s no handouts when it comes to booking a role in one of their projects. “You’re being vetted. You’re not just being handed the key the kingdom … you have to earn it. I had to earn this role. Yes, I was invited to a screen test, but I still had to earn the role and go through the CBS and CBS Studios network to be hired. There is a process and they do respect the process of it.”

“Like Judd Apatow, who has taken this romantic comedy/friendship world, and he continues to utilize the same players. Sometimes Seth Rogen is the lead, and he just allows all of these people that he adores, Steve Carell, that he loves working with and just kind of keeps passing the baton,” she continued. “I feel like the Wayans have done that, not just with their family, but also with people that have come to know, love, respect and trust to be able to tell a story and bring something to it myself.”

“This show, especially watching Damon Sr. and Jr. playing father and son, is special, even if I wasn’t in it,” Atkins concluded. “The love between them is palpable, and I particularly am so excited about the world getting to witness, not just two brilliant comedians, but a Black man and his son really love on each other in a very funny way.”

“Poppa’s House” premieres Monday, Oct. 21 on CBS at 8:30 p.m. EST/PST.