Dewayne Perkins
Born
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
EducationDePaul University (BA)
Notable workThe Blackening

Dewayne Perkins (born November 5, 1990)[1] is an American comedian, writer, actor, and producer. Born and raised in Chicago, he received improv training at The Second City and also worked for iO Theater. His stand-up comedy was recommended by Variety magazine and Just for Laughs comedy festival. He has appeared on Wild 'n Out and The Upshaws. Perkins was on the writing staff for The Break with Michelle Wolf, the Saved by the Bell reboot, and Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and he is a staff writer for The Amber Ruffin Show, for which he was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award. He is the co-writer and star of horror-comedy film The Blackening.[2][3]

Early life and education

Perkins was born in Chicago, Illinois[3] and was raised on the south side near Marquette Park.[4] He attended Hearst Elementary School and graduated from Curie High School.[3] He was the first African American male student to receive an International Baccalaureate Diploma from his high school.[3]

Perkins developed his interest in performing through musical theater and improv classes in high school.[3] He attended The Theatre School at DePaul University but was cut after his first year and changed his major to film and animation, where he was introduced to The Second City by his best friend and writing partner Aasia Lashay Bullock.[3] They were hired there after a producer saw his and Bullock's original show Uncle Tom & Jerry Curl: A Black History Month Experience.[3] Perkins received his bachelor's degree from DePaul.

Career

2016–2019: Stand-up and television writing

After college Perkins continued to work at Second City and as a performer at iO theater, and was a member of the improv trio 3Peat. In 2016, he wrote and performed Black Side of the Moon at Woolly Mammoth Theater in D.C.[5]

He left Second City in 2017 to pursue stand-up.[3][4] When he transitioned to stand-up, he stated that using Twitter improved his joke writing.[5] His work frequently covers issues of identity such as his race and sexuality.[6]

In April 2018, 3Peat's sketch The Blackening was released online on Comedy Central, about "an all-Black group of friends (who ain't got no business camping) as they get chased by a serial killer."[7] The sketch originated from a variety show sketch Perkins produced at Second City.[7] He was hired to write for the sole season of The Break with Michelle Wolf in 2018.[3] He later relocated to Los Angeles and joined the writing staff for season seven of Brooklyn Nine-Nine.[4] In both writer's rooms he was the only Black writer.[4]

2020–present: Television production and The Blackening

In January 2020, it was announced that The Blackening would be adapted into a full-length film, to be co-written with Tracy Oliver and developed by MRC Film and The Story Company.[2] Directed by Tim Story and starring Perkins, Antoinette Robertson, Jermaine Fowler, Yvonne Orji, and Jay Pharoah, the film wrapped production in December 2021.[8] The film was released at TIFF in September 2022.[9]

Perkins is a writer for The Amber Ruffin Show and was also a writer for the Saved By the Bell reboot, both released on Peacock in 2020.[10][11]

In June 2020, Perkins posted a viral Twitter thread alleging institutional racism during his time at The Second City.[12] He "criticized Second City prior’s reluctance to fundraise for the Black Lives Matter movement without also financially supporting police-related causes."[12] He alleged that he and other Black performers were required to see a dialect coach to make their speaking voices more "palatable."[13] He further stated in an interview with The New York Times that he had heard directors use anti-Black slurs, and was traumatized by his overall experience.[13] Several other Black performers replied to the thread.[13] The next day, Second City co-owner Andrew Alexander resigned.[12]

Perkins will write and executive produce the workplace sitcom Chopped & Screwed for ABC in collaboration with Phoebe Robinson.[14] The show is a multi-camera sitcom centered on a Black barbershop and beauty salon that must come together as one entity to serve the superficial and therapeutic needs of their customers and community.[14] In 2022 it was announced that Perkins will executive produce and write Clue, an animated television series adaptation based on the 1985 film. Tim Story will also co-executive produce the series for Fox and Bento Box Entertainment.[9]

The Blackening was released in theaters nationwide on Juneteenth weekend 2023 and grossed $17.7 million on a $5 million microbudget.[15][16] In November 2023 it was announced that Perkins and co-writer Tracy Oliver are developing a sequel.[15]

Personal life

Perkins is gay.[3][17]

Accolades

Filmography

Television

Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2012 Underemployed Jester 1 episode
2016 Starving Artists Himself Web series; also director and writer [18]
2017 Wild 'n Out Himself [21]
2018 The Break with Michelle Wolf N/A Writer [3]
2018 3Peat Presents: The Blackening Dewayne TV short; also writer [7]
2019 Comedy Central Stand-Up Featuring Himself Stand-up special [4]
2020–2021 Brooklyn Nine-Nine N/A Writer, producer [4]
2020–2022 Saved by the Bell Ray Recurring role; Also writer and producer [10]
2020–present The Amber Ruffin Show N/A Writer [10]
2021–present The Upshaws Hector Recurring role [21]
TBA Chopped & Screwed Writer and executive producer; pre-production [14]
TBA Clue Writer and executive producer; pre-production [9]

Film

Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2012 Roundabout American Cop [22]
2014 Animals Pedestrian [23]
2015 Followed George [24]
2018 The Bobby Roberts Project Ray Jay [25]
2022 The Blackening Dewayne Also writer, producer [8]

Awards and nominations

Award Year Category Nominated work Result Ref.
Primetime Emmy Awards 2021 Outstanding Writing for A Variety Series The Amber Ruffin Show Nominated [26]
Writers Guild of America Awards Comedy/Variety Sketch Series The Amber Ruffin Show Nominated [27]
Television Critics Association Awards Outstanding Achievement in Variety, Talk, or Sketch The Amber Ruffin Show Nominated [28]
Black Reel Awards 2024 Outstanding Breakthrough Performance The Blackening Pending [29]

References

  1. ↑ Perkins, Dewayne. "Happy Birthday to me!". Twitter. Retrieved 10 November 2022.
  2. 1 2 Boucher, Geoff (2020-01-16). "'The Blackening': MRC & The Story Co. Adapting Comedy Central Short To Feature Film". Deadline. Archived from the original on 2020-01-16.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "Art & Life with Dewayne Perkins". Voyage Chicago. 18 September 2018. Retrieved 2020-09-12.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Metz, Nina (18 December 2019). "Chicago's Dewayne Perkins on writing for 'Brooklyn Nine-Nine' and his new solo stand-up show 'How Being Black and Gay Made Me Better Than You'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2020-09-12.
  5. 1 2 Nelson, Jenny (2017-01-13). "@DewaynePerkins on Gayness, Blackness, Strangers, and Strangers". Vulture. Retrieved 2020-09-12.
  6. ↑ Hassenfratz, Mark (2015-03-03). "Dewayne Perkins, Professional Funnyman". South Side Weekly. Archived from the original on 2015-03-12. Retrieved 2020-09-12.
  7. 1 2 3 Henderson, Taylor (2020-03-25). "Horror Films Are Getting Queerer & Blacker Thanks to Dewayne Perkins". www.pride.com. Archived from the original on 2020-03-25. Retrieved 2020-09-12.
  8. 1 2 Grobar, Matt (2021-12-07). "'The Blackening': Tim Story & MRC Film Wrap Production On Horror-Comedy Starring Dewayne Perkins, Antoinette Robertson, Jermaine Fowler, Yvonne Orji, Jay Pharoah & More". Deadline. Archived from the original on 2021-12-07. Retrieved 2021-12-07.
  9. 1 2 3 Andreeva, Nellie (29 August 2022). "'Clue': Dewayne Perkins To Write Animated Series In Works At Fox, Tim Story Joins As Executive Producer". Deadline. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  10. 1 2 3 Wright, Megh (17 September 2020). "Here's the Writing Staff for The Amber Ruffin Show". Vulture. Retrieved 21 September 2020.
  11. ↑ "What Not To Wear If You're a Corporate Mascot". NPR. 2020-10-30. Archived from the original on 2020-10-31. Retrieved 2020-11-28.
  12. 1 2 3 Jones, Chris. "Second City owner Andrew Alexander to exit after accusations of institutionalized racism". The Detroit News. Retrieved 2020-09-12.
  13. 1 2 3 Ryzik, Melena; Malooley, Jake (2020-08-12). "Second City Is Trying Not to Be Racist. Will It Work This Time?". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-09-12.
  14. 1 2 3 White, Peter (2021-11-02). "Workplace Sitcom 'Chopped & Screwed' In The Works At ABC From Phoebe Robinson & Dewayne Perkins". Deadline. Retrieved 2021-11-03.
  15. 1 2 Pulliam-Moore, Charles (2023-11-20). "Dewayne Perkins and Tracy Oliver's The Blackening is getting a sequel". The Verge. Retrieved 2024-01-08.
  16. ↑ Jackson, Angelique (2023-06-24). "'The Blackening' Mastermind Dewayne Perkins on Tackling Horror Movie (and the Gay BFF) Tropes and Future Plans: 'It's Giving Franchise'". Variety. Retrieved 2024-01-08.
  17. ↑ Chee, Karen (2018-07-20). "Dewayne Perkins on Being Relevant Always and Forever". Vulture. Retrieved 2020-09-12.
  18. 1 2 Ramos, Dino-Ray (2017-10-29). "New York TV Fest Names 'Giving Up' Best Indie Pilot – Complete List Of Winners". Deadline. Retrieved 2020-12-07.
  19. ↑ Wright, Megh (2019-07-22). "Just for Laughs Announces Its 2019 New Faces". Vulture. Retrieved 2020-09-12.
  20. ↑ Riley, Jenelle (2020-08-12). "Variety Announces 10 Comics to Watch for 2020". Variety. Archived from the original on 2020-08-12. Retrieved 2020-09-12.
  21. 1 2 White, Peter (2021-11-02). "Workplace Sitcom 'Chopped & Screwed' In The Works At ABC From Phoebe Robinson & Dewayne Perkins". Deadline. Archived from the original on 2021-11-02. Retrieved 2021-12-18.
  22. ↑ "Roundabout American". Movie Ranker. Archived from the original on 2021-12-18.
  23. ↑ O'Malley, Sheila. "Animals movie review & film summary (2015)". Roger Ebert. Archived from the original on 2015-05-16. Retrieved 2021-12-18.
  24. ↑ Followed (2015), retrieved 2021-12-18
  25. ↑ Patton, Daniel (2018-02-26). "Eric Roberts, Jaleel White, and Fred Willard bring greatness to "a clueless scenario that would only inspire a moron" in "The Bobby Roberts Project"". Reel Chicago. Archived from the original on 2018-03-18. Retrieved 2021-12-18.
  26. ↑ "Outstanding Writing For A Variety Series Nominees / Winners 2021". Television Academy. Retrieved 2021-07-14.
  27. ↑ "2021 Writers Guild Awards Nominees & Winners". awards.wga.org. Retrieved 2021-08-03.
  28. ↑ "2021 TCA Award nominees". tvcritics.memberclicks.net. Retrieved 2021-08-03.
  29. ↑ Complex, Valerie (2023-12-15). "Black Reel Awards Nominations: 'The Color Purple' And 'Rustin' Dominate". Deadline. Retrieved 2024-01-08.
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