Actress Tetona Jackson currently stars on CBS’ Poppa’s House with comedy titans Damon Wayans and Damon Wayans Jr. As she embarks in this role, it’s not the first time she’s rubbed elbows with screen legends. Between table reads and filming time, Jackson sat with mxdwn to talk about her new role as Nina, her disciplined origins in figure skating, and what makes the storied sitcom still work with audiences.
mxdwn: Hello, I’m Lorin Williams with mxdwn.com, the TV editor, and I have the pleasure today talking with actress Tetona Jackson. Many may know her or recognize her from BET’s Boomerang, but now she’s being featured in CBS’s hit sitcom, Poppa’s House. Welcome, Tetona. Thank you for taking your time to speak with me today.
Tetona Jackson: Thank you for having me.
mxdwn: Yes, yes. So before we get into some current things, one second. Yeah. I saw where you sort of have a varied background in dance, including figure skating. How did you get into theatrical figure skating? How has that propelled your career?
Jackson: I know I’m from Los Angeles, so you wouldn’t think figure skater, but it’s funny, at the Universal City Walk. I don’t know if they still do it, but they used to do an outdoor skating rink. And I was there with my mom, my aunt, my cousin. And as we were leaving, I saw the tree, I heard the music, I saw the lights, and I begged my mom to take me to that area. And it was an outdoor skating rink. And I begged her to let me skate. And from there, I just fell in love with it. And then, you know, I asked her if she could take me to lessons, and I fell more and more in love with it, started competing. And then, and then, fresh out of high school, went on tour with Disney on Ice.
mxdwn: Wow. I remember going to Disney on Ice when I was a kid, seeing Aladdin and things. How was that experience and did that kind of propel your interest into acting?
Jackson: So I always knew at a young age that I wanted to act. I think I fell in love with just entertainment, entertaining at a very young age. I grew up, know, my dad’s a jazz musician, my aunt is a flamenco dancer, so I kind of grew up in entertainment. I used to go on my dad’s gigs with him and watch all these legends perform. So I always knew I wanted to be in entertainment and I knew I wanted to act, but I think, I don’t know, just lack of time or whatever it was.
As I got older, I was like, ‘You know, this is what I want to do. This is what I want to dive into.’ And I eventually kind of just dove headfirst into it. But I think for me, the biggest thing I have been able to take away from figure skating is the discipline. You know, a discipline getting up every morning, five, four-thirty in the morning, skating at five thirty, changing, going to school, doing it again after school. So I, I was very disciplined at a young age with that environment. And I think it’s translated into my acting and the work ethic that I have as an actress. I think I’ve been able to get from growing up as a skater.
mxdwn: And as a young skater, who did you look up to? Who did you sort of kind of model after? Was it Nancy Kerrigan or were there others that kind of inspired you?
Jackson: For me, think Scott Hamilton was very big when I was a kid. Sariah Bonally, black figure skater doing back flips. She was someone I looked up to, Kristy Yamaguchi, Michelle Kwan. So I think those were like, that was the era that I was very, those were the skaters that I grew up watching. influenced me.
mxdwn: Awesome, awesome. It seems that particular time, skating was sort of like at its kind of peak in pop culture. I remember all those names and watching them. So what was your first role in acting? Do you remember your first role and, and what was that experience like?
Jackson: My first role was, my God, what was the name of the show? There was this show on MTV.
It was either MTV or VH1. And I think it was like called Happyland or something. I honestly don’t remember the name of the show, but it was like a co-star role, I think. I was so excited. And then my scene got cut. I filmed it and everything and then the scene got cut from the episode. But nonetheless, I was very excited. It gave me hope, made me, know, it gave me motivation and I was like, all right, I can do this. And from there, I just kept pushing and auditioning and growing as an actress.
mxdwn: Awesome. Now you’ve done both TV and film. Is there a certain you prefer over the other?
Jackson: I think I love doing both. love, you know, I love my craft. So anytime I get to act, I enjoy it. I think they both have their pros. Think with TV, there’s the longevity of it and being, you become like a family, being around the same people, working with the same people, having that routine. And then with film, it’s shorter, it’s sweet, you get to, and it depending, on where you film, sometimes go on location, it’s a little get away from home. But I love doing both. love, I love, yeah, I just love to act.
mxdwn: And speaking of acting, know, we, my first experience to you or yeah, first experience with you was the Boomerang series on BET. How did that come to your plate? How did you get that opportunity? What was the, the steps auditioning and then getting everything together?
Jackson: You know, I just, funny enough, I think I had auditioned for American Soul a week prior to getting my audition for Boomerang. I got the audition, just a regular, know, this is, my manager called me. He was like, I have an audition for you. I went into the room and I think the funniest part about it was I went into the audition. I felt great about the audition. Came out, I called my manager, was like, ‘I think, you know, I think it went really, really well,’ because I had never auditioned for that casting director before. I was like, ‘I think it went really well, but I don’t think I’m going to get a callback.’ And then I think cut to a week later, got a callback, cut to, you know, a few weeks later, found out I was testing and then, you know, one thing led to another and I ended up booking the role. it was such a fun show and I, you know, Simone is very dear to my heart. So I really enjoyed working on that show and I really took a lot away from being on that show.
mxdwn: How did it feel being connected to such a cherished franchise in entertainment, especially black entertainment with the film being such a sort of like breakout experience? How did that feel being part of that legacy?
Jackson: There was a lot of pressure. you know, because I knew how big the movie was, you know, there were icons, were legends in the movie. to be playing, to be playing the daughter of two huge actors was, it was a lot, was some big shoes to fill. But I think one thing I loved about the show was it wasn’t a reboot, it was a continuation. So you get to see, you know, generations later, these kids that came from those families, that came from those characters, what they’re doing now, and the friendships that they had. the love that, you know, throughout the friendships. And one thing I loved about the show was you get to see millennials navigating through, you know, relationships and work and, you know, the stress that we have today and social media and all the things that we deal with today. So it was, it was a lot of fun.
mxdwn: That’s awesome. Yeah. I can, I remember watching the show and it was nice to see those new stories from that franchise from that time, but also see how some of the same sort of issues are so present with us in the modern day. Yeah, next, we’re going to talk about your new show. We see you weekly as Nina on CBS’s, Poppa’s House, Congratulations on the NAACP nominations. That’s great to hear. How did that opportunity come to you and how’s that been going so far with the success?
Jackson: Um, you know, same, same kind of the same story with auditioning. But I think for me, this, this project, I had auditioned for a Two Shakes project a year prior to getting the audition for this. And Two Shakes, you know, they’re, produce our show and one of the producers of our show. um,
I had auditioned for one of their projects a year prior and I fell in love with the show. I fell in love with the character and I didn’t — it was between like me and one other girl, two other girls and I didn’t get the role and I was devastated. And I, you know, went through this whole internal, ‘do I continue to act? Do I not?’ And I called my friend, one of my best friends and I was like, ‘I don’t think this is for me anymore.’ And God bless her, she was like, ‘I do not have that in my cards. You will not stop acting.’ So I was like, all right, cut to a year later, I had a straight-to-producer session for Nina and they remembered me from the audition a year ago and they were like, ‘We loved your work. We loved what you brought to the character.’ And you know, here I am now.
mxdwn: Yes, yes. And I really enjoyed the show. I think the chemistry of everyone on there is great. And how is it working with The Wayans, another sort of like name in the industry, legends, yeah? What is it like on set with these two hilarious but accomplished actors?
Jackson: I will not lie. My first few weeks on set, was, you know, I was like a nervous wreck. I was anxious. I was like, I just want to do good. Because I grew up watching all of these people on TV, you know, Damon Wayans, Kim Wayans, Shawn Wayans, even, you know, Jeffrey Owens, like all these people that are that I’m working with now. Wendy, you know, just — I grew up watching all these faces and even Essence. Like I’m a huge fan of sister. Like I love her so much. She is like family to me now.
But one thing I’ll say about this set is you feel the love. You feel the love every day when you come to set. They are open to hearing your ideas. If there’s something I’m not comfortable, they are open to, know, ‘What do you, how do you feel It would be better? What do you want to do? How can we make this better?’ And it’s such a collaboration on this show. You know, one thing they did with Essence and I, they brought us into the writer’s room before we started filming. They asked us questions about our lives and, you know, trying to make our characters more authentic and, you know, bring us, bring a little bit more of ourselves into the characters. And there is not a day on this set that people are not laughing hysterically. Junior and I are constantly trying to make each other laugh. We are politely told almost every day on set to please be quiet because we’re just goofing off. But it’s, it’s, God, this experience, it has been amazing.
mxdwn: Awesome to hear. And Poppa’s House seems to be part of the resurgence of the sitcom with a lot of viewers. What do you think about that format of art that brings audiences back each time?
Jackson: Well, I think…I think, I grew up watching I Love Lucy. I Love Lucy, know, Lucille Ball, she’s, that type of comedy is part of what made me want to act and want to become an actress. I was like, I wanna do that. That’s not, that looks like fun. It’s funny. But I think specifically with our show, we are bringing to the table, we are bringing old school back. You know, the fact that we have bloopers at the end of the show. The fact that, and we’re working with people who, they do this, they do this format. My Wife and Kids, all the, you know, In Living Color, all the skits, all the, so I think it’s really cool to be, to see this style of comedy coming back because I feel like it’s been missing for a really long time.
And I think our show, you know, again, it brings something to the table that we have a real father and son dealing with real-life issues. You know, Ivy dealing with real-life issues, Nina and Junior dealing with real-life issues. So not only is it funny, but it’s also, we have a lot of raw moments and a lot of deep moments that you get to experience with our characters and see how we deal with them, see how we push through them, see how we work through them. So it’s funny, but there’s a lot of love.
mxdwn: Right, right. There’s a lot of lessons in each episode, which is great to have with the comedy. Does feel nostalgic. I think, know, millennials are adults now. We had that time with sitcoms and like this new generation might be new to them, but our generation is gravitating towards it because we had it.
Jackson: Yeah, bringing something, that, something back that has been missing for a long time. Right. A level of nostalgia.
mxdwn: Before I let you go, I want to know if there’s anything else you’re working on or something. Some things are coming up that you’re allowed to speak about in addition to Poppa’s House.
Jackson: You know, I, not right now. Nothing that I can speak on, but hopefully, I mean, you know, the industry has been so weird since the pandemic. So I think, you know, it’s just been one thing after another and everyone’s trying to find their footing, but I am blessed and fortunate to have, you know, to be working on this show and to be working on a show with these people and this caliber of people. yeah, just continue to watch, continue to support. I appreciate all the support and hopefully we see you back for another season.
mxdwn: We have our fingers crossed. I’m loving the I’m the show too. And last thing I want to ask, what are you enjoying watching when you get a chance to tune in. What do I enjoy watching?
Jackson: Oh, I’m the complete opposite. I like psychological thrillers. You know, the, yes, like…Bates Motel style, Dexter. I’m like very, but I also enjoy, I think my guilty pleasure right now is Bob’s Burgers. If I ever wanna like wind down, I don’t wanna think about anything and I just wanna like relax. Bob’s Burgers is my go-to show.
mxdwn: It’s popular with a lot of people. It’s a grade-a show. I haven’t watched a lot of it, cause I don’t really get into animation like that, but I know it’s a favorite.
Jackson: I have a toddler, so I don’t really get to watch much TV. So, know, Bluey, Bluey’s a, hey, killing it. Work with the whole family. That show has folks deep into it. Bluey’s doing well.
mxdwn: All right. Well, I want to thank you, Tetona, for spending this time with us. And once again, good luck with the show. We hope to see you a second season.
Jackson: Thank you so much. It was great talking to you. All right. Take care. Bye.