Da'Vine Joy Randolph

Randolph's early films include The Angriest Man in Brooklyn (2014) and Office Christmas Party (2016); she acted in the television series Selfie (2014) and the television series People of Earth (2016–17). She received critical acclaim for her performance as Lady Reed in the biographical film Dolemite Is My Name (2019). In 2020, Randolph starred in the romantic comedy television series High Fidelity. Randolph grew up in Philadelphia and Hershey, Pennsylvania. She went to Temple University to focus on vocal performance, but in her junior year she decided to switch concentrations to musical theatre. After graduating from Temple she went to the Yale School of Drama. She graduated from Yale in 2011 with her master's degree. As a youth she attended Interlochen Arts Camp, studying theatre. Randolph auditioned for an understudy role in the Broadway transfer of Ghost the Musical (which was currently playing in London's West End), but the producers decided to cast her in the principal role of Oda Mae Brown. Before the casting of the Broadway transfer was announced Sharon D. Clarke, who played Oda Mae in the London run of Ghost the Musical, suffered a minor knee injury. Randolph was quickly flown to London to cover the role in Clarke's absence. Her debut performance took place on Friday December 16, 2011 and she continued to share the role with understudy Lisa Davina Phillip until early January 2012, when Clarke returned.