Regina Hall opened up about how her father’s death impacted the trajectory of her career.
“It was his passing that really shifted how I looked at life. I realized how brief it can be and how suddenly it can change,” Hall said to Health magazine for their September 2021 cover issue. “That’s what led me to acting. The thing about feeling broken is that it forces you to be open — you feel like you don’t have much, so you don’t overthink everything.”
The actress’ father, Obie Hall, passed away from a stroke during her first semester at New York University while she was studying for her Master’s degree in Journalism.
Hall eventually graduated in 1997 as per her late father’s request, but she decided to take a leap of faith and went on to star in over 40 films and television shows.
Regina Hall became a household name after delivering a standout performance in the Wayans Brothers’ Scary Movie franchise.
“It’s really amazing for someone to even think about your character 20 years later. I look and go, ‘Oh, my God, look how young I was,” Hall said to BET.com about seeing the memes of her circulate.
“Twenty years later, for people to still have such a connection to Brenda… I loved Brenda and I’m so happy I got to be able to play her. It’s funny to me because you don’t know what’s going to happen when you do a role — two decades later, for Brenda to, honestly, find a new audience. There’s just a whole new young audience that got to discover her so it’s fun for me.”
