Funny lady Tiffany Haddish isn’t afraid to strip down onscreen—for the bag, of course.
“I mean, how much they paying me?” she quipped when asked during The Hollywood Reporter‘s Comedy Actress Roundtable. “I mean, I’m just borrowing this flesh suit. I am going to give this back to the Lord anyway. Might as well share it, if I can feed my family and whatnot.”
The comedienne and star of the forthcoming animated film, The Secret Life of Pets 2, said the only reason why she hasn’t done nudity yet in her career is “because ain’t nobody came with the right kind of money.”
Still, Haddish isn’t going to just strip down for any film. She has certain specifications, including who would be directing the film and the “quality” of the project, she told THR.
“If it’s, like, a classy situation, yeah, but if it’s some super-raunchy nasty stuff, it better be freakin’ hilarious, and I better be getting paid,” she added.
During the roundtable, which also included interviews with ESSENCE cover star Regina Hall and Maya Rudolph, Haddish also revealed the “sneaky” way she gets feedback after her auditions. And it’s sort of genius.
“I’d put my phone on voice memo and put it in my bag, I’d do the audition, walk out and leave my bag,” she revealed. “Then I’d come back and be like, ‘Oh, I forgot my purse.'”
When asked what the Girl’s Trip star heard on her smartphone, she replied: “‘She is not as urban as I thought she’d be.’ Or, ‘She is so ghetto.’ ‘Her boobs aren’t big enough.’ ‘I really think we should just go with a white girl.'”
Although Haddish admitted that sometimes it can be hard to hear the very raw feedback from producers and bookers, it helps her improve her craft, especially when she can turn it into material for her stand-up routine or a future series she may be penning.
“I want to hear so that I can write jokes about it. That and also so that I use it to my advantage and grow,” she explained. “Like [one person said], ‘Jeez, she can’t read. She said every word wrong.’ And I’m like, ‘They’re right.’ So, I start[ed] reading out loud more and practicing and it helps me in the long run. So, sure, they hurt my feelings and sometimes I’m like, ‘Damn, what a bitch. I’m never going back in there…but I did.”