Elise Neal

Elise Demetria Neal (born March 14, 1966)[1][2][3] is an American actress. Her big break came with three 1997 films, appearing in Rosewood, Money Talks and Scream 2.

Elise Neal
Neal in 2019
Born
Elise Demetria Neal

(1966-03-14) March 14, 1966
Memphis, Tennessee, U.S.
OccupationActress
Years active1992–present

From 1998 to 2002, Neal starred as Yvonne Hughley in the ABC/UPN sitcom The Hughleys. Other film appearances include Mission to Mars (2000), Hustle & Flow (2005) and Logan (2017). On television, Neal also starred as Tia Jewel in the first two seasons of the UPN/The CW sitcom All of Us from 2003 to 2005. She is a three-time NAACP Image Award nominee.

Early life

Neal was born on March 14, 1966 in Memphis, Tennessee, the daughter of a nurse and a construction worker.[1][2] She attended Lakeview Elementary. She was a ballet dancer and a cheerleader. She broke her left wrist in a high toss cheerleading stunt; after the bones healed, her wrist never straightened back out completely. She graduated from Overton High School for the Creative and Performing Arts. From 1984–1988, she attended the University of the Arts in Philadelphia.[1] Elise left college after two years and moved to New York City where she landed roles in musical theater and found herself traveling the world with various touring companies. Her experience in musical theater allowed her to easily transition into commercials, eventually bringing her to Los Angeles.

Career

Neal was an accomplished dancer and appeared in several hip-hop and R&B music videos in the early 1990s. One of her earliest jobs was as a background dancer in Chubb Rock's music video for "Just the Two of Us." Other music videos Neal has performed in include Black Sheep's 1992 video for Strobelite Honey, Father MC's 1991 video for "Lisa Baby", Aretha Franklin's 1998 video for "A Rose Is Still a Rose", Trick Daddy's 2001 video "I'm a Thug", and Vanessa Williams's video "Work to Do". Neal was also featured in the November 2007 edition of King Magazine.

Once in Los Angeles, Neal landed the role of Janice Sinclair on the soap opera Loving. She then played fighter pilot J.J. Fredericks on the series seaQuest 2032. Her breakout role was being cast as Yvonne Hughley, the wife of D.L. Hughley in the five seasons of the television sitcom The Hughleys. While on The Hughleys, Neal was cast in the high-profile role of Hallie in Scream 2. Her character was originally written to be one of the killers of the movie, but due to a script leak her role was changed.[4] Neal also appeared as a backing dancer in the music video for Dannii Minogue's 1993 single “This Is It”.

Her film debut was a starring role in Rosewood. Other film credits include: Paid in Full, Money Talks, Mission to Mars and Restaurant. Her role in the 2007 film 4 Life also marked her first soundtrack single, "I'm Down Baby". She also appeared in the series K-Ville.

Neal was nominated for a NAACP award for Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture for the film Hustle & Flow, and received two NAACP nominations for Best Actress in a Comedy for The Hughleys.

Expanding her role as producer, Neal is creating and developing several multimedia projects: a reality show based on her R & B group, "Assorted Flavors", a fitness and lifestyle brand, and multiple feature projects through her development deal with Mandalay Bay Entertainment.

Neal played Kathryn Munson in the 2017 superhero film Logan.

Filmography

Film
Year Title Role Notes
1992 Malcolm X Hooker
1995 Let It Be Me Carlita
1997 Rosewood Beulah (Scrappie)
1997 Def Jam's How to Be a Player Nadine
1997 Money Talks Paula
1997 Scream 2 Hallie
1998 Chance of a Lifetime Amy
1998 Restaurant Jeanine
2000 Mission to Mars Debra Graham
2001 The Rising Place Wilma Watson
2001 Sacred Is the Flesh Gabi Paige
2001 Brian's Song Linda Sayers
2002 Paid in Full Aunt June
2003 Playas Ball Summer Twitty
2005 Hustle & Flow Yevette Nominated — NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture
Nominated — Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
Nominated — Black Reel Award for Best Ensemble
2007 4 Life Jare
2008 Who's Deal? Passion
2009 Preaching to the Pastor Monica
2010 Let God Be the Judge
2010 Love Ranch Alana
2010 Love Chronicles: Secrets Revealed Monique
2010 Gun Rich's Mom
2010 N-Secure Leslie
2010 Love Me or Leave Me Josephine Wyatt
2011 The Slap Gloria Short film
2011 Lord, All Men Can't Be Dogs Diane
2011 The Perfect Man
2011 Poolboy: Drowning Out the Fury Florence
2011 Breathe Kristy Burgin
2012 The Undershepherd Sister Roberts
2012 Who's Watching the Kids Delia
2013 1982 Stacy
2014 First Impression Kym Pine
2014 Ransum Games Denise
2014 The Fright Night Files Coffee Black
2014 Aaliyah: The Princess of R&B Gladys Knight
2015 The White Sistas Erin White Also executive producer
2016 Ladies Book Club Rona
2016 What Are the Chances? Gina
2016 36 Hour Layover Rebecca
2017 Logan Kathryn Munson
Logan Noir
2017 Tragedy Girls Mrs. Hooper
2017 Our Dream Christmas Cookie
2018 First Impression Kym Pine
2018 I Left My Girlfriend for Regina Jones Regina Jones
2018 We Belong Together Megan television movie

Television
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gollark: ~fs
gollark: ++remind 1h <@319753218592866315> should be punished for admin abuse

References
  1. Jason Buchanan (2008). "Elise Neal – Biography". movies.msn. Archived from the original on September 23, 2012. Retrieved May 5, 2011.
  2. "Elise Neal Biography (1970-)". Retrieved October 11, 2016.
  3. "On This Day In Comedy… In 1966 Actress Elise Neal Was Born!". The Humor Mill. March 28, 2016. Retrieved February 16, 2017.
  4. "Scream 2 rewritten after script leak". April 30, 2010. Retrieved March 15, 2011.
  5. "Tales Episode 2 – 'I Got a Story to Tell' Cast". BET.com. Retrieved August 10, 2017.
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