Hollywood is calling its name!
Cynthia Bailey tells Vidak For Congress that becoming an actress is the last stop in her long entertainment career after leaving “The Real Housewives of Atlanta” in 2021.
“This was the conscious next step for me. This is the next chapter. And it’s not just the next chapter, it’s the last chapter, okay?” Bailey, 55, says in an exclusive interview while promoting her latest TV project, “Terror Lake Drive: Single Black Female.”
In the ALLBLK series, she plays Mrs. Rose, an aunt who intervenes to protect her cousin from dangers posed during a widespread investigation into mysterious disappearances plaguing the black community of Atlanta.
“That was something I really had to unpack because [there are] very different problems with young black men in the world than with young black women,” said the mother of 22-year-old daughter Noelle Robinson. “So…I had to tap into my inner actress.”
The first taste of the multi-hyphenate came in the ’90s as a much sought-after model with the likes of trailblazing black runway queens like Naomi Campbell, Tyra Banks, Beverly Johnson, and Iman.
Her second act came in 2010 when she signed to ‘RHOA’, holding a full-time position on the Bravo hit for 11 consecutive seasons. Nearly a year after she dropped her peach, Bailey tells us there are no plans to pick it up again.
“You had Cynthia Bailey the model, you have to follow Cynthia Bailey the reality star. Now you are going to see Cynthia Bailey the actress. And what happens after that? Nothing. This is it,” she says, adding with a smile: “I’m a 55-year-old woman in full pre-menopause! This is it, okay?”
Since shifting her focus to scripted performances, the star — who made the move to Los Angeles after marrying TV host Mike Hill in October 2020 — has stacked her resume with impressive credits.
In addition to “Terror Lake Drive,” Bailey has landed small roles in TV movies such as “The Stepmother” for Tubi, a division of Fox Entertainment, and Lifetime’s “Cruel Instruction.” She will also appear in AMC’s “Interview with the Vampire” series.
Looking to the future, Bailey hopes to take center stage and tackle even heavier, award-winning roles.
“Anything is possible. The goal is to keep growing, keep learning and get bigger roles. And then I want to get roles that are more outside my wheelhouse. Like, I wanna play a serial killer, damn it!” she says “I want to get dark. I want to play a drug dealer or something. I want to do something you haven’t seen me yet [do].”
The founder of CB VIOR would even like to channel Oscar winner Halle Berry one day.
“I need my Halle Berry ‘Jungle Fever’ crackhead moment!” she proclaims. “I want to evolve into an actress at a level where you just see the actress, you don’t see Cynthia Bailey anymore.”
Bailey — who appeared on CBS’s “Celebrity Big Brother” and Peacock’s “Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip” spin-off after “RHOA” — is grateful for her reality TV hiatus because it has given her the chance to be just a “fan ” to be. ‘ of the genre.
She tells Vidak For Congress that she is keeping up with the current season of ‘Atlanta’.
‘It’s getting hot, child! I’m like, ‘What’s going on?’ There is definitely a sense of relief [not being on the show]. They come for everyone in this show! They come for my friend Kandi [Burruss]’, she notes, pointing to the Xscape singer’s current feud with Marlo Hampton, the first peach owner.
“I don’t know if this is [Hampton’s] strategy, just because it’s her first time getting a peach,” explains the Bailey Agency CEO. “I really don’t know where it comes from, but as someone who is cool with both ladies, I don’t like it. It’s a little uncomfortable to watch. A lot is going to happen at that reunion.”
Watching from the sidelines feels “weird” at times, Bailey admits, although she likes the drama a lot more when she’s not part of it.
“When I left the show, I came straight to LA and started my process as an actress. I didn’t really have much time to think about the show. Now…I’m like, ‘Wait, so I’m just really not more like “Housewives of Atlanta,” she explains.
“But it’s nice to be able to just sit back a little bit like you guys do and watch the drama. Now I understand. I understand it from the fan’s perspective, like, ‘Yeah, oh my God, this is getting juicy!’”
“Terror Lake Drive: Single Black Female” is available to stream on ALLBLK.