You probably know her best as Gerri, the ice cold executive of Waystar Royco in “Succession.”
Want to learn a little more about her?
Here is the untold truth of J. Smith-Cameron.
Her first and greatest love has always been the theater.
In fact, TV was never even on her radar.
“[That] was a big thing for me,” she toldAndy Cohen.
Apparently, she’s lived in the SoHo area ever since.
“It’s so bold, it’s so brave to do it.”
Of course, Smith-Cameron hasn’t been able to shed her southern roots altogether.
While she loves parts of southern culture, she acknowledges that the South also has a problematic history.
The actress keeps her creative instincts sharp between roles
J. Smith-Cameron hasn’t always been famous.
Like any working actor, she’s had a few periods without work.
“Well, I have no issue with that,” she said laughing.
When someone tweeted, “Why do younger men get attracted to women over 40?”
sherepliedsimply, “Why not?”
The comment got over 1,500 likes what a total icon!
However, all of that changed thanks to a dare.
Before she knew it, Smith-Cameron was starring in “The Diary of Anne Frank.”
After years of anonymity, she found herself becoming the center of attention.
She was even featured in the local paper.
“My whole social profile, if you will, changed,” she told Garden & Gun.
From then on, Smith-Cameron knew that acting was the only thing she wanted to pursue.
Sounds like she owes that girl from Spanish class an awful lot!
One of the names that Gerri uses during the phone call is “slime puppy.”
As Smith-Cameron toldJoe, this phrase has become one of her most iconic lines.
And, it turns out, she was the one who came up with it!
“I call Kieran a slime puppy, which was an improv of mine.
Yeah, so, that’s my contribution to English literature,” she laughed.
In an interview withThe Guardian, she went into more detail about the moment of inspiration.
That one made it into the cut," she explained.
Thank goodness it did!
The script always comes first for J. Smith-Cameron
J. Smith-Cameron is a words woman.
For her, the allure and appeal of acting always begins with the script.
It’s always the writing."
In the same interview, Smith-Cameron explained that the script is part of what makes “Succession” special.
In fact, Smith-Cameron is even married to Kenneth Lonergan, a world-famous playwright!
Clearly, it really is all about the words for her.
Sounds like Smith-Cameron has really enjoyed playing such a wide range of characters over the years.
Smith-Cameron has over 40,000 followers and posts frequently.
She alsofollowsand retweets quite a few “Succession” fan accounts from time to time.
The inventiveness of ‘Succession’ fans on Twitter and Instagram is so impressive!"
“I’m trying not to get too caught up in it.
I didn’t work for this.
I didn’t really aim for this.
So it’s kind of a lark,” she said.
As the actress explained toThe New Yorker, their meeting was suitably theatrical.
“When we met, we had a little snappy exchange,” she said.
Apparently, they had been attending an evening of short plays.
One of Lonergan’s new works was presented, and he was also acting in another play.
Smith-Cameron was intrigued by his play and wanted to learn more about him.
“Then I passed him in a stairwell, and he was carrying his bike,” she recalled.
“I said, ‘Your play reminds me of a William Inge play or something.'”
As she put it, it was like something “right out of a Preston Sturges film.”
Smith-Cameron loves it because she gets to swim.
“It’s still filled with natural beauty.
It’s a very beautiful, lush place,” she said.
It all sounds pretty lovely if you ask us!
In an interview withMarie Claire, Smith-Cameron explained how her version of Gerri came to be.
So, Smith-Cameron received scripts that included tons of corporate male banter.
It was the perfect approach to the role, and, of course, she got the part.
Of course, this wasn’t always what she was called.
“I was called Jeanie when I was growing up,” she toldThe Christian Science Monitor.
“And in high school, I felt that it was a little girl’s name.”
When Smith-Cameron went to college, she decided she needed a change.
The name gave her a certain “mystique.”
Smith-Cameron eventually realized that “J. Smith” was too common a name.
So, she took Cameron, another name from her family, and became “J.
“He put ‘J.
Smith-Cameron’ in the program.
He kind of made it up.”
But the most salient advice she’s ever received has been to “be bold.”
“That was hard for me because I was kind of shy,” she toldForbes.
“I came out of my student days wanting to be real and believable.
I had a sort of modest aesthetic.”
“It took me a while to really incorporate that advice,” she said.
As she once toldPage Six, “He is so bold and so inventive and free.
I’m full of admiration for him.”
One thing’s for sure: Smith-Cameron has certainly embraced some bold acting choices in “Succession.”
And we can’t wait to see what bold moves she makes next!
