“Power Book II: Ghost” actor Woody McClain has opened up about a piece of advice he received from acting veteran Jamie Foxx that ultimately changed his career.
McClain plays Cane Tejada on 50 Cent’s “Power” spinoff, and he admits he wouldn’t have gotten this far in his career without hearing some wise words from the acting veteran, who was hospitalized nearly four weeks ago.
“Jamie’s such a great guy, man,” said McClain during an interview with POPSUGAR’s Q&A series “Last Call” about his acting career. “Prayers to Jamie, too.”
Related: Jamie Foxx Breaks His Silence Three Weeks After Being Hospitalized for a ‘Medical Complication’
For those who are unaware, McClain’s career began to take off in 2015 after he moved to Los Angeles as a background dancer for artists like Ginuwine and Chris Brown.
The 33-year-old is also known for creating comic skits via social media, which previously gained him recognition from celebrities such as Kevin Hart. The two later collaborated on the series “Stories With Kev” for Hart’s Laugh Out Loud Network.
However, it was McClain’s 2017 portrayal as Bobby Brown in BET’s miniseries “The New Edition Story” that would put his name on the map.
McClain’s performance in the three-part miniseries was done so well that Brown decided to use him for his own biopic, the 2018 mini-series “The Bobby Brown Story.”
While his incredible depiction of the boy band member helped him attain newfound fame, this role slowly became the only thing people connected him to.
“I remember being at Jamie Foxx’s house,” McClain recalled. “And I was just in the corner. Everybody kept saying ‘Bobby. Bobby.’ I hear that a million and trillion times. But I remember Jamie coming over to me.”
He said Foxx helped him view this as a compliment on his acting rather than a slight.
“He was like ‘I noticed every time somebody says that, you kind of dim your light. You can’t do that,’” said McClain.
According to him, Foxx can relate to his sentiments, considering he was once only known for his role as Wanda, aka “the ugliest woman in the world,” on the 1990s comedy sketch show, “In Living Color.”
“So people are at the club they’re like, ‘Hey, yo, you that B. You that B, right?’” Foxx reportedly said. “You got to understand that you played one of the coolest cats that’s ever done it in the R&B game. You played one of the coolest bad boys ever.”
McClain’s earned him an NAACP Image Award nomination for Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie, Limited Series or Dramatic Special. He then added the singer’s advice was to never “shy away from that” but instead “embrace it.”
“Until you embrace it, then you won’t be able to move on,” the 55-year-old reportedly told him. “You’re going to get more things. More things are going to come. You’re going to be amazing.”
It appears as if Foxx knew what he was talking about, because years later McClain landed his first major acting role in one of the most popular television series.
The actor currently stars as Cane Tejada on Starz’s second installation of “Power.” McClain works alongside industry icons such as Mary J. Blige, Method Man, and Larenz Tate. His character often interacts with Tariq St. Patrick, portrayed by Michael Rainey Jr.
Like many, McClain sends well-wishes to the “Django Unchained” actor, who suffered a medical emergency last month on April 11.
Foxx’s daughter was first to share the news about her father’s status on Instagram, noting that the family asked for “privacy.”
During an interview on the “Impaulsive” podcast last week, Kevin Hart revealed that Foxx is “getting better” and explained why details have not been shared about him publicly from Foxx’s inner circle.
“They’re being tight for reasons just about where he is because Jamie’s always been a private person to a certain degree,” Hart said.
While information concerning Foxx’s health has been kept to a minimum, he recently shared an Instagram post thanking the public for “all the love.”
Since his hospitalization, Nick Cannon has taken over as the host of Foxx’s popular game show, “Beat Shazam,” on Fox Network.
The game show also features the Grammy winner’s 29-year-old daughter as the show’s DJ. Corrine’s role has been replaced by Kelly Osbourne for the moment.
