Actor Marlon Wayans is the youngest brother of one of Hollywood’s most talented families. But he says his eldest brother Keenen Ivory Wayans was a “star maker,” shaping careers, not only within their family but many of today’s A-listers.
Beyond elevating the careers of his four siblings on the hit show “In Living Color,” Keenen provided a platform for emerging talent. His roster of alumni includes not just Tommy Davidson and David Alan Grier, but also Rosie Perez, Jennifer Lopez, Academy Award winner Jamie Foxx, and Golden Globe winner Jim Carrey.
During an appearance on Shannon Sharpe’s “Club Shay Shay,” Marlon shared a revealing story about how Keenen helped salvage Jim Carrey’s career at a critical juncture.
According to Marlon, Carrey had hit a low point after the failure of his 1984 NBC sitcom “The Duck Factory,” which was canceled after just one season.
“Hollywood didn’t want him no more,” Marlon recalled. “They were cold on him… The network didn’t want him.”
Carrey’s career prospects were dim, but Keenen saw something others didn’t. After Carrey attended an audition, thanks to Marlon’s brother Damon, Keenen was sold. “He’s hilarious,” Marlon remembered him saying. And the rest is history.
What Keenen gave Carrey — and all the talent on the show — was space to be themselves.
Marlon described the series as a “playground” where Carrey could “just be buck wild.” This freedom allowed the cast to push the boundaries of comedy, creating sketches that would eventually shape the careers of many.
In “The Hollywood Reporter’s 2019 oral history of the show, Carrey looked back on just how experimental their work was.
“We were warped out of our minds. We presented several sketches that didn’t make it on the air, things that were just too insane,” Carrey recalled.
One idea was a sketch called “Make a Death Wish Foundation,” which revolved around a boy who had died but had a posthumous wish to visit an amusement park. The idea was too dark for TV, but the exaggerated facial expression Carrey created for that character ultimately became the iconic “Fire Marshall Bill” face on “In Living Color.”
Marlon credits this creative freedom to the brother-boss’ leadership.
“Keenen always said, ‘Don’t just do what’s on the script.’ He made us all writers,” Marlon said to Sharpe.
While Marlon acknowledges Keenen’s contributions, he also gives a nod to his brother Damon for initially recognizing Carrey’s comedic potential. After working with Carrey on “Earth Girls Are Easy,” Damon vouched for him.
“Damon was like ‘Yo, Keenen … you got to trust me, this white boy is funny. He’s like Silly Putty; he twists himself up,’” Marlon remembered.
It was Damon’s belief in Carrey that led to the audition that would change Carrey’s life.
Carrey himself has credited Damon for getting him in the door. In his own words, “I had known Damon through the stand-up circuit and we were always kind of clocking each other. He kind of admired what I was doing onstage. He told me, ‘Hey, crazy man, what do you think about coming in to audition for this thing? Come and meet my brother.’”
That introduction led to Carrey’s breakthrough role on “In Living Color.”
Marlon said, “I knew Jim could be what he became,” but did not stop there, listing many of the names that came out of the show. “I knew Jamie could be what he became. I knew Damon. I knew everybody on that set could become anything they wanted to be.”
Despite his success, Carrey admitted in “The Hollywood Reporter” article that there were challenges along the way. He noted that he sometimes clashed with Keenen on set, to the point where he’d show up in dark sunglasses to hide his frustration. To mock him, others on the set would put on shades too.
Despite these moments, the show offered him his biggest payday at the time — Carrey earned $25,000 per episode — and an opportunity to showcase his talent.
As “In Living Color” gained traction, so did Carrey’s career, but he stayed loyal to his contract. He was in a five-year contract that he wanted to stick to.
“David Alan Grier used to rub it in during tapings. He’d go out to the audience and say, ‘I don’t know if you people realize it, but Jim Carrey is about to jump off in a movie called ‘Ace Ventura: Pet Detective,’” he explained. “He meant it facetiously. He was making fun of me for the silly name of my movie.”
Jim Carrey was the first actor to have three films go straight to number one in the same year. The year was 1994, and the movies were The Mask, Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, and Dumb and Dumber. pic.twitter.com/ryiXkr6MZN
— Historic Vids (@historyinmemes) August 31, 2024
In a 2011 interview with BlackTree TV, Carrey reflected on how monumental “In Living Color” was for his career, calling it “a gigantic, huge doorway” that led to his later success.
“It was like ‘the thing’ basically. There’s a lot of work that went in before that, but that was the doorway,” he said.
Even years later, Carrey hasn’t forgotten the impact the Wayans family had on his career. Marlon revealed he attended Carrey’s 62nd birthday celebration last January, though initially it was reported none of the Wayans family attended. The guest list included the likes of David Spade, Jimmy Kimmel, Adam Sandler, Craig Robinson, and Bill Burr.
“In Living Color” aired from April 15, 1990, to May 19, 1994, on Fox Broadcasting. While the show was groundbreaking, creative differences between Keenen and the network led to tension. The show creator reportedly clashed with Fox executives over creative control and syndication rights. His frustrations came to a head in 1992 during the “Driving Miss Schott” episode, which eventually lead to his departure.
The rest of the Wayans family protested Keenen’s treatment by the network by wearing sunglasses during a Christmas special and then leaving the show.
Fox tried to keep the show afloat by bringing in Chris Rock from 1993 to 1994, but the magic was gone. Without Keenen, the show’s ratings faltered, and “In Living Color” ended shortly afterward.
