At Sunday’s 75th Primetime Emmy Awards, one star had everyone talking, and they weren’t from “Succession,” “The Bear” or “BEEF.”
The star of the 2023 Emmys was actually the one and only Marla Gibbs. As TV royalty, she received an extremely well-deserved extended standing ovation, then went on to proclaim that it was “the wage gap” that kept her working all these years. She jokingly announced that she needed the writers in the room to create more roles for her.
She’s not wrong. We need more Marla Gibbs on TV. She’s worked consistently over the last decade, booking guest roles on “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Days of Our Lives,” “Black-ish” and even returning as Florence in “Live in Front of a Studio Audience: The Jeffersons.” However, it still feels like she’s not getting enough credit for her contributions to film and TV.
In the mid 2000s, the legendary Betty White had a career resurgence that kept her busy until she passed away in 2021. It’s high time that Gibbs gets the same treatment. Let’s see her as a difficult customer on “The Bear” or a scary grandmother on “Abbott Elementary.”
You know you’d love to see Gibbs join the Marvel Cinematic Universe. She could be an old school spy who teaches the new kids a thing or two. Since they’re retooling “Daredevil: Born Again,” how about Gibbs as Matt Murdock’s unimpressed, nosy neighbor? She’d be hilarious as a Wakandan elder who has no time for M’Baku’s nonsense. My point is that the choices for giving “The Jeffersons” star a scene-stealing role are limitless. It doesn’t need to be a major part...just memorable.
Frankly, there should be a line of writers and producers waiting to work with a legend like Marla Gibbs. She’s exceptional in any genre, and it’s clear her comedy chops are still sharp. Having her involved instantly makes your project much more interesting.
Let’s make 2024 the year of Marla Gibbs.