Jamaicans have often faced challenges in getting Hollywood to create roles that allow them to be authentic. Many roles offered to Jamaican actors are generally for characters who are violent gangsters or “Bob Marley types” with bad Jamaican accents. Actress Keturah Hamilton, who has worked in the entertainment capital for over ten years, well knows the situation, and so it was with considerable national pride that she took roles in two projects that “brought out my roots.”

Jamaican Actress Keturah Hamilton 2

Hamilton will co-star in “Gaslit,” an upcoming television series on the Starz network that stars entertainment heavyweights Julia Roberts, Sean Penn, and Allison Tolman. She plays a Jamaican nurse in the series. In the other project, Hamilton will feature in the film “Nanny” in which she plays a Jamaican nanny. The film stars Anna Diop, Phylicia Rashad, and Leslie Uggams. Both projects will be released in 2022, and both portray the significant contributions made by Jamaicans to the American health sector. Hamilton said she was honored to be selected for both roles because the producers were actually looking for an “authentic Jamaican actress.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zWhRv6WTMqs

Keturah Hamilton was born in St. Catherine parish in Jamaica and came to the US with her family when she was 13 years old to settle in Chicago. Before pursuing an acting career, she worked as a professional model with Modeling Associates of America International and worked on campaigns for companies like Gucci and Moitie Cosmetics. She attended Gloria Gifford’s Conservatory in Los Angeles and played herself in “Still a Teen Movie” in 2009. She played “Millicent Reid” in the Jamaican film “Redemption of Paradise” in 2011 and won an award in the play “Mother**cker With the Hat,” which was directed by Gifford, an NAACP Award-winning actress.

In addition to her acting and modeling, Hamilton is the founder of the Keturah Hamilton Foundation, a nonprofit organization with the mission to make a difference in people’s lives. Focusing chiefly on education, the Foundation seeks to transform the lives of less fortunate young people and to educate Jamaicans and others around the world by providing scholarships and educational materials.

She was motivated to start the foundation by her mother and stepfather. She cites her stepfather Clarence “Spider” French with helping to make her the woman she is today. She said he was a father to all. He was a generous giver, provider, and caretaker.” Hamilton believes that education can reduce the crime rate and uplift people in positive ways and that knowledge is power and education “is the key to unlock the golden door of freedom.”

Jamaican Actress Keturah Hamilton to Star in Starz TV Series Gaslit - pin

Photo Source – Keturah Hamilton Facebook

Author