After divorcing his wife, Cliff comes out as gay, further estranging him from his uptight family.
This nuanced role allowed Brown to explore the many facets of Blackness and the challenges of the LGBTQ+ community.
How did you relate?
American FictionAMAZON/MGM
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STERLING K. BROWN: Cliff comes from a very upper-middle-class family.
When I went to Stanford and my wife and I have had this conversation before she went full ride.
Her father was in information systems and worked at different Fortune 500 companies.
Jeffrey Wright and Sterling K. Brown inAmerican Fiction.MGM/Everett Collection
He paid her tuition in full.
And my wife thought they would all be like her [with rich parents].
Im bougie by association.
Not many people understood it, except for my mom, whos seen me act since high school.
I think Ive had that feeling when choosing to be an actor.
DEADLINE: Post-This is Us,you vowed to get roles different from Randall Pearson, betweenHonk for Jesus.
back up your Soul.,BiosphereandAmerican Fiction,it seems youve got this knack for satirically relevant projects now.
I like comedy thats based on character, thats based in truth.
And Im not trying to do a bit just to do a bit.
What did you think of him initially, and how did you determine how you would play him?
BROWN: I thought he was loveable to the people he loved.
Cliffs childhood was different because he knew he wasnt accepted for who he was.
If his sister hadnt passed away, I dont think Cliff wouldve come home.
His sister was the person he was connected to.
So, this humor he has is a way for Cliff to keep his feelings at bay.
He uses a certain aloofness to protect himself.
And you could say the same about the drugs or anything else.
you might feel Cliff exhale and feel that thing of, I can be myself here.
And that feels good.
How did you personally connect to that?
Maybe in your experience as an actor having to power through rejection?
What kept you going and was there ever another option for you?
BROWN: I decided to be an actor in sophomore year of college.
Im pretty good at staying the course once I set my mind on something.
And he was like, Dude, no, Im not going to do that.
And so, we parted amicably.
Meanwhile, I had my first son and wed bought a house at that time.
And I was like, Man, I wonder if I made the right decision.
You did everything you wanted to do artistically, and youre not in this for the cash.
You do this because you love expressing the human condition.
And I was like, Youre right.
And Im like, Oh man, I got to verify I keep this woman.
Made a smarter decision?
Do you think it needed a neat bow of an ending?
Whats your take on the ending?
BROWN: It didnt need a bow.
I think thats dope.
The ending with Monk and Cliff together wasnt in the original script.
And I asked Cord why he had Cliff waiting in the car instead of Coraline.
And theyll have their ups and downs, but at least they wont be separated.
I found it very reassuring.
I dont think it needed any neater bow than that.
