As Hollywood’s youngest executive producer, Marsai Martin is doing pretty well for herself. The teen launched her own production company, Genius Entertainment, and landed a first look studio deal with Universal Pictures under which her 2019 comedy, Little, was released. Martin is also shopping around an unscripted series on “trailblazing” Black women — and she’s still in high school.
For the latest episode of ET’s Unfiltered, the 16-year-old Black-ish star dished on her favorite makeup looks while speaking candidly about growing up in the spotlight, and finding her voice.null
“I’m blessed to actually have the platform that I have,” Martin tells ET. “Being a Black girl, even in [a] white, male-dominated industry, you have to use your voice. You have to speak your mind for your audience.”
Having spent most of her life in front of the camera, as Martin gets older, she’s hatching her own ideas, and paving a way for other young Black creatives. ADVERTISINGnull
“Back when I was in Texas, I didn’t see young Black girls who looked like me. I just thought they weren’t allowed to be on screen, and I don’t want anyone to feel that way,” Martin points out, before adding that she wants people to “really use their talents for the greater good” without worrying about “what they look like and how people will see them.”
Born in the tiny town of Little Elm, Texas, Martin showed a talent for performing as a toddler. If you’ve seen her adorable throwback performances of Beyoncé’s “Love on Top,” or Drake’s “I’m on One,” it’s no wonder that she landed an agent at just five years old. Martin moved from Texas to Los Angeles in 2013, but she hasn’t been blinded by the bright lights of Tinseltown.
“I feel like I’m still the same me and that’s what I love about myself,” she says. “Going into Black-ish and national commercials, and even pitching Little at a young age, I was, like, nine or 10, and honestly I feel like at that age, I just didn’t care about how people would look at me.”
“I had a vision and I just went towards it,” she continues. “I just saw it as a fun game. Even pitching Little, I was like, ‘I’m just talking to my homies… the heads of Universal.’ I really loved how back then, my mind was just carefree, fearless, do whatever without hesitation, and I feel like that’s how people should be these days. I feel like everyone is so on [their] toes, and don’t really want to use their platform because there’s ‘cancel culture.’ I want to do things because they make me happy, or make me feel good, and came from my headspace. I feel like everyone should think that way
