Jay Ellis Opens Up On The Meaningfulness Of His Role In 'Insecure'

"Insecure" actor Wendell Ramone "Jay" Ellis Jr. is popularly known for playing the role of Lawrence Walker, long-term boyfriend to the lead character Issa Dee in the HBO series.   

His outstanding work on the show gained him wide recognition and the Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series award at the 49th NAACP Image Awards in 2018.

Jay takes great pride in his acting career as he regards each of his performances as meaningful, including the magical experience of "Insecure." 

The South Carolina-born star made his first appearance at the CultureCon Atlanta event, where he conversed with PEOPLE and shared why he considered his role on "Insecure" genuinely significant.

He expressed, "I'm most proud of the fact that, in all honesty, people who look like me connect to the characters I play. I'm most proud of the fact that people walk up to me, and they are pissed off at Lawrence."

Jay further spoke on his acting career, crediting his achievements to the groundbreaking productions he got to be a part of, including the BET series "The Game."

As you may know, "The Game" was the first show he played a major role in, and he called the experience "amazing" while also acknowledging fans' support.

Regarding "Insecure," the movie star said it was "obviously magical and just an experience I'll never forget; I feel like I'm the luckiest kid in the world."

The news outlet noted that the hit series aired for five years and five seasons, concluding last December. Many viewers were completely taken with the show as it received numerous praises, particularly within the Black community.

Jay recognized the cultural concept behind the show, noting the actual reason behind the production's narratives with regard to culture. He explained saying:

"One of the things we've always talked about is it's culture's place to tell us what the show means to the culture, not ours. We just wanted to tell stories that resonated with folks like us and made people feel like their story was being told. And the rest is icing on the cake."

Moving on to his future works, the 40-year-old stars in "Top Gun: Maverick," where he performs the role of Lieutenant Reuben "Payback" Fitch, a character that is connected to his background.

He went on to share the significance of the "Payback" role to Imani Ellis during the CultureCon event. Imani is the CEO and creator of CultureCon and The Creative Collective NYC.

Jay mentioned that his past experience "going on and off" a military base was "a huge part" of his life growing up. Even so, he hoped viewers watched the movie and understood the significance of unity irrespective of background.

Speaking of the "Escape Room" actor's success on "Insecure," his return to the show in the third season after splitting from his love interest gained significant approval from viewers, leading to a lawsuit against him.

The Blast noted in 2019, his former management team Luber Roklin Entertainment filed the suit, claiming that they had been the celebrity's long-term representative in his acting career and helped him get the deal on the HBO show.

The lawsuit also revealed that Jay fired most of his team, including Luber Roklin, to "avoid paying commissions clearly due and owing to multiple parties."

At the time, he still owed the management company a previously agreed-upon fee for the first to the third season of "Insecure."

Jay left no boxes unchecked as he prepared for his role as a military man in "Top Gun: Maverick," getting into the right shape ahead of the movie.

Speaking with a representative of The Hollywood Reporter, he shared details of the training he was involved in to stay fit and develop his endurance level.

The "Invasion" actor revealed that he swam laps for two to three hours every morning, after which he took daily flights for nearly two hours to build his tolerance.

The drill was pretty strenuous, but he called the experience "amazing" and admitted that he got better every day even though he was "terrified" initially.

Jay further recalled the movie's production, which was before his appearance on several episodes of "Insecure," during which he got out of shape as his Lawrence character was more of a "couch and Cheetos dude."

The conversation with the outlet's rep concluded with the movie icon detailing his fun experience with the team on the set of "Top Gun: Maverick," involving testing their capabilities with challenging missions.