Try GOLD - Free
JURNEE SMOLLETT: From Full House to Powerhouse
People US
|August 11, 2024
THE SMOKE STAR HAS BEEN IN FRONT OF CAMERAS SINCE SHE WAS A BABY—AND SHE WOULDN’T HAVE IT ANY OTHER WAY
While many childhoods are filled with soccer games and ballet lessons, Jurnee Smollett was hanging with the Olsen twins on the set of Full House. “I’ve been in front of the camera since I was 10 months old,” she says. “My older siblings were modeling and doing commercials, and I just fell into it. It wasn’t until I did Eve’s Bayou with Samuel L. Jackson when I was 10 years old that I fell in love with the craft.”
Ever since, the 38-year-old mom of one has sought projects that give her that same spark, and those have included hit shows like Friday Night Lights, Parenthood, True Blood and Lovecraft Country (which earned her an Emmy nomination in 2021). In her latest role on Apple TV+’s crime drama Smoke, she plays Michelle Calderone, a former Marine working as a detective investigating arson cases. Smollett says she was drawn to Michelle’s complexity. “It’s very instinctual if I feel that there’s certain things in the character that I need to exercise in myself,” she says.
Smoke (2025) "She's just a force of nature," Taron Egerton (left) says of scene partner Smollett.
This story is from the August 11, 2024 edition of People US.
Subscribe to Magzter GOLD to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 10,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
MORE STORIES FROM People US
People US
THE CAST OF ALL'S FAIR NO ORDER IN THIS COURT
THE STARS OF RYAN MURPHY’S WILD NEW LEGAL DRAMA DEMONSTRATE WHAT WOMEN SUPPORTING WOMEN REALLY LOOKS LIKE
2 mins
November 10, 2025
People US
AILEEN WUORNOS INTERVIEW WITH A SERIAL KILLER
A NEW DOCUMENTARY REEXAMINES THE LIFE—AND DEATH BY CAPITAL PUNISHMENT—OF A SEX WORKER CONVICTED OF MURDERING SIX MEN
2 mins
November 10, 2025
People US
PADMA LAKSHMI Citrus-Garlic Roasted Squash
‘This is an easy seasonal side dish that goes perfectly with all the traditional items found at Thanksgiving,’ says the celebrity chef, who includes a version of this fall stunner in her new cookbook Padma’s All American. ‘The smooth, creamy squash is sweet and a perfect foil for the garlicky, tart mojo sauce, which can be prepped a day or two ahead. If you do so, simply warm the sauce just before serving’
1 mins
November 10, 2025
People US
KATHERINE SCHWARZENEGGER PRATT Family Marriage & Overcoming Fear
THE AUTHOR OPENS UP ABOUT THE TRUE STORY BEHIND HER NEW BOOK AND LIFE AT HOME WITH HUSBAND CHRIS PRATT AND THEIR 3 KIDS
3 mins
November 10, 2025
People US
Why We're So Over Celebrity Halloween Photo Shoots
People’s Brittany Talarico longs for the days when Halloween was about costumes and candy, not content
1 min
November 10, 2025
People US
Prince Andrew & Fergie Booted From Royal Home
ALL THE HOLLYWOOD NEWS YOU NEED TO KNOW
1 mins
November 10, 2025
People US
George Clooney on Life With Amal and Being 'Comfortable' Growing Older
George Clooney’s new Netflix movie Jay Kelly hits close to home: His title character is a famous Hollywood star on a soul-searching trip through Europe. People caught up with Clooney, who shares twins with wife Amal, 47, at the film’s Oct. 24 AFI Fest premiere.
1 min
November 10, 2025
People US
Flashback to 1981!
VALERIE BERTINELLI REVEALS HOW A GOOD GIRL FELL FOR ROCKER EDDIE VAN HALEN
1 min
November 10, 2025
People US
Famke Janssen
THE ACTRESS, 61, STARS ON THE NEW NETFLIX SERIES AMSTERDAM EMPIRE
1 min
November 10, 2025
People US
COURTNEY MCBROOM & BRIE LARSON Gruyère Drop Biscuits
The chef and the actress—real-life best friends!—believe that party-throwing is ‘telling a story through food,’ says Larson. These cheesy, herb-speckled biscuits, adapted from the pair’s new cookbook Party People, do just that for the Thanksgiving table. ‘We made them a little fancy,’ says McBroom. ‘Brushed with extra garlic butter, they’re like pillows of fluff, in the best way’
1 mins
November 10, 2025
Listen
Translate
Change font size