Vanessa Williams

Acting

Vanessa Williams

Born 1963-05-12 · New York City, New York, USA

Vanessa Estelle Williams (sometimes professionally credited as Vanessa A. Williams) is an American actress and producer. She is best known for her roles as Maxine Joseph–Chadway in the Showtime drama series, Soul Food (2000–04), for which she received NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series, and as Rhonda Blair in the first season of the Fox prime time soap opera, Melrose Place (1992–93). She is also known as Nino Brown's feisty gun moll, Keisha in the 1991 crime drama film, New Jack City and as Anne-Marie McCoy in the first and fourth of the Candyman films. Though not related, she is sometimes confused with American actress, singer, and former Miss America 1984, Vanessa L. Williams. Both women were also, coincidentally, born in New York in the same year. In addition, Vanessa A. Williams starred in the television soap opera, Soul Food, while Vanessa L. Williams starred in the original film.

Acting credits

Candyman poster
6.0

A Chicago artist's sanity starts to unravel, unleashing a terrifying wave of violence when he begins to explore the macabre history of the Candyman.

Candyman

2021

Candyman poster
6.7

The Candyman, a murderous soul with a hook for a hand, is accidentally summoned to reality by a skeptic grad student researching the monster's myth.

Candyman

1992

New Jack City poster
6.7

A gangster, Nino, is in the Cash Money Brothers, making a million dollars every week selling crack. A cop, Scotty, discovers that the only way to infiltrate the gang is to become a dealer himself.

New Jack City

1991

Imagine That poster
6.0

A financial executive who can't stop his career downspiral is invited into his daughter's imaginary world, where solutions to his problems await.

Imagine That

2009

Like Mike poster
6.1

Calvin and his friends, who all live in an orphanage, find old shoes with the faded letters MJ connected to a powerline. One stormy night, they go to get the shoes when Calvin and the shoes are struck by lightning. Calvin now has unbelievable basketball powers and has the chance to play for the NBA.

Like Mike

2002

Mother poster
6.9

A neurotic, twice-divorced sci-fi writer moves back in with his mother to solve his personal problems.

Mother

1996

Legacy of Screams: The Evolution of Horror Movies poster
NR

Dive into 60 minutes of blood, bravado and brilliant scares as we trace the evolution of horror cinema from Dracula (1931) to today.

Legacy of Screams: The Evolution of Horror Movies

2025

Flirting with Forty poster
5.3

A divorcee has a passionate affair with a much younger surfing instructor in Hawaii.

Flirting with Forty

2008

Mid-Century poster
4.5

A husband and wife's weekend in a mid-century modern vacation rental turns deadly when the husband discovers the owner is a psychopath with a backyard of buried secrets and designs on his wife.

Mid-Century

2022

Drop Squad poster
3.5

Controversial film about an underground organization that kidnaps and 'deprograms' African Americans who sell out or deny their cultural heritage. Spike Lee is the Executive Producer.

Drop Squad

1994

Sugar Mommas poster
NR

Sisters Sheila and Lynn have little in common except their love for sweets. In need of a change, they partner with their close friend Tommi to open a bakery.

Sugar Mommas

2012

Punks poster
5.1

The life and times of a group of twentysomething black gay men living in West Hollywood.

Punks

2000

Ice Spiders poster
4.2

When a young ski team training for the Olympics arrives at the remote and isolated Lost Mountain Ski Resort to focus on training, they're thrilled to find a retired Olympic skier is there to help them train. But their plans are halted when a scientist working at a nearby government lab arrives with the horrifying news that a top secret Government project has produced giant spiders and they have escaped, killing and eating everything in sight.

Ice Spiders

2007

Incognito poster
7.0

A young socialite hires a bodyguard to protect her when an ex-convict begins stalking her.

Incognito

1999

One Fine Christmas poster
5.2

The families on Christmas Street have been so busy with their day-to-day lives that they lose sight of the importance of family during the holiday season.

One Fine Christmas

2019

Playing with Fire poster
8.0

A woman tries to save her sister, who stole a priceless African statue with her lover.

Playing with Fire

2000

Thriller poster
4.3

Years after a childhood prank goes horribly wrong, a clique of South Central LA teens find themselves terrorized during Homecoming weekend by a killer hell-bent on revenge.

Thriller

2018

Black Listed poster
4.0

Alan Chambers (Townsend) is a lawyer and sick of his job. He corrals his friends into forming a vigilante group. Everyone goes along with it at first, until it turns sour and innocent people start dying, and Alan is the only one left standing.

Black Listed

2003

Contradictions of the Heart poster
6.5

A party chasing chick pounds on a restaurant door after closing. The closing manager opens it and the journey this encounter creates, places contradicting questions at the door step of race, friendship and sex.

Contradictions of the Heart

2009

Remember Me: The Mahalia Jackson Story poster
3.7

Follows the successful career of Jackson as well as her unique friendship and devotion to Martin Luther King Jr. and her unsung contribution to the Civil Rights Movement.

Remember Me: The Mahalia Jackson Story

2022

Welcome to the Christmas Family Reunion poster
4.7

Event planner Amy helps rising singer Tiffanie Christmas plan her holiday family reunion. Along the way Amy must navigate some challenging family dynamics, especially among Tiffanie's aunts as well as her own growing feelings for Tiffanie's cousin, Calvin. Will she be able to pull off an amazing Christmas family reunion?

Welcome to the Christmas Family Reunion

2021

Men, Money & Gold Diggers poster
NR

Caleb Peterson has it all - a great job, plenty of money, and a fine fiancée in former model Paisley Terrell. They're all set to get married just as soon as she signs a prenuptial agreement, but there's just one problem... "Paisley don't do pre-nups!" As tempers flare and emotions run high, what began as a romantic proposal quickly escalates into an all-out battle between Men, Money, and Gold Diggers!

Men, Money & Gold Diggers

2014

Raising Izzie poster
8.1

A caring teacher helps an orphaned girl in taking care of her younger sister after their mother's death.

Raising Izzie

2012

Our America poster
8.0

The true story of two African-American teen radio reporters and their documentary investigation of a notorious child murder.

Our America

2002