Erika Alexander is best known for her role as attorney Maxine Shaw on the 1990s sitcom Living Single; Some may also remember her as Cousin Pam on The Cosby Show.

Today, Alexander is making waves with her standout performance in American Fiction, a comedy-drama in which she portrays the onscreen girlfriend of actor Jeffrey Wright.

I think I get now why people are so overwhelmed when they get here.

When The Hollywood Reporter asked her about the support she had received from fellow actors, she humbly replied, “It feels good, you know, support from your peers. It matters. They know what it takes and how hard it is to break through, and so those are your first cheerleaders. They’re also cheerleading because many of these actors have been working for decades, and they’ve been doing good, consistent work, so it’s a wonderful feeling.”

So, how does Alexander feel about her award journey with American Fiction? She attended the Oscars for the first time in her thirty-plus-year acting career. “I think I get now why people are so overwhelmed when they get here because you’re just so grateful, and it does take a village, and it really took a lot of people to get me here today, so I’m glad.”

Alexander wore Christian Siriano on the red carpet, which she mentioned: “he has a legacy of dressing untraditional women, and he dressed black women when nobody would because we don’t necessarily have the size six body and all the stuff that you know a designer might like and he did it beautifully, and I always remembered what he did and so when they said he called and he would love to make me a dress I said that to me is a blessing he’s giving me something as a garment that to me speaks to what American Fiction is about no marginalization no stereotypes breaking through borders and also being available to yourself your best self to reach out and bring the community in that’s what this dress is.”

American Fiction features a star-studded cast, including Jeffrey Wright, Tracee Ellis Ross, John Ortiz, and Sterling K. Brown. Cord Jefferson directed the film, which also features the legendary Leslie Uggams. The movie has been nominated for five Academy Awards.

Photo credit: (AP Photo/John Locher)