Kim Fields is looking to the future. The celebrated actress and former Real Housewives of Atlanta star is reflecting on her new TV projects and looking back at her storied career.
Fields co-hosted Tuesday's Entertainment Tonight with Kevin Frazier, and she opened up about her new Netflix sitcom The Upshaws and her roles on Facts of Life, Living Single and RHOA.
With the popularity of reboots and revivals still roaring in Hollywood, Fields admitted that her two most popular shows often come up as being ripe for revisiting.
"Every time there's all this reboot conversation, Facts of Life and Living Single seem to be at the forefront of ones they still want," Fields shared. "But reboots, you've got to be careful."
As the actress explained, people who love certain shows and consider themselves fans of certain characters can get really protective of the things they love.
"You can't just throw everybody together and be like, 'Well, where would they be now?' and that sort of thing. Because these characters are so beloved," Fields shared. "Their trajectory, their journeys are so loved. If you get it wrong, forget about it."
As for stepping back into a role on a show like RHOA, Fields said she's essentially moved on to new paths and isn't as interested in walking roads she's already traversed. According to Fields, when she joined the Bravo reality series, it was just because it was an effort to expand her horizons.
"You know, it was one of those things where I celebrated my 40th anniversary in showbusiness, and I thought, 'At this point the mandate is, and continues to be, [asking myself] what haven't I done? I need new and uncharted waters,'" Fields recalled. "And I did that, so there's no need to do that again."
"I've done Dancing With the Stars, I competed on Battle of the Network Stars," Fields shared, adding that she's more into trying new things. "Even as a director, I'm directing things where characters are a little bit darker or edgier than what people are used to from me."
Fields current project is the new Netflix working class family sitcom The Upshaws, in which she appears opposite TV veterans and beloved comics like Wanda Sykes and Mike Epps.
"Oh my goodness, we have an absolute ball," Fields said of her time on the show. "It is so much fun and they're both so funny. What I love about them is how professional they are when it comes to their background as stand ups. They're never trying to one-up each other... they have such a healthy respect for one another and they've known each other forever."
The Upshaws premieres May 12 on Netflix.
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