Jada Facts

Jada's first major role came in 1991 when she joined the cast of A Different World, as Lena James. From this point on, she took a huge leap in her career and starred in several minor roles in numerous big-screen productions, the first of which was Menace II Society, in which she was praised for her dramatic performance.

Jada found herself starring in a variety of supporting roles over the next couple of years. She was cast alongside Keenan Ivory Wayans in the 1994 comedy A Low Down Dirty Shame, starred in the coming-of-age comedy The Inkwell, and got a taste of the horror-flick genre as well in Tales From the Crypt Presents: Demon Knight.

Although her first lead role came about in 1994's Jason's Lyric, the big-screen production that truly put her on the map was The Nutty Professor. This 1996 reproduction starred comedic legend Eddie Murphy. Jada's highly acclaimed supporting role was a turning point in her career, thus enabling her to land roles in other successful films including Set it Off, Scream 2, Woo, and Bamboozled.