Tiffany Haddish's Career Firsts: Celebrating Her Rise to Fame Before Her SNL Debut

"She ready," all right

By Zach Johnson Nov 10, 2017 5:00 PMTags

Tiffany Haddish will remember 2017 as the year that everything changed.

As the breakout star of Universal Pictures' R-rated comedy Girls Trip, Haddish became the talk of Hollywood talking. In radio interviews and talk show appearances, she kept it real, joking about pretending to be white and taking Jada Pinkett Smith on a discounted swamp adventure.

The fact that Haddish was once homeless only made her Cinderella story more powerful. Now, on the eve of her Saturday Night Live hosting debut, E! News is looking back at her career firsts:

 

First Major TV Series

In 2014, Haddish was cast as Jackie, a Burger Fast employee, in OWN's If Loving You Is Wrong.

First Major Film Role

Though she'd had bit parts in movies since 2005, in April 2016, she had a featured role in Keanu as Trina Parker (a.k.a. "Hi-C").

First Magazine Cover

Girls Trip stars Haddish, Regina Hall, Queen Latifah and Jada Pinkett Smith each got a solo cover for Essence's July 2017 issue.

First No. 1 Feature Film

In July 2017, Girls Trip topped the box office, grossing over $31 million in its opening weekend. It went on to earn $137 million worldwide.

First Time on Late-Night TV

On July 19, 2017, the actress appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! to promote Girls Trip—and share silly stores about Pinkett Smith.

First Music Video

On Aug. 4, 2017, the actress starred in Jay-Z's Friends-inspired "Moonlight" video as Phoebe. Jerrod Carmichael played Ross, Lil Rel Howery played Joey, Issa Rae played Rachel, Lakeith Stanfield played Chandler and Tessa Thompson played Monica.

First Showtime Special

On Aug. 18, 2017, the comedienne fulfilled a childhood dream when Tiffany Haddish: She Ready! From the Hood to Hollywood premiered.

First Time Presenting a Major Award

Joined by Pete Davidson at the 2017 MTV VMAs, Haddish announced Kendrick Lamar won Best Hip-Hop Video for "Humble."

First Time Hosting SNL

Taylor Swift was the musical guest on the Nov. 11 episode.

First Book Deal

The actress published her memoir, The Last Black Unicorn, on Dec. 5, 2017.

First Endorsement Deal

After sharing her hilarious Groupon story on talk shows, she became the official spokesperson for the brand and was featured in the Super Bowl ad in 2018.

First Fashion Week

With front row appearances at Tory Burch and Jeremy Scott's Spring/Summer 2019 presentations, the Night School actress made the most of NYFW in 2018.

First Primetime Emmy

Haddish was named Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series for hosting Saturday Night Live at the 70th Emmy Awards in 2018.

 

Now, we're left with a single question: What will Haddish do next?

—Additional reporting by Taylor Bryant

(E!, NBC and Universal Pictures are all members of the same family.)

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