Actress Melissa L. Williams remembers exactly where she was when the country went on lockdown due to the Coronavirus pandemic. “I was on my way to Atlanta, landed and checked in to the hotel to film the rest of the season of Tyler Perry’s Ruthless. An hour later, I got a call saying, ‘you’re getting back on the plane because they’re shutting everything down.’ And I was devastated,” she recalls.
Making her way back to Los Angeles to isolate like the rest of the world, Williams describes her time in quarantine “pretty scary,” as there was no given time to when she and the rest of her cast mates would be able to get back on set to film the show’s second half of the season.
She did keep herself busy by helping others in need, as she gave some of her fans $100 so they can purchase necessary supplies. Assisting over 14 of her fans, Williams was inspired by someone in her apartment building who was giving out toilet paper to anyone who needed it when there was none on the shelves. “Some people [I sent money to] wrote back with pictures of the groceries and their kids in the background,” she says. “It was a special moment for me because I felt like, ‘wow, the way that person made me feel in my apartment building over some toilet paper, I was able to do that for other people.’ And I hope people continue to do this because it’s really what the world needs right now.”
Over the summer, things changed fro Melissa as she was able to fly to Atlanta to shoot new episodes of Ruthless at the massive Tyler Perry Studios. Filmed in just a few weeks, Williams tells Celeb Secrets that while the conditions were “strange,” she was blessed to have her job back while continuing to work on a project that she really loves.
“We were getting tested every few days and were wearing our masks while standing six feet apart during rehearsals. It was interesting, but I was grateful for the precautions that were taken just so we could live our dreams.”
Tyler Perry’s Ruthless officially returned to BET+ on Thanksgiving, November 26, and just like its first half of the season, these new string of episodes will feature more sex, lies, and murder in this cult that is living up to its fate. It also brings in more cast members, including Stevie Baggs, Jr. as “Oliver,” Colin McCalla as “River,” Samantha L. Thomas as “Paula,” Michelle Nuñez as “Zane,” Alise Willis as “Lacey,” and Jael Pettigrew as “Clark.” “Being aware of false prophets has never reigned more true,” BET says for its logline.
As the season continues, many of the faithful followers have begun to uncover the evil that exists beneath the surface of the Rakudushis movement. Armed with this knowledge, Ruth and several new fearful cult members try to take control of their individual destinies. The attempts will prove to be almost impossible for anyone who does not have allies they think they can trust.
Celeb Secrets sits down with Melissa to learn more about what to come from the second half of Tyler Perry’s Ruthless, her favorite memories from set, and what it’s really like playing a character like Ruth Truesdale.
To learn more about Tyler Perry’s Ruthless, watch our full interview with Melissa below and don’t forget to leave a reaction at the bottom of the post if you really enjoy it.
New episodes of Tyler Perry’s Ruthless air every Thursday on BET+ and you can keep up with Melissa by giving her a follow on Instagram at @melissa.l.williams.
