Before the Oscars, the chart-topping R&B hits, and the high-octane Netflix action movies, Jamie Foxx was a skinny guy in a blonde wig trying to "rock your world." Honestly, if you didn't grow up watching Fox in the early '90s, you might only know him as the "serious actor" who played Ray Charles or Django. But the real ones? We remember. We remember the chaotic energy he brought to the screen when he joined the cast of In Living Color in 1991.
He wasn't an original member of the crew. Keenen Ivory Wayans brought him on in Season 3, and man, the timing was perfect. The show was already a cultural juggernaut, but Foxx—born Eric Marlon Bishop—added a specific, musical, and high-energy layer that helped the show survive even as some of the Wayans siblings started moving on to movies. Let’s talk about the Jamie Foxx in Living Color characters that basically paved the way for his entire career.
Why Wanda Wayne is the Most Important Role He Ever Played
You can't talk about Jamie Foxx on this show without starting with Wanda. Period. Wanda Wayne was "the ugliest woman in the world," and she was absolutely fearless. She had the crooked eyes, the turned-up lip, and an unshakeable confidence that honestly felt a little inspiring, even if it was meant to be ridiculous.
"I’m gon' rock yo world!"
That catchphrase was everywhere. Every single week, Wanda was on the prowl for a man, and she didn't care if it was a guest star or a regular cast member like Tommy Davidson. She was relentless. What’s wild is that Foxx has recently spoken about this character, calling it an "artistic statement" with "complications." Looking back from 2026, the idea of a man playing an "ugly woman" for laughs is definitely viewed through a different lens. But at the time, Foxx played her with such physical commitment that it was impossible to look away. He wasn't just wearing a dress; he was creating a physical presence that dominated the room.
The Weird Lore of Wanda
Wanda wasn't just a one-off joke. The writers actually built a whole back story for her.
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- She claimed to be the long-lost fifth member of En Vogue (she said she left because she was taking all the men).
- In the final season, she actually had a child, Wanda Jr., and went on a quest to find the father.
- She even scared Dracula. In one sketch, Jim Carrey’s Dracula chose to walk into direct sunlight rather than spend another second with her.
Calhoun Tubbs: The Blues Man with One Song
If Wanda was the physical comedy peak, Calhoun Tubbs was the musical peak. Jamie Foxx is a classically trained pianist—he actually went to college on a music scholarship—and you could see that talent peeking through even when he was playing a dusty old blues singer.
Calhoun Tubbs had one move: he’d walk in, someone would ask him a question, and he’d immediately break into a "blues song" that lasted about four seconds. It always ended with the same punchline: "I wrote a song about it. Like to hear it? Here it go!"
Strum. "My wife left me for a man with a bigger truck... Lord have mercy!" Strum. That was it. That was the whole bit. And it worked every single time because Foxx’s timing was surgical. It poked fun at the tropes of Delta blues while showing off his ability to command a stage with nothing but a guitar and a gravelly voice.
The Underrated Duo: Ace and Main Man
People forget about this one, but Jamie Foxx and Tommy Davidson as "Ace and Main Man" was pure '90s hip-hop satire. They were these two guys who thought they were the coolest people on the planet, usually wearing neon-colored windbreakers and cross-colored gear.
They spent most of their time asking "Why?" questions.
"Why do black guys always get protective of their mothers?"
"Why do they call it a bum rush?"
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It was observational humor wrapped in a very specific urban aesthetic. This was where Foxx really got to play with his "cool guy" persona, which he’d later use to huge success in The Jamie Foxx Show. Watching him and Tommy Davidson riff was like watching two jazz musicians. They moved in sync. They knew each other's beats. Honestly, it’s some of the most "human" comedy on the show because it felt less like a scripted sketch and more like two friends just talking trash on a street corner.
The Art of the Impression: From Prince to Bill Cosby
Foxx was the king of the "fast-twitch" impression. He didn't need twenty minutes of prosthetic makeup to become someone else. He just shifted his posture and changed his voice.
On In Living Color, his Prince was legendary. He captured that specific, quiet, mysterious intensity that Prince had in the early '90s, but dialed it up to an eleven. He also did a mean Bill Cosby and a spot-on Jay Leno. You could tell even back then that he was studying people. He wasn't just mimicking them; he was finding the weird little ticks that made them who they were.
This skill is exactly what led him to the Oscar for Ray. He’d been practicing "becoming" other people for years in front of a live studio audience on Fox.
What Most People Get Wrong About His Time on the Show
There’s a common misconception that Jamie Foxx was the "main star" of In Living Color. He actually wasn't. When the show started, it was all about Keenen, Damon, and Jim Carrey. Foxx was a "featured player" who had to fight for screen time.
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He's talked about this in interviews—how he had to be "loud" and "deniable" just to get his sketches on the air. He wasn't handed the spotlight; he took it. By the time the show ended in 1994, he was the one people were tuning in to see. He filled the void left by the Wayans brothers and proved that the show’s format could work even without its founding family.
A Quick Look at the Stats
- Joined: 1991 (Season 3)
- Episodes: Roughly 80-90 appearances
- Legacy: Led directly to The Jamie Foxx Show on WB in 1996
The Transition: From Wanda to "Any Given Sunday"
It is almost impossible to imagine another actor who could go from playing a character like Wanda to playing a serious, gritty quarterback in an Oliver Stone movie just five years later. But that’s the Foxx magic.
His time on In Living Color wasn't just about the laughs. It was a bootcamp. He learned how to handle a live crowd, how to write under pressure, and how to create a character from the ground up. When you watch him now, you can still see flashes of those characters. That charm, that "Main Man" swagger—it all started on a brightly colored stage in Hollywood.
If you’re looking to dive back into his work, start with the Wanda and Dracula sketches. They represent a specific era of TV where anything went, and the energy was electric.
Next Steps for You:
Go find the "Wanda Meets En Vogue" sketch on YouTube. It's a masterclass in ensemble comedy. After that, compare his performance in a 1992 Calhoun Tubbs sketch to his performance in the 2004 film Ray. You’ll see the exact same musicality and physical discipline, just applied to two very different worlds. Seeing that evolution is the best way to appreciate just how much he put into those early characters.