While “In Living Color” launched the careers of many stars such as Jamie Foxx, Jim Carrey, David Alan Grier, Rosie Perez, Jennifer Lopez, and much of the Wayans family, most of the cast maintained amicable relationships after leaving the set. However, Jennifer Lopez’s rise to fame has sparked some contrasting recollections from her former cast mates.
Lopez, who started as a Fly Girl dancer on the show, later moved on to dance for Janet Jackson before landing her breakout role portraying the late Mexican-American superstar Selena. But some of her former colleagues, like Jamie Foxx and Tommy Davidson, have implied that Lopez became more distant after her ascent to stardom.
Foxx’s experience was packaged in the form of a joke. In his 2002 standup special, “Jamie Foxx: I Might Need Security,” Foxx recalled seeing Lopez at the Grammys when the former Fly Girl expressed she was mad at him for making jokes about her on “Saturday Night Live.”
“Now, you know, I know Jennifer from ‘In Living Color.’ She was a Fly Girl and everything like that. We go back,” Foxx explained, adding, “I remember before the JLo, you know. I mean, I remember when it was just, ‘Hey, ho!’”
The Academy Award winner said that while backstage at the Grammy Awards, he tried to speak to Lopez when she got huffy with him.
“’I’m mad at you. I’m mad. I’m so steamed at you because you did jokes about me. You said I couldn’t sing,’” he recalled.
In response, Foxx gave the audience a comedic side-eye before saying, “Come on, keep it real.”
Davidson’s experience, however, reflected a more personal sting. In an October 2023 interview on Shannon Sharpe’s “Club Shay Shay,” the comedian described two instances where Lopez seemed cold to him after the variety show.
Recalling their friendship, Davidson shared he walked over to her at an upfront and was like, “What’s up, girl? Shoot, man, you blew up! What is going on?” Lopez’s response was a curt “Hey.” When Davidson pressed further by asking how she was, she simply replied, “You know, just living.”
Her dry response embarrassed him and made him feel played.
Davidson explained that both he and Lopez shared the same manager, Benny Medina, who encouraged him to visit Lopez on the set of her “Jenny from the Block” music video, believing she would be excited to see him. Unfortunately, Davidson said Lopez treated him the same way during that second interaction.
Marlon Wayans, another “In Living Color” alum, offered a different perspective during his own conversation with Sharpe. When asked if Lopez had ever treated him poorly, Wayans said, “No,” and emphasized that his interactions with her were always positive.
“You never know what could start that type of thing,” Wayans added, suggesting that perhaps a joke could have soured Lopez’s relationships with Foxx and Davidson. But as for him, Wayans said, “JLo blew up, and when I saw her, it’s always love. Always, ‘Hey, how you doing? How’s Keenen?’”
According to Wayans, Lopez even recommended him to her husband, Ben Affleck, for a role in the 2023 movie “Air.”
“JLo was the one that was like, ‘You should hit Marlon,’” Wayans said, adding that when they later met during press tours and sat together at the Golden Globes, it was “All love.”
When “Club Shay Shay” posted the clip on its Instagram, fans were able to weigh in saying that Lopez has a reputation of picking and choosing who to be funky with.
“2 things can be true, she can be warm and friendly with Marlon and not so much with Tommy. Ijs,” one person wrote.
Someone else wrote, “I think she knows who she can disrespect and who she can’t.”
A third person suggested that maybe Marlon has too much clout to answer this question and said, “Now, let’s ask ALL her former nannies, backup singers, singers, drivers, and the multiple servers who have shared how bad they were treated by her.”
Another comment agreed, “She’s not going to be this way with NO WAYANS because without them WHO WOULS KNOW HER… NOBODY‼️ They gave her THE REAL start she needed. So no, she’s not going to be that way with any of them.”
Despite the mixed accounts of her past interactions, most fans remain supportive of Lopez. Many expressed their admiration for the star, noting her work ethic and resilience, which even Foxx, Davidson, and Wayans acknowledged.
Lopez’s career has certainly been impressive, spanning decades and evolving from dancer to actress to a global music sensation.
After leaving “In Living Color,” Lopez quickly found success, landing her breakout role in the 1997 biopic “Selena.” Her portrayal of the beloved Tejano singer garnered critical acclaim and opened the door to more prominent acting roles in over 30 movies, including in films like “Out of Sight” and “The Wedding Planner.” But Lopez didn’t stop with acting — she expanded into music, releasing her debut album “On the 6” in 1999, which included hits like “If You Had My Love.”
Lopez’s music career soared with seven more albums, and she became known for her ability to juggle both film and music, with multiple chart-topping albums and global tours.
However, Lopez’s personal life has been more complicated. Her love life, in particular, has been closely scrutinized by the media, marked by four marriages and several high-profile relationships. Lopez first married Cuban waiter Ojani Noa in 1997, but the couple divorced after a year.
In 2001, she married dancer Cris Judd, whom she met on the set of her “Love Don’t Cost a Thing” music video, but their marriage also ended in divorce less than two years later.
Lopez’s most talked-about romance was with actor Ben Affleck, with whom she began dating in 2002. Their relationship captivated the media, earning the nickname “Bennifer.” The couple got engaged but called off their 2003 wedding just days before the ceremony, eventually splitting in 2004.
Lopez’s third marriage to singer Marc Anthony lasted from 2004 to 2014 and produced two children, twins Max and Emme. After her split from Anthony, Lopez remained in the spotlight, balancing her career with her family life.
In 2022, Lopez and Affleck rekindled their relationship, marrying in a private ceremony in Las Vegas. However, on the second anniversary of their marriage in August 2024, Lopez filed for divorce from Affleck, marking yet another chapter in her complex personal life.
