Catching up with Tracee Ellis Rose

The May 7 season finale of Girlfriends may be the last time we see L.A.’s finest sisters all together in one living room. The sitcom has maintained decent ratings while weathering a network switch, scheduling shifts, and the departure of cast member Jill Marie Jones. Still, CW execs have yet to decide whether to bring it back for an eighth season. Tracee Ellis Ross, who recently costarred in the HBO film Life Support and Tyler Perry’s feature Daddy’s Little Girls, says she’ll be fine either way — probably: ”Every actor I know who has been on a long-running show says that once they left, they were like, ‘Oh, God. Oh, God! I wish I could’ve just gotten one more year!”’

What’s it like being Diana Ross’ kid?
I’m 34 years old! I have not been Diana Ross’ kid for a lot of years. It’s fine. It’s normal. It’s great.

Okay, then, with that out of the way, will fans of the perpetually single Joan find any relief in Girlfriends‘ finale?
From what people friggin’ say to me — ”Dude, is Joan ever gonna find a man?” — yeah, I think it’s cathartic.

Are you frustrated by Girlfriends‘ low profile?
Sure, but if I were on a show for seven years that was on, let’s say, NBC or Fox, I’d be typecast as Joan. It might be hard to move on. I may be a celebrity in certain demographics, but a lot of the industry is not aware of my ability and who I am, which gives me space to grow. Yet I have a résumé 160 episodes as a seasoned comedic actress.

So, where to from here?
Steve Carell and Adam Sandler have careers that I would love…. It’s weird: There are all these big, broad comedies, and they’re casting the woman to be pretty and to set up Jim Carrey’s jokes. I’m like, ”Put me in the ring with him! Put me in the ring with Will Ferrell!”