Keke Palmer Says Her Parents Advised Her to Turn Down Teen 'Drug Dealer' Role in Ryan Gosling's “Half Nelson”

Keke Palmer's parents had a say in what types of roles she took on as a child actress.

In Palmer's recent interview with The Cut surrounding the release of her new comedy One of Them Days, the actress, 31, recalled auditioning for a number of movie parts after she initially broke out as the 12-year-old star of 2005's Akeelah and the Bee. One of those roles included that of a middle school student in the 2006 award-winning film Half Nelson, which starred Ryan Gosling as a teacher struggling with addiction.

“After Akeelah and the Bee, they didn’t think it was good for me to play a drug dealer,” Palmer told the outlet of how her parents, Sharon and Larry Palmer, approached that opportunity. The actress was around 13 years old when Half Nelson released. “They were very cautious about the roles I played as a young Black child.”

The role ultimately went to Shareeka Epps, who won a Gotham Award for her performance.

Rather than star in Half Nelson — for which Gosling, now 44, received his fist career Oscar nomination — Palmer starred in the Disney Channel original movie Jump In! and the film Cleaner in the following years, before she landed her leading role on Nickelodeon's True Jackson, VP in 2008. 

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Palmer's parents first met in drama school and spent time as amateur actors before starting a family. Keke is their second-oldest child. They welcomed their oldest Loreal Palmer in 1989 and welcomed their twins Lawrenne and Lawrence in 2000. Sharon has operated as Keke's manager since she began acting; Keke told The Cut that Larry more often stayed home with her siblings.

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"My parents were very gender-nonconforming in their relationship,” she said. “My dad always washed our clothes and sewed and put relaxers in our hair. He was more than the leader of our family — he was our hero.”

Related: Keke Palmer Reveals the Act of Kindness Mariska Hargitay Extended to Her When She Guest Starred on SVU 

Palmer also noted in the interview that as a teen, she was highly aware that her work as an actor grew into her family's main source of income. “I hated my parents for a long time,” she said. “There was so much pressure to rise to the occasion for my community, for my parents, for my siblings, for their sacrifices. They weren’t saying it, but that was the reality. Because I’m the one that we all came here for.”

One of Them Days is in theaters Jan. 17.

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