Jurnee Smollett Breaks Down That Rosa Parks Sketch (Exclusive)

In an epic team-up timed to the 250th anniversary of the United States, Larry David unites with executive producers Barack and Michelle Obama to bring comedy sketches to HBO viewers in Life, Larry, and the Pursuit of Unhappiness. In the new series’ first installment, Rosa Parks’ remarkable display of standing her ground against prejudice got a redux with some help from Jurnee Smollett. Warning: Spoilers for Life, Larry and the Pursuit of Unhappiness Season 1, Episode 1 ahead!

In the sketch, Larry’s character Murray is sitting next to Rosa, who is asked to move for white riders on a bus, but her refusal is backed by Murray, who claims he’s too comfortable to move and let her out from the inside of the bench. Rosa’s thanks to Murray leads him to believe she’s open to holding a conversation that begins with him asking about where she’s going.

One thing leads to another, and after a conversation about grocery shopping, Murray’s commentary about having a crush on his aunt, scratching itches with utensils, and more, Rosa’s looking for an exit strategy. Ultimately, Rosa lands on prayer as a method for escape, asking Murray if he’s a praying man, and while he claims he’s against it, she convinces him to take part in prayer, effectively distracting the man enough to make her escape to the back of the bus, where a lively game of cards is unfolding.

Art Streiber / HBO

“I love improv, and Larry’s the king of it,” Smollett tells TV Insider, “And so, I think for me, it was just as I would approach any other character, making the person a real person with real intentions, and staying sensitive to upholding her legacy,” she notes of portraying someone like Rosa Parks, who is so beloved and respected in history.

“I’m well-versed with her life story, the icon, and overall warrior woman that she was. I was holding on to her faith, and I just wanted to fill myself up with as much information as I could about her because we were just going to have a conversation,” Smollett adds, noting that most of what viewers see in the episode is fully improvised.

“Wherever the conversation led us is where it was going to lead us,” she clarifies. “With the prayer and asking him if he’s a praying man, that just came to me on the day in the middle of it, because he’s going on and on about such gross and random things that it felt like Rosa actually wouldn’t want to sit next to him. She would actually try to find a very polite way to not hurt his feelings, but get out.”

When it came to the segment, Smollett reveals the only outline she was given was, “She’s gonna be on the bus, and she’s gonna refuse to get up, and then Larry’s gonna make a stink about, why should she [move]? So, all of that was there, and then the conversation about the grocery store. Everything else, Jeff just let the cameras roll, and we found just different things.”

The gig was a dream come true for Smollett, who confesses, “I’m a huge fan of Curb Your Enthusiasm; to this day I still watch it to go to sleep every night. And so, I was just so excited to be able to play in the sandbox with Larry.”

As for the challenge of embracing improv, Smollett says, “Whether you’re in sketch comedy or not, you’ve got to be able to have that muscle, personally. I think a lot of my training involves keeping things loose.”

The joy of improv is also how you get many different takes or spins on the sketch itself. As for any particular line that made it difficult to hold back a laugh, Smollett recalls, “There was one thing both he and I started laughing at that didn’t make it in. I don’t remember what we said, but there was one take where the whole bus started laughing. I think we started talking about cooking and the difference between Black folks’ cooking and seasoning, and I don’t know, it went on some long tangent, but it was just a lot of fun.”

Regarding her involvement, it isn’t lost on Smollett that this series is also executive produced by the Obamas and their company Higher Ground Productions. “I love history. I love how the Obamas love history and really want to encourage our fellow citizens to know our history, and I think this is a fun way to see Larry David repeat history and mess it up every single time,” she says. “It was an honor to be asked to do this.”

And while the sketch may have been poking fun at a historical moment, Smollett acknowledges, “For me, it was all about making sure [Rosa] had agency because refusing to stand up, refusing to move when she was asked to be moved to the back of the bus, she was just exercising her agency, her free will, and so that was really my north star of whatever [Larry] throws at me, she’s got agency.”

As Smollett puts it, “She made the choice to stay sitting, and she also made the choice to remove herself and remove her energy from this crazy man.” And we cannot blame her.

Don’t miss more hilarious and historical sketches as Life, Larry and the Pursuit of Unhappiness continues on HBO, and let us know your favorite sketches in the comments section below.

Life, Larry, and the Pursuit of Unhappiness, Fridays, 9/8c, HBO and HBO Max