Angell Conwell Talks ‘Family Time’ and ‘The Young & The Restless’ [Exclusive Interview]

For Angell Conwell, professional growth is key.

Conwell recently pulled double duty on CBS’s The Young & The Restless and Bounce TV’s Family Time, which she also got to write an episode for.

I recently spoke with Conwell about her experiences on both shows, on playing dynamic female characters, and on gravitating towards writing and other creative pursuits.

Conwell admitted that she used to be shy, and would come alive when in front of a camera or in character. Part of the reason why she went into acting was to entertain others.

“My main reason would be to provide others with joy and entertainment. Even as a kid I felt a responsibility to help heal others in some way, shape, or form. It all started to make sense and click for me at a very young age that this was an avenue, and a way to be able to do that,” Conwell said.

Family Time, now in its fourth season, is a sitcom about the Stallworth family. Conwell’s character, Lisa, has different shades to her, which Conwell enjoys playing.

“The character is already so well-written on paper; it’s a blessing. To me she’s relatable. She’s a woman, she’s a mother, she’s a sister, she’s a friend, and she’s still figuring things out. She’s not perfect; she doesn’t claim to be perfect. She has her moments of strength, but at the same time she has moments of weakness. She doesn’t take herself too seriously, but she takes her family seriously. I think that’s a great representation for a black woman. I think there’s room for more representation and broaden people’s horizons on what it means to be a woman, and specifically a black woman.”

Conwell also said she wants the audience to find pieces of themselves in Lisa and noted the different challenges in playing her.

“I want to make sure I represent the character in a way that is authentic, where anyone can watch the show and be proud. The main challenge is making sure I keep her relatable.”

However, the challenges are what also motivates Conwell to be a better actress.

“Because it’s a sitcom, I feel like as an actress and as a person, I’ve grown so much over the past few years. I always want to make sure I’m stepping my game up in every area, whether it’s with her wardrobe or her physical comedy, and in constantly staying in the scene,” she explained.

In wanting to grow and expand her talents as a creative, Conwell explained that she was fortunate enough to write the latest episode of Family Time, which aired this week.

“It’s very much a blessing, and I’m extremely honored. I’m extremely privileged,” she gushed.

“It’s called ‘Merry Kwanzaa.’ It’s a holiday episode, and my character Lisa feels the family has gotten away from what the true meaning of the holiday is, and what it really means to celebrate Christmas. She thinks they’ve strayed away from the significance of it. And she wants to celebrate Kwanzaa for the first time. Tony, played by Omar Gooding, completely disagrees. He loves classic Christmas and doesn’t want to do it any other way, so we bud heads and go toe-to-toe there and have fun with that.”

In addition to writing and acting, Conwell has interests in producing and directing. “It kind of all blends,” she said.

Conwell also got to reprise her role as Leslie Michaelson on The Young & The Restless, and shared some loving words about the soap opera.

“I am so grateful to that show. Whenever I can go back, I always do if the schedule works out. The actors are all so professional and emotional, and most of them are accustomed to it but it’s still very tough. I have so much respect for them because they shoot such emotional scenes in such a short period of time, usually in one single take. I am always amazed.”

Conwell enjoys playing a lawyer, especially when she’s on the job.

“I love her in court. It’s so much fun. She’s a shark! I enjoy playing those types of characters. It’s therapeutic for me,” she laughed.

“In everyday life, I consider myself pretty calm and easy-going. But there are those times when you want to let loose and unleash.”

Conwell said there’s no shortage of love and passion on soaps, but she appreciates her character’s professional scenes and describes the court scenes as refreshing and dynamic.

“I really do enjoy when she is immersed in her work and that’s what she’s focused on.”

When asked what story-lines she enjoyed playing the most, she said the love story between her character and Kristoff St. John’s character was really fun.

“She was getting really close to Neal. I was starting to really enjoy that. She was getting really emotional and her past was coming to the surface because there was a lot of mystery regarding her past. And she was so guarded.”

Conwell also found the heavy workload on The Young & The Restless demanding, but it helped her improve her acting skills.

“It was very different for me as an actress. It teaches you to trust yourself because you have so much work to do. And you really have to leave it all on the stage. You have no choice.”

Conwell hopes to continue to grow and play characters of substance.

“I really enjoy playing characters that have a great arc, that are well-rounded. I just really like good stories. It doesn’t even have to be the main character, I just really like characters that leave a mark. I love the super tough, kick-booty, type of characters. I also love the really vulnerable characters. I love the characters that are searching,” Conwell said.

“There’s a lot I want to do and have on my vision board. And that’s a good thing! I want to keep expanding and keep expressing and keep learning. And keep entertaining of course.”

Lastly, Conwell shared what TV shows she’s loving these days. Her watch-list includes Insecure, Queen Sugar, Black-ish, and Modern Family. 

Conwell added that she sometimes avoids watching too much TV in order to prevent her own creativity from being influenced. However, she is inspired by the energy of today’s flourishing television landscape.

“It’s lit,” she enthused.

Be sure to catch Angell Conwell on Family Time, Tuesdays at 9/8c on Bounce TV.