Trinity Whiteside Talks Tyler Perry's Sistas, His Black Man Experience and 20 Years Of Marriage
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Actor Trinity Whiteside on playing Preston on Tyler Perry’s Sistas, his unique experience as a racially ambiguous Black man in America and manifesting his Marvel character debut.
Photographs by Ammar Thomas
You knew you wanted to act from a young age from playing "make-believe," and you took the game seriously. Did you have other moments that made you realize you wanted to be an actor?
There were points along the way while watching film and television that I started to pay more attention to the artist's performance than the actual storyline. That interest level took on its own life for me. I was always intrigued by watching actors with no paint or paint brush, paint a picture in my mind through sheer performance.
Your wife gave you her blessing to pursue your dreams of acting. Tell me about your grind working up to this point cast for your role on Tyler Perry's Sistas?
For me, I enjoyed the road to success. I've taken each opportunity working on set to observe and learn from people in positions I hoped to be in one day. Onset, while filming, in-between takes, the professionalism I've learned I've taken with me to the next gig I landed.
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On Tyler Perry's Sistas, you play Preston, a White man in an interracial relationship with Danni. For you, as a black man, what challenges did you face preparing to play a White man on film?
It was extremely challenging. Though I am multi-racial, my father is African-American, and my mother is Caucasian, I live my daily life with the mindset and mentality of a black man. It's the culture, the family, I always gravitated towards that side of my ethnicity, and it was a natural process that occurred. Playing a character who suppose to be 100% Caucasian, I have to live outside of myself and everything I've grown up knowing and loving. Preston isn't well-versed in African American culture, but that's all Trinity knows, and I have to act as if I do not know my culture. It's challenging, but I welcome the challenge because if I can do this, I can do anything as far as acting goes.
In your real life, you're going on almost 20 years of marriage, while in your role as Preston, you're in a relationship/"situation-ship" with Danni. What advice would Trinity give to Preston on his relationship with Danni?
Preston tends to leave, whether he's allowing Danni to cool down or allowing the situation to simmer down. I never do that. If there's a disagreement or a discussion to have, I'm the kind of person that wants to sit in that discomforting moment. Though you may be uncomfortable if you take time to sit in that, have conversations and dialogue, listen just as much as you speak, you can move forward from that situation with a new understanding. That's the advice I would give Preston. You don't always leave the situation to overcome it. Sit in that discomfort and get to the root of the issue.
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What do you think fans want to see from Preston in season 4 of Tyler Perry's Sistas?
I think the fans want to see Preston be more assertive in regards to Danni and their relationship. This is the end of season three, going into season four, they have yet to define what they are to each other. The fans want to see them fully committed to their relationship and understanding each other as this is Danni's and Preston's first time in an interracial relationship.
What roles are you manifesting for your acting career?
I see myself playing a Marvel character. One character I'd love to play that Marvel has had trouble getting off the ground because they haven't found the right person to cast is Gambit. He's a southern superhero from New Orleans, very Cajun, debonair, a ladies man with all of this kinetic energy and ability, so that's my ideal role. As far as my acting spectrum, I would love to play a diverse array of characters. From romantic and comedic to villainous and heroic, they are all roles I'd like to scratch off my bucket list.
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Tell me about your unique experiences as a Black man. Do people accept your blackness? Have you ever felt like you had to prove your blackness being a black man that presents racially ambiguous?
Yes, there were times, particularly in my childhood where I had to prove my blackness until you got to know me, my dialect, mannerisms, and things of that nature. For the most part, I do have a caucasian appearance but when some people and fans look at me they can see it's more to how I present. Often, I'm viewed by people who didn't know me as a white person attempting to be Black and I've found myself at times feeling like I had to prove my blackness. Now I would never go as far as attempting to prove my blackness because I don't feel like I need to prove anything to anyone but there were times where I felt like my blackness needed to be proved regardless of whether I acted on it or not.
We touched on this earlier, you're heading toward 20 years of marriage. What's the secret to having 20 years of black love?
Honestly, I don't feel like there's a secret I could give to anybody else because each individual, relationship, and marriage is their own. I believe on a universal scale as far as longevity is concerned, the ability to adapt and understand. A lot of time, people go into marriages and feel like the people they're with should be perfect for them. I've always felt like having the perception of your partner needing to perfect sets yourself up for failure because that's a standard nobody can live up to. There has to be an understanding that the person you want to be perfect for you will never be perfect and there are times where you have to be understanding and forgiving. It all comes down to who means that much to you that you're willing to go through whatever with them.
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