She's gone on to star in other sitcoms, but she'll always be remembered for one character most of all: Gina Waters-Payne. For five seasons, Tisha Campbell played Gina on Martin opposite comedian Martin Lawrence. In fact, the way Martin said his girlfriend's name on the show has people—including her own child—repeating it to Campell today.
“My son does it every single day of my life: 'Gina,'" Campbell told Entertainment Tonight. "But I don’t mind when people call me that because it means that they really... it means something to them. I never ever thought that we would be iconic.”
This year will mark the 30th anniversary of the premiere of Martin, and a cast reunion is on the way. Read on to find out what else Campbell has going on.
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She's still an actor.
George Rose/Getty ImagesCampbell was already established as an actor before Martin. She was in the movie adaptation of Little Shop of Horrors and played Sidney in the House Party movies.
After Martin went off the air, Campbell went on to star on another popular sitcom, My Wife and Kids, which aired from 2001 to 2005. Some of her more recent projects include being a series regular on Dr. Ken and having recurring roles on Empire, The Bold and the Beautiful, Last Man Standing, and Outmatched. She's also done voiceover acting recently on a few animated series, including Harley Quinn and Inside Job.
She's best friends with a Martin co-star.
Ron Galella/Ron Galella Collection via Getty ImagesCampbell is very close friends with her Martin co-star Tichina Arnold, who played Pam. The two first met when they were 12-year-old actors and, in 1986, they appeared in Little Shop of Horrors together. They teamed up again when Campbell appeared on episodes of Everybody Hates Chris, on which Arnold starred, and they've co-hosted the Soul Train Music Awards together for the past four years.
"She never gives up on a friendship," Campbell said on The Tamron Hall Show in 2021. "She has always, always been there for me, good times or bad times. And she tells the truth."
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She's a mother of two.
Leon Bennett/STA 2020/Getty Images for BETCampbell has two children, 20-year-old Xen and 12-year-old Ezekiel, with her ex-husband Duane Martin to whom she was married for over 20 years. In a 2020 interview with Entertainment Tonight, she said that she "nothing in the bank" when she split from her husband.
"I had maybe $7 to my name and I was scared," she said. "It was like I was starting all over ... Starting over is not always the easiest thing, but it's the necessary thing and it's a beautiful devastation." She was asked if she was ready to date again, and she responded, "Hell no! I’m the happiest I’ve ever been and I don’t want a relationship."
A Martin cast reunion is coming very soon.
Dia Dipasupil/Getty ImagesThe Martin cast reunited for a special that will air on BET+ this summer. It marks the sitcom's big anniversary, as it initially premiered in August 1992. Campbell has shared behind-the-scenes videos from the reunion filming on her Instagram. She wrote in one caption, "Y’all ready?! We ARE!!!" and in another, "When I say y’all gonna be excited!!!!!!!!!"
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