About Cortney Wills

Cortney M. Wills is the Entertainment Director at TheGrio and host of our latest podcast initiative, Acting Up.
Born and raised in Los Angeles, the Medill alum began her career at Time Inc. and has since covered music, film, television, and pop culture for numerous publications including Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Billboard, MTV News, JET, and more.
Much of her work at TheGrio focuses on holding Hollywood accountable and examines how stories about our people, our culture, and our communities are being told on screens big and small.
She’s currently based in Los Angeles where she resides with her husband and children.

All Articles

Samuel L. Jackson
June 14, 2018
An exclusive interview with Samuel L. Jackson on his role in Disney’s ‘Incredibles 2’ and when Nick Fury will show up in Wakanda.
Tiffany Haddish
June 11, 2018
A gallery of beautiful black performers on the red carpet at the 2018 Tony Awards in New York City includes Uzo Aduba, Kerry Washington, and more.
Cardi b
June 8, 2018
Cardi B is clapping back at fans who expressed concern over video footage showing Offset blowing smoke into her face while she’s pregnant.
Ava DuVernay
June 8, 2018
‘Half The Picture’ illuminates the permeating gender gap faced by female content creators like Ava DuVernay and Gina Prince-Bythewood.
Yara Shahidi
June 8, 2018
Yara Shahidi is a force to be reckoned with and a woman on a mission to change the world. Find out five fascinating facts about her.
A star is born
June 7, 2018
The first official trailer for Bradley Cooper’s directorial debut, ‘A Star Is Born’ has been released and features Dave Chappelle.
The Fashion Cafe summer hair
June 7, 2018
Johnny Wright and Ariana Soleil offer tips and tricks for selecting the perfect summer hairstyle on this week’s edition of The Fashion Cafe.
Gina Prince Bythewood
June 7, 2018
An exclusive interview with Gina Prince-Bythewood on directing the pilot of Cloak & Dagger for Freeform and the rise of black superheroes.
Rumi & Sir Carter thegrio.com
June 6, 2018
Beyonce and Jay-Z share first photos in months of their twins, Rumi and Sir Carter on opening night one their ‘On The Run II’ Tour.
Ayesha Curry
June 6, 2018
Ayesha Curry announced new cooking competition show ‘Family Food Fight’ on ABC after ‘Great American Baking Show’ was pulled.
Cloak & Dagger
June 6, 2018
A sneak peek at the first episode of Freeform’s new Marvel series, ‘Cloak & Dagger’ directed by Love & Basketball director, Gina Prince-Bythewood.
Scrappy
June 6, 2018
‘Love & Hip Hop Atlanta’ star, Scrappy was hospitalized after a car accident on Sunday that left him and Casino Roulette badly injured.
k Michelle
June 6, 2018
K. Michelle reveals her horrifying experience with illegal butt injections and explains why she had several surgeries to correct it.
Idris Elba thegrio.com
June 6, 2018
The first official trailer for ‘Yardie’ starring Aml Ameen is here and it marks the directorial debut of Idris Elba, who is engaged to Sabrina Dowhre.
Issa Rae
June 5, 2018
Issa Rae wore a belt that said ‘Every N**** Is a Star” to the CFDA Awards on Monday night and shaded Kanye West with a hilarious joke.
Kenya Moore
June 5, 2018
Kenya Moore reveals first photo that shows off her baby bump and shares a video of one of her first ultrasound on social media.
Ava DuVernay
June 4, 2018
‘A Wrinkle In Time’ director, Ava DuVernay is reportedly developing a comedy series based on Colin Kaepernick’s life as a teenager in high school.
Viola Davis
June 4, 2018
See the first official trailer for ‘Widows’ starring Viola Davis, Liam Neeson and Daniel Kaluuya and directed by Steve McQueen.
Jada Pinkett Smith
June 4, 2018
An exclusive interview with Jada Pinkett Smith on Red Table Talks, parenting, and how she prepared her children for run-ins with the police.
Kerry Washington
June 4, 2018
An exclusive interview with Kerry Washington about the new Facebook Watch series she executive produced, ‘Five Points’ an why it’s so important.