*By Samantha Errico*
Actress Samira Wiley has a promise for fans of her character Moira in "The Handmaid's Tale:" She's both in season three and alive. At least for now.
"We should just be happy that's a thing," she told Cheddar Thursday.
The same can't be said for her beloved "Orange Is the New Black" character Poussey, who died during the show's fourth season.
"It was one of the innovators," Wiley told Cheddar of the wildly popular Netflix series that launched her career. When "Orange Is the New Black" premiered on the streaming service, "it was one of the first shows that really showed women \[differently\]," she said, adding that the show dramatically shifted the conversation about diversity on the small screen.
Now Wiley is participating in a related conversation off screen ー body diversity. She, alongside model Iskra Lawrence and actresses Busy Philipps and Jameela Jamil, will be featured in American Eagle's #AerieREAL Role Model campaign to challenge unrealistic beauty standards.
"It's about representing women of all shapes and sizes and colors," Wiley said. "I'm just excited to be part of the conversation."
To Wiley, it's a privilege she doesn't take lightly ー on camera and off.
"I do think that everyone has a path, and I do think I am somehow walking down the path has been laid out for me. And to know that includes being able to portray all these wonderful, strong women for the next generation ー that's awesome," Wiley said.
What's next for the actress? Fans would never say no to a Poussey spin-off ー even one that takes place in the afterlife.
"Poussey and Taystee, I don't know why that hasn't happened yet," Wiley said.
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/actress-samira-wiley-on-why-she-loves-playing-strong-women).
Ben Armstrong, founder of Bitboy Crypto, joins Cheddar News to discuss Bitcoin's downward trend and what's next for crypto after protests in Kazakhstan cause crypto miners to shut down.
Jake Carbone, senior data analyst at InfluenceMap joins Cheddar News to talk about a new report by The Guardian and InfluenceMap that reveals how companies are creating fossil fuel ads designed to look like Google search results.
Desmond Howard, former NFL wide receiver and Modelo college football playoff ambassador, joins Cheddar News to talk about the Modelo sweepstakes honoring the 30th anniversary of his iconic punt return.
The highly transmissible omicron variant of COVID-19 has forced school districts nationwide to return to virtual instruction, but there remain concerns about the quality of education students are receiving online. Andy Bird, CEO of Pearson, an education publisher and assessment service provider, joined Cheddar's "Opening Bell" to talk about steps educators and parents can take to make the remote learning experience an easier one, noting that one of the biggest advantages teachers can have is flexibility. "You cannot take a rigid timetable that works in the analog world and replicate that in the digital world. You need to have flexibility. Asynchronous learning, I think, is a very important part," he told Cheddar.
On this episode of ChedHER: Chief Product Officer at Mathison breaks down how she's building tech to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion in the workplace; Co-Founder and CEO of Carewell.com explains how her platform is easing the pressures that come with caregiving; Founder and CEO of Mentor Agility discusses what goals business owners should set in the new year.
Bianca Padilla, Co-Founder and CEO of Carewell.com, joins ChedHER to discuss how her platform is easing the pressures that come with caregiving, and how she's breaking barriers for women in venture capital.
Elizabeth Spenko, Chief Product Officer at Mathison, joins ChedHER to discuss how she's building tech to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion in the workplace, and an outlook on DEI in 2022.
Julie Elledge, Founder and CEO of Mentor Agility, joins ChedHER to discuss what goals business owners should set in the new year, and what tools are out there for emerging entrepreneurs.
Rob Dongoski, EY Food and Agriculture Leader, joins Cheddar News to discuss what advancements in tech will shape the future of food, and how we are going to see more and more personalization in the food system.
It's no secret tech giant Amazon has a mission of becoming a major player in sports media, and the company is poised to make progress on that goal in 2022. Amazon Prime Video will be the exclusive home to Thursday Night Football for the 2022-23 NFL season. In December, the New York Post reported that Amazon is in the beginning stages of developing studio sports programs, and hopes to soon have a full daily lineup of sports shows. Front Office Sports senior reporter A.J. Perez joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
