Quinta Brunson

Brunson originally garnered fans online by posting comedic videos to her Instagram in 2014.[11] In particular, her Girl Who Has Never Been on a Nice Date series went viral and grew her digital fan base.[11][12][1] She then worked as a video producer for BuzzFeed Video after first freelancing for the company.[13] Her videos primarily focused on problems experienced by twenty-somethings.[14]

In 2016, Brunson sold two web series as a development partner with BuzzFeed Motion Pictures:[15] one scripted comedy called Broke for Youtube Red, which she wrote, produced, and starred in;[3][16] the second, Up for Adoption, was produced by Verizon's go90 video platform, which she also starred in.[12] Brunson's performance in Broke was nominated for Best Acting in a Comedy at the Streamy Awards in 2017.[17]

Shortly after Brunson left BuzzFeed in 2018,[1] she co-starred in her first network pilot, the CW pilot The End of the World as We Know It,[4] but the show was not picked up by the network. She also wrote and produced a series called Quinta vs. Everything that streamed on Facebook Watch from 2017 to 2018.[10][1] On October 4, 2018, it was announced that a pilot co-produced by Brunson, Larry Wilmore, and Jermaine Fowler would be developed by CBS into a multi-cam comedy called Quinta & Jermaine.[5] The pilot would star Fowler and Brunson as longtime friends who must deal with an unplanned pregnancy; however, the show was not picked up.[18]

In 2019, she appeared as Dr. Charli Collier and her twin sister, Laila, on the supernatural comedy-drama series iZombie, and also voiced multiple characters in the animated series Lazor Wulf.[19] That fall, Brunson began to co-star and write in the HBO sketch comedy series A Black Lady Sketch Show, alongside Robin Thede, Gabrielle Dennis, and Ashley Nicole Black;[20] but she left the second season due to scheduling conflicts.[21] In 2020, Brunson co-starred in the Syfy animated series Magical Girl Friendship Squad, opposite Anna Akana.[22]

In 2021, Brunson appeared in a recurring role on the third season of Miracle Workers,[23] and in May, Brunson's single-camera pilot (previously titled Harrity Elementary) was picked up by ABC with the new title Abbott Elementary.[24][25] Brunson is also the writer, co-executive producer, and stars with Sheryl Lee Ralph, Lisa Ann Walter, Chris Perfetti, Tyler James Williams, and Janelle James.[23] The series premiered on December 7, 2021 and received positive reception.[26] It holds a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 25 critics' reviews.[27]

Her debut book, She Memes Well, a collection of essays about her personal life and career, was released June 15, 2021.[28]