Natasha Rothwell says new show ‘How to Die Alone’ is “a dream come true”

You may know Natasha Rothwell for her roles in The Characters, Wonka or Insecure, but in the new Hulu series How to Die Alone, she’s the star — and it’s for her very own television show, which she says is “a dream come true.”

“It feels like leveling up in the best way. It’s a dream. I’ve been doing acting and theater since I was very young, and so to have my own TV show is just something I didn’t even think would be in the cards. But I was going to go after it regardless,” she tells ABC Audio. “To be here and in this moment, it’s a dream come true. So I’m just trying to stay present and enjoy the ride.” 

How to Die Alone follows Natasha’s character, Melissa, “a broke, fat, Black, JFK airport employee who’s never been in love and forgotten how to dream,” per Hulu, until she’s faced with a brush with death. The storyline was born out of Natasha’s “desire to get to know someone in the middle of their journey when they’re trying to close the distance between who they are and who they want to be,” a struggle she says is real and relatable.

The series was a long time in the making, but Natasha says she refused to give up.

“It was very healing to write this show, it was very healing to work on this show. And so to me, it was important to keep going in a very selfish way because it was … something that I think ultimately would make me feel seen,” she says. “Visibility is huge, especially when you’re walking around the world as a plus-sized Black woman and wanting to see different versions of you represented and not just one.” Natasha adds she’s also “pretty stubborn.”