LEVEL UP

After years in Hollywood, Regina Hall is poised for another breakout year, both on-screen and behind the camera. Still as down to earth and relatable as ever, Hall dishes on what’s really up with diversity in Hollywood, why it’s important to learn to let go and what excites her these days.

- JACINTA HOWARD

Regina Hall isn’t very good at online Spades, and she’s a little upset about it. “I got my ass beat real bad and got embarrassed,” she deadpans, a laugh lurking just beyond her peeved tone. “But I am good!” she insists. “Online, it just feels a little different, so I’m gonna practice before the next game.”

Like the rest of America, on this afternoon in late April, Hall is “sheltering in place” amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Among other things, it means she had to take her ordinarily impressive Spades skills online. She’s also had to adjust to a new normal, following a loose schedule of sorts, to maintain some semblance of normalcy, while practicing social distancing. “I don’t know if it’s a routine, but I do the same sh-t every day,” she laughs when asked about how she’s been structuring her days. “I guess it’s a routine. I go for walks. I do a little reading, a little writing. I FaceTime friends. I have been organizing more—certain closets when I get to them. Cleaning. I do like to pull weeds...it’s very soothing,” she adds with a laugh, seeming almost surprised by her own admission.”