Tamberla Perry is Fierce as Dr. Carol Pierce in ‘Brilliant Minds’

Tamberla Perry portrays Dr. Carol Pierce in NBC’s Brilliant Minds. PHOTO COURTESY OF NBCUNIVERSAL.
Tamberla Perry portrays Dr. Carol Pierce in NBC’s Brilliant Minds. PHOTO COURTESY OF NBCUNIVERSAL.

Tamberla Perry is Fierce as Dr. Carol Pierce in ‘Brilliant Minds’

By Tia Carol Jones

When Tamberla Perry first read the role of Dr. Carol Pierce in the pilot of “Brilliant Minds,” she knew she wanted the role. She even told her husband, Kevin Douglas, that she was going to book the role. That’s how much she loved the script and the character, who she has been calling Dr. Carol “Fierce” Pierce.

As an actor, being told no is part of the job. When actors audition for jobs, they want to book them. This was a job that when Perry read it, she really wanted it. After three auditions, she received word that she booked the show. She said she fell to her knees thanking God because she was so excited to have the job. Perry, who is no stranger to stage and screen, is a Chicago native and was the Illinois Lottery girl for seven years.

Brilliant Minds is a medical drama which will air on Monday nights, beginning Sept. 23rd, after The Voice on NBC. The show follows the life of neurologist Oliver Wolf and his team of interns. Wolf is based on real life physician and author Oliver Sacks. Perry plays Dr. Carol Pierce, chief of psychology at the hospital where Wolf works.

“This show is all things human mind. We’re exploring those things, while we are dealing with our own relationships,” Perry said.

Perry said that Brilliant Minds is unlike the  typical medical drama because there aren’t a lot of scenes with surgeries. Perry said the show is about mental health and getting to the source of what is going on in the mind that makes people do the things they do.

Perry said in reading the pilot and the character of Dr. Pierce, she saw similarities between herself and the character. As she has been filming the series, Perry learned that she and Pierce are different in the way they handle matters. While Pierce handles matters with her heart, Perry handles matters with her mind. Perry is a logic-based person, and it has to make sense logically. Another thing that attracted Perry to the character was Pierce’s loyalty to Oliver Wolf.

“Even though he has some unorthodox ways of practicing medicine, because she really believes in him and really does believe that he is a genius, she trusts him. I really like the dynamic between her and him and how she can ground him, she can, and she will call him out when he needs to be called out,” Perry said.

Pierce is based on Dr. Carol Burnett, who was a lifelong friend of Sacks. Burnett was a pioneer in medical studies and in the second graduating class at Albert Einstein College of Medicine. She was the first African American graduate of the medical school. Once Perry found out that Pierce was based on Burnett, she wanted to be part of the legacy.

To get into the mindset of neurology, Perry read books that were written by Sacks. While shooting the series, she spent time with hypnotherapists and psychiatrists about dealing and speaking with patients. She said it was good to have someone educated in psychiatry on board from beginning to end to walk her through the episodes.

Ashleigh LaThrop who plays Dr. Erica Kinney is also a Chicagoan. Perry said she is proud to be sharing the screen with another Chicago native who is just as fierce of an actress. The show wrapped in Toronto in late August. Perry said the entire cast and crew were phenomenal.

Perry said the show is one of her highlights. She is grateful to showrunner and “Brilliant Minds” creator Michael Grassi for giving her the opportunity to play the role. She is hopeful it will strike a chord with the viewers.

“The show is a place where people can come every Monday night, they can come for comfort, they can cry and they can feel not just for the patients, but the doctors as well. The doctors are trying to strike a balance in helping their patients while neglecting their own lives and their own needs at times. So, I just want audiences to come and just feel,” Perry said.

For more information about “Brilliant Minds,” visit https://www.nbc.com/brilliant-minds.


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