Brian Tyree Henry Hears Kamala Harris Wants Him to Have Bigger Roles

Brian Tyree Henry got a surprising compliment while appearing on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” It happened because the “Atlanta” and “Eternals” star was waiting in the green room with Kimmel’s other guest for the evening, second gentleman of the United States Doug Emhoff, whom he dubbed “the sweetest man in the world.”

“I was like, ‘I’m coming over for dinner, right?’ He was like, ‘Absolutely,’” Henry told Kimmel on Thursday night. But the most exciting part of their encounter had to do with Harris.

“I found out that Vice President Kamala Harris is a fan of mine, so I was like, I can die now,” Henry said. “She apparently also wants me to have bigger roles. So if you are watching, Hollywood, she has requested it, and you must follow through.”

Henry stopped by the late-night show to promote the upcoming animated movie “Transformers One.” From “Toy Story 4” director Josh Cooley, the film depicts the early relationship of friends-turned-rivals Optimus Prime and Megatron back on their home planet of Cybertron. In addition to Henry, the movie features the voices of Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Keegan-Michael Key, Steve Buscemi, Laurence Fishburne and Jon Hamm.

This will be the first theatrical animated feature film from “Transformers” since 1986’s “The Transformers: The Movie.” It’s partially Henry’s passion for that ’80s classic that led him to this one.

“It kind of destroyed me,” Henry said. “Because all the ’80s movies for us when we were kids were really dark. ‘Dark Crystal,’ ‘Labyrinth,’ ‘Dragon Slayer,’ ‘NeverEnding Story’ — everybody died. So in ‘Transformers,’ Optimus Prime dies. I was truly like, I was messed up.”

When Kimmel pointed out that Henry will be playing Megatron, the star quipped, “the one who killed him. It all comes back around.” Henry then revealed that the movie revolves around his character before he becomes Megatron, calling him “just a regular guy.” Watch the interview above.