Hands Down, Beyond the Gates’ Best Character Is… Not the One You’re Probably Thinking
Credit: CBS screenshot (5)
In its first week and change, Beyond the Gates has introduced us to a whole host of fascinating characters, from Karla Mosley’s short-fused Dani to Trisha Mann-Grant and Ambyr Michelle’s Dana/Eva scheme team. But as much as they and others may intrigue us, none of them is our insta-favorite. Who is?
That would be Ernestine Johnson’s Shanice. It’s no contest, either. Every second the gossipy nurse is on screen is, in a word, priceless — and she’s not even on contract… yet. Now that the powers that be have seen how Johnson lights up the screen — she’s natural, she’s vivacious, she’s fun extra — they’ve gotta be bumping her up from recurring status.
Shanice makes even listening to exposition enjoyable! (Side note: This is how that’s done, every other soap; hello?) But her portrayer is too sparkly a gem to be wasted mentoring Ashley and filling in the blanks about other characters’ storylines. Shanice needs one of her own!
More: Beyond the Gates twist even the stars didn’t predict
Ironically, Johnson was happy even when she thought that she would only be appearing in one episode. But before taping got underway, Beyond the Gates’ brass “called me directly to welcome me to the CBS family and the show,” she Instagrammed. “I remember telling them I thought this was just one episode, and they said, ‘No you’re a part of the cast, girl! We knew you were Shanice as soon as we saw your tape!’”
