‘Insecure; star talks needing mom’s approval at NYFW show

Yvonne Orji’s outspoken Nigerian mom can’t stay mum.

The comedian and actor, who was nominated for an Emmy as Molly Carter in HBO’s “Insecure,” told The Post her mother Celine always has an opinion on her outfits during a chat at New York Fashion Week.

“I’ll send her a red carpet picture and I’ll think I look amazing. If it’s revealing a little bit of decolletage, she’s like, ‘’I like it, but it’s too much. You’re overexposed.’ ” Her favorite word is ‘overexposed.’ It could be a shoulder, and she’ll be like, ‘You’re overexposed!”

With not one, but two shoulders revealed in her strapless neon Sergio Hudson dress, Orji was definitely overexposed at the designer’s show.

She sat front row alongside Quinta Brunson, Doechii, Karen Pittman, Susan Kelechi Watson, Coco Jones, among other celebs, who admired the sharp ‘70s-inspired suiting and sheer chiffon evening gowns.

Orji, whose advice book, “Bamboozled by Jesus: How God Tricked Me Into the Life of My Dream,” drops tomorrow in paperback, told Alexa that she’s been busy traveling. “I believe in having new lived experiences before I put something out and go on tour again, so I’m living now so I can get more material.”


“Insecure” actress Yvonne Orji (right) opened up about her mother’s red carpet skepticism at Sergio Hudson’s NYFW show on Saturday. Pictured here with “This is Us” star Susan Kelechi Watson (left).
Jed Cullen/Dave Benett/Getty Images

A look from Sergio Hudson's Spring 2024 collection.
Sergio Hudson is known for dressing clients like Michelle Obama and Blake Lively.
WWD via Getty Images

A gown from Sergio Hudson's Spring 2024 collection.
The designer’s Spring 2024 ready-to-wear collection attracted front row guests like Orji, as well as writer and actress Quinta Brunson.
WireImage

Orji said her mom can’t stop fact-checking her HBO specials, like “A Whole Me” and “Momma, I Made It!.” 

“She always has to remind people, ‘But that’s not true. I didn’t say that.’ I’m like, ‘Alright, Mom, you gotta know that comedy is a little bit embellished, but there’s some truth in it, and then I just run with it. So I think she’s getting it now.”