Forty-five-year-old Gabrielle Union, star of BET’s “Being Mary Jane,” has a younger doppelganger and her name is Ryan Destiny. Destiny has been dubbed “The Next Gabrielle Union” because some believe that the 22-year-old actress looks just like her. As one of the leads on Lee Daniels’ musical drama “Star” on FOX, Destiny has created quite a lane for herself. She is not only an actress, but she sings and dances as well, a true triple-threat.
While you would think Gabrielle Union, a talented veteran actress, would be unconditionally happy for the younger starlet, she reveals in her new book “We’re Going To Need More Wine” that she wasn’t. She talks about meeting Destiny for the first time and reveals what her head was thinking about the younger version of herself versus what her mouth was saying. Check out this excerpt from “We’re Going To Need More Wine” obtained by Bossip:
Well, that went left rather quickly! Union, more focused on trying to “trick” people that she is a vampire, overlooked the fact that Destiny wanted the opportunity to be groomed by her – one of the greats. In an interview with Living Civil, Destiny shared how she felt about this incident which she didn’t realize was a story until it was in the book:
“That was very weird to me, weird in a good way because I didn’t expect her to put me in her book period. I remember the time that we did meet, which is the situation she was addressing in her book and she was very nice. I wouldn’t have known that she was thinking any of the stuff that she said she was thinking in her head at all. It’s interesting because she was just talking to me and we were just chopping it up about what I was filming at the time and I was just struggling mentally with stuff within the show because there is always some drama and she was just being supportive of that and she told me to push through it.”
Destiny goes on to say that she and “The Two Can Play That Game” actress have a “supportive” relationship now. Destiny even said that she appreciated Union’s vulnerability in sharing a story like that.
While vulnerability and transparency are powerful things, I think Mrs. Dwayne Wade needs to listen to her own speech that she gave at the 2013 Essence “Black Women in Hollywood Luncheon,” where she received the Fierce and Fearless Award. She admitted that she was a “mean girl” to other actresses, including Black actresses, saying:
“I used to shrink in the presence of other beautiful women…I used to revel in gossip and rumors…and I lived for the negativity inflicted upon my sister actresses…or anyone who’s shine diminished my own.”
She is clearly still in “mean girl” recovery, and while she may have a relapse or two, I hope she returns to her own speech, which should remind her that there is room for everyone to shine. And if you need a reminder as well, catch her speech in its entirety here.
