Shawn and Marlon Wayans are embracing film royalty following their return to the big screen in the newly released “Scary Movie 6.”
Growing up in a household with 10 siblings, both men often entertained their family with homemade sketches and impersonations.
Shawn admitted most of the routines flopped, but one joke ended up on a national television show.
Shawn and Marlon appeared on “The View” last week to talk about their family’s legacy and the creation of “Scary Movie 6.”
“The Wayans Bros.” stars talked about growing up watching their famous older brothers excel in Hollywood.
The younger brothers brought up other characters they created, such as Marlon’s Oswald Bates.
“We used to do sketches and impersonations of people when they would come home from California, trying to make it in Hollywood, and they would come home to visit,” Shawn shared. “Most of the time, we bombed in front of them.”
Big brother Damon Wayans found the bit so funny that he paid Marlon a small fee.
“I remember Damon paid me $5 because he wanted to do a character based on a guy in my neighborhood named Oswald Bates. That became Oswald Bates on ‘The [In Living Color]’ show,” Marlon explained.
“He was self-educated [man in] prison, so he would use a lot of big words like ‘philanthropical’ and ‘biological’ and other extra words. And so Damon was like, ‘That’s funny.’”
Funniest throwback clip of Damon Wayans playing Oswald Bates on The Living in Color. pic.twitter.com/VCZtlNF3MC
— Restore World Order (@RW0Media) February 28, 2024
Marlon’s $5 joke became one of the most memorable on “In Living Color,” portrayed by Damon.
Looking back, he said the payment may sound small now, but to a child, the money felt like a fortune back then.
“For five dollars, you know how much candy I bought for that? That’s a million dollars for a 5-year-old,” Marlon joked.
He admitted that Damon still has the Homie the Clown character costume and clown shoes.
“Damon actually sits around his house like that all the time,” Marlon joked. “When his grandkids come ask him for money, he hits them with a sock. Goes, ‘Homie Don’t Play that.’”
When asked about a reboot show, Shawn jumped in to shut down that line of questioning. “That’s a Keenen Ivory Wayans and a Damon Wayans conversation,” he said.
He said he’d much rather do a funny hour-long special with the original cast. This includes their sister Kim Wayans, Jamie Foxx, David Alan Grier, Jim Carrey, Tommy Davidson, Kelly Coffield Park, and Jennifer Lopez and Rosie Perez as background dancers.
Created by Keenen Ivory Wayans, In Living Color aired from 1990 to 1994 and became a cultural phenomenon that helped launch the careers of several comedy and pop culture stars.
‘In Living Color’ premiered on Fox, April 15, 1990. The show was created, written and starred Keenen Ivory Wayans. The show would air from 1990 to 1994 and cast members included his siblings Kim, Damon, Shawn and Marlon as well as Jamie Foxx, Jim Carey, Tommy Davidson, David Alan… pic.twitter.com/KdI1TpnH2j
— Ave (@SebastianAvenue) April 15, 2026
Marlon described the sketch comedy series as a creative “playground” where performers were encouraged to improvise and develop their own ideas.
Marlon previously credited his older brothers, particularly Keenen Ivory Wayans and Damon Wayans, with helping launch or elevate the careers of several entertainers.
In 2024, Marlon said Jim Carrey was struggling after his sitcom “The Duck Factory” was canceled.
“Hollywood didn’t want him no more,” Marlon recalled on the “Club Shay Shay” podcast. “They were cold on him… The network didn’t want him.”
Damon, who had worked with Carrey before, urged Keenen to give him a shot. After seeing him audition, Keenen immediately recognized his talent and brought him onto the show.
“Damon was like ‘Yo, Keenen … you got to trust me, this white boy is funny. He’s like Silly Putty; he twists himself up,’” Marlon remembered.
He said that freedom helped Carrey create some of his most memorable characters, including the facial expression that later became Fire Marshal Bill.
@sloanemerow Jim Carrey was UNHINGED on “In Living Color” #JimCarrey #InLivingColor #90sComedy #ComedyLegend #IconicMoments ♬ original sound – sloanemerow
In 2019, he credited “In Living Color” as the breakthrough opportunity that opened the door to his movie career, leading to roles like “Ace Ventura” and “The Mask.”
“I had known Damon through the stand-up circuit and we were always kind of clocking each other,” Carrey told the Hollywood Reporter about Damon in 2019.
“He kind of admired what I was doing onstage. He told me, ‘Hey, crazy man, what do you think about coming in to audition for this thing? Come and meet my brother.’”
Damon explained that Oswald Bates often used big words but out of context on “BigBoyTV” in May 2025.
“Anybody else bust out laughing as soon as he said the character’s name lol,” said one person. Others left remarks like “Oswald Bates is insane” and “I am crying.”
That introduction ultimately changed Carrey’s career, and now, three decades later, “The Cable Guy” is getting a second life.
Hulu has ordered a comedy pilot inspired by the 1996 cult classic, with Jake Johnson and Damon Wayans Jr. attached to star and executive produce.
Rather than a remake, the series will reimagine the original story for the streaming era. Johnson will play cable installer Chip Douglas, originally portrayed by Jim Carrey, while Wayans Jr. takes on the role inspired by Matthew Broderick’s Steven.
The next generation of Wayans will star in “Scary Movie 6,” written and produced by Marlon and Shawn.
More than two decades after stepping away from the franchise, the duo reunited with Keenen Ivory Wayans for “Scary Movie 6.” The trio originally exited the series after creative disputes with producers Harvey and Bob Weinstein following “Scary Movie 2.”
