Keshia Knight Pulliam grows into grittier roles

Candy, she said, had gone to college but she made some bad choices, landing her in jail.

"Her life is in a downward spiral," Knight Pulliam said. "I'm kind of happy and bubbly. Candy isn't. But this is a story of redemption. No matter how far you're gone, you can turn it around."

Fortunately for Candy, Perry's larger-than-life Madea takes a motherly liking to her and defends her from abusive inmates in the jail.

Knight Pulliam has had a much smoother life than her character, living in Atlanta since entering Spelman College in 1997 and graduating in 2001. "This feels like home to me now," she said.

Post college, she joined a couple of reality shows, "Fear Factor" and "Celebrity Mole," and has no regrets.

"I don't think reality shows are bad," Knight Pulliam said. "It's about the characters and quality of production."

She also nabbed a few adult acting roles in "The Gospel" and "Beauty Shop." But connecting with Perry made a big difference, said Knight Pulliam, who recalled meeting Perry at a cast party in a Midtown club.

"I spoke to him for just a moment, had a small conversation," she said.

But that conversation left enough of an impression. Soon after, her agent got a call: Would Knight Pulliam like a small role as a sexy con artist in "Tyler Perry's House of Payne" on TBS? That role, intended for maybe an episode or two, stretched out to 40.

She said she enjoyed the experience, though it was different from major network TV. "They work much faster," Knight Pulliam said. "While most sitcoms shoot five days for one episode, Tyler could do it in a day. Fortunately, I was able to jump right in."

"Payne" led Knight Pulliam to the "Madea" film, which featured some less-than-comfortable on-location shooting.

"We actually shot in a seedy area of Atlanta. It was funny. We were doing a scene running down an alley. An actor playing a pimp is chasing me. And there's a real pimp in the alley!"