Ito Aghayere ’12SOA stars alongside Emmy Award winner Patricia Heaton in the new CBS comedy Carol’s Second Act. The series centers around Carol Chambers (Heaton), who embarks on a unique second act after raising her children, getting divorced, and retiring from teaching: pursuing her dream of becoming a doctor. At age 50, Carol is a medical intern and must sink or swim with peers who are half her age.
Aghayere plays Dr. Maya Jacobs, the Chief Resident in charge of Carol and three interns. A type-A, high-achieving disciplinarian, Dr. Jacobs is all business. She’s instantly annoyed because Carol is a chatty maverick who hates authority — and Dr. Maya and her authority are not up for debate.
Ito Aghayere is a proud first-generation Nigerian-Canadian-American who is forever grateful to her parents for supporting her choice to skip out on law school to become an artist. Aghayere began her career on the New York stage and received a 2016 Lucille Lortel Award nomination for her work in Danai Gurira's critically acclaimed play Familiar, directed by Rebecca Taichman. She has originated two roles on Broadway: in Ayad Akhtar's Junk, directed by Doug Hughes, and more recently alongside Janet McTeer in Theresa Rebeck's Bernhardt/Hamlet, directed by Moritz von Stuelpnagel.
Aghayere's television credits include guest roles on series including Instinct, Elementary, Doubt, Braindead, Unforgettable, The Blacklist, Master of None, and Orange Is the New Black. Her film credits include starring alongside Hilary Swank in Logan Lucky, directed by Steven Soderberg.
Aghayere graduated from Duke University with a degree in political science and theater arts. Later, she interned at the White House under the Obama administration in the Office of Presidential Correspondence while pursuing her graduate studies at Columbia University, where she received her MFA in acting.
The series premiered on September 26, 2019 and is currently on the Thursday evening lineup at 9:30 p.m. EST. Watch the pilot here.
