Keke Palmer Recalls Tyler James Williams Pulling Out an AMEX Black Card During a Hangout When He was Just 14
- - Keke Palmer Recalls Tyler James Williams Pulling Out an AMEX Black Card During a Hangout When He was Just 14
Angela AndaloroJanuary 16, 2026 at 10:08 PM
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Vince Bucci/Getty
Tyler James Williams and Keke Palmer in 2009 -
Tyler James Williams and Keke Palmer both enjoyed successful careers as child actors that have continued into adulthood
Palmer, 32, recalls hanging out as teens and seeing Williams pull out an American Express black card
The conversation comes after Williams has denied reports of inflated earnings for his starring role in Everybody Hates Chris
Keke Palmer says that all child stars had a different experience, especially financially.
The actress, 32, chatted with rapper PlaqueBoyMax on a Twitch livestream on Jan. 13, where she shared some stories from her early days of stardom.
One of Palmer's stories involved her hanging out with other child actors, including Tyler James Williams.
"So, Tyler James, when we were kids, it was me, Tyler, a couple of the kids... from kid actor world, we were all together at Universal CityWalk when we were teenagers. We had to be, like, 13, 14,” she began.
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Keke Palmer tells a story about how ‘Everybody Hates Chris’ star Tyler James Williams left her in shock when he pulled out a black card at Universal when they were just 14 years old She also revealed he was making over 200k per episode at the time pic.twitter.com/MqR9J2zrhC
— PlaqueBoyMaxUpdates (@PlaqueReport) January 14, 2026
“We all hanging out, we all kicking it, and we go somewhere… Tyler James, 14, he pulls out a black card. And we were like, 'What the hell is that?' ”
"He was like, ‘It’s a black card,’” she continued. “I just never forgot that moment! Like, 14? 14 with a black card!”
Palmer said that the young actor was making "like, $200,000 an episode" for his starring role on Everybody Hates Chris, noting those higher earnings came with "being on network," compared to her experiences on Nickelodeon as True Jackson, VP.
Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty
Tyler James Williams and Keke Palmer
The comments were particularly notable because in a Complex interview in Oct. 2025, Williams denied the claims about his inflated earnings on the series. When asked about rumors he was making $250,000 an episode, he flat out denied it.
"Stop believing anything you see somebody put in big bold letters on the internet. It’s not correct. I don't even know where it came from. I heard rumors of it years and years ago. That's not how the entertainment industry works. When you first come in on your first show, your quota is really, really low. Thankfully, it's not where it was back in the day, but no, that's not true."
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
