Insecure 's Jay Ellis: 'I'm Most Proud ... People Who Look Like Me Connect to the Characters I Play'

Derek White/Getty Jay Ellis at CultureCon Atlanta 2022

Jay Ellis is opening up about the most meaningful aspect of his acting career.

The Insecure alumnus spoke with PEOPLE at CultureCon Atlanta on May 7 and shared some of the biggest reasons why his role on the hit HBO show felt truly meaningful.

"I'm most proud of the fact that in all honesty, people who look like me connect to the characters I play," the actor said. "I'm most proud of the fact that people walk up to me, and they are pissed off at Lawrence."

Ellis, 40, credits his work on multiple landmark franchises for his fulfilling journey in acting. "I got to be a part of The Game, which was an amazing experience," he shared. "[It's] one of the first shows, if not the first show, to get brought back because of the fans' support. And then coming to do Insecure, which was obviously magical and just an experience I'll never forget, I feel like I'm the luckiest kid in the world."

Insecure's series finale aired in December 2021 after five years and five seasons on the network. The show has garnered universal praise, especially within the Black community, but Ellis credits the culture for where it now stands among even the Black classics he watched growing up.

"One of the things we've always talked about is it's culture's place to tell us what the show means to the culture, not ours," he said. "We just wanted to tell stories that resonated with folks like us and made people feel like their story was being told. And the rest is icing on the cake."

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Ellis' appearance at CultureCon Atlanta marks his first time at the conference. He sat down in a fireside chat during the event with Imani Ellis, CEO and founder of CultureCon and The Creative Collective NYC, to talk about his latest experience playing Lieutenant Reuben "Payback" Fitch in Top Gun: Maverick — a role that actually has ties to his upbringing.

Derek White/Getty Jay Ellis speaks at CultureCon Atlanta 2022

"One of the things that was super important to me about this film was getting an opportunity to play somebody in the armed forces because it is how I grew up and it was such a huge part of my life going on and off a military base every single day," he said of the movie, out May 27.

The actor also told Imani Ellis that he hopes viewers watch the film and learn about healthy competition, teamwork and how people from different backgrounds can come together to go on a mission, which ultimately connects to CultureCon's mission, too.

"We have three pillars: building a life, driving culture and hustling smarter," Imani Ellis told PEOPLE. "And we really wanted to lean into that hustle because I think that there is so much potential in the creative community."

"In terms of legacy, I really want us to be empowered that we are stronger together, that we really can all pour into the pot," she added of fostering creative community. "And if we don't see it, we can build it. The people will come, Jay Ellis will come, it's possible."

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