Rosie Perez unveils rare change in career direction

Rosie Perez recently opened up about the life-changing moment that set her on the path to Hollywood stardom.

In a new chat with PEOPLE, the 61-year-old actress revealed that if Spike Lee had not given her a big break in Do the Right Thing, she would likely have been “in a lab looking down a microscope.”

“Probably trying to determine which sea urchin is developing,” Perez said. “I’m dead serious — that’s what I was studying in college when I met him.”

Honoring Lee at the Wall Street Journal Innovator Awards 2025, Perez said simply, “He changed my life.”

The actress recalled how a Soul Train talent scout first noticed her dancing at a Los Angeles club and invited her on the show.

Not long after, she attended a big party where Spike Lee spotted her on the dance floor.

“He goes, ‘Hi, I’m Spike Lee.’ And I was like, ‘Who?’” Perez laughed.

Lee told her, “Tonight is fate. You’re going to remember this night. I’m doing a movie, and I want you to be in it.”