Isaiah says landing the role of Dr. Burke marked the beginning of a new era in his acting career. After playing "the bad guy" for years, Isaiah says he reached a turning point when his character in one movie met his end by being thrown off a roof.

"I realized all the work I have done—30 films—this is the crème de la crème?" says Isaiah. "The metaphor of the imagery of being thrown off and representing hip-hop and all these things… And I just said, 'This is not the truth that I want to represent. And if this is the idea of success for me, then I need to step back and start reevaluating what I want to do.'"