With a lack of strong female roles out there for African American women, Aisha Tyler has the distinction having not one, but two films come out in the same weekend. As the summer comes to a close, Tyler will appear in two genres, the comedy film 'Balls of Fury' with Christopher Walken and the revenge thriller 'Death Sentence' with Kevin Bacon.

'Balls of Fury' is an outrageous new comedy. In this secret society, the competition is brutal and the stakes are high. It is the unsanctioned, underground, and utterly unhinged world of clandestine Ping-Pong tournaments. Down-and-out former professional Ping-Pong phenom Randy Daytona (Dan Fogler) is sucked into this maelstrom when FBI Agent Rodriguez (George Lopez) recruits him for a secret mission. Randy is determined to bounce back and win, and to smoke out his father's killer – arch-fiend Feng (Christopher Walken).

In 'Death Sentence', Nick Hume (Kevin Bacon) is a mild-mannered executive with a perfect life, until one gruesome night he witnesses/experiences something that changes him forever. Transformed by grief, Hume eventually comes to the disturbing conclusion that no length is too great when protecting his family. Cast includes Kevin Bacon, Garrett Hedlun, Kelly Preston, John Goodman, Leigh Whannell, Matt O'Leary, Yorgo Constantine, and Jordan Garrett.

With two films coming out, I spoke to Ms. Tyler about her roles in each film and what's next for her.

Talk to me about the character you play in 'Balls of Fury' and why you chose to take the role?

Aisha Tyler: The part I play in "Balls of Fury" is this character called Mahogany and this movie plays homage to a number of fan favorites like Bruce Lee's Enter The Dragon, kung fu and blaxploitation films of the '70s. She's this Grace Jones-esque assassin and the bodyguard of Feng, who's this crime overlord and gun dealer played by Christopher Walken; and the movie is set in the underground world of competitive ping pong and all of them battle to the death. So if someone loses a match, my job is to assassinate them. I took the job because Tom (Lennon) and Ben (Garant) asked me to do the movie and I knew them from Reno 911 and they're incredibly funny guys and I talked to them and just thought that it would be a really funny movie. It's a fun movie to make and everyone in the film were good at what they do and they understand comedy really well and it was a fun film to shoot.

How was it working with Christopher Walken?

AT: It was amazing. It was everything you could imagine and more. He's a legend and just to be that close to someone who is so legendary as an actor was just fascinating and not only that, but he's extraordinary funny and an incredible improviser and he's also very generous. We built these scenes together, which was so exciting. I would come home every night and tell my husband stuff like, 'Chris did this' or 'Chris did that' and my husband would be like, 'Are you kidding? You called him Chris?' and I was like, 'Yep, me and Chris are like that!' Chris will tell stories about doing theater in New York when he was young and he would do a Marlon Brando impression. He just has this sense of humor and also very kind and a real gentleman and it was just so much fun.

Outside of your days on Talk Soup, we haven't seen you display so much comedic skills on films. Was this your chance to display your funny bones for all to see?

AT: After Talk Soup, I did (the TV Show) Friends, which was a great comedic run, but you're right, I've been doing more drama, which has been fantastic for me and I was really excited to sink my teeth back into comedy and do something that was big and broad and fun and something I can stretch myself as a comedian and do the physical comedy as well as dialogue doing comedy in the film and it was so much fun because I have this film coming out which is really big and broad and comedic and then I have a really dark thriller coming out on the same weekend, so it will be great to so my range as an actor and it's always nice to show people that you have versatility.

Speaking of your next film, let's talk about your role in 'Death Sentence'.

AT: 'Death Sentence' is a very dark, intense revenge thriller starring Kevin Bacon and I play a homicide detective named Detective Wallis and Kevin's character loses his son in a violent way and my character has a lot of sympathy for him and is initially empathetic and supportive of what he's going through and slowly realizes that he may be breaking the law and taking it in own hands. My character is torn between her compassion for his character and her obligation to the law. It's directed by James Wan, who created the SAW franchise, and he made this film very edgy, intense and people were talking about it and holding their breathes for the entire 90 minutes. The action in the film is so intense and so real. It's a movie on how violence doesn't solve problems and how an eye for an eye leaves the world blind. It's a thinking man's Death Wish. It's very intelligent and very thoughtful and really fun to watch.

How tough is it to tell folks what films to watch – 'Death Sentence' or 'Balls of Fury'?

AT: I cannot tell them to see one or the other. Go see 'Balls of Fury' on Wednesday and then 'Death Sentence' on Friday. If you love going to the movies, then you can go see a very intense thriller as well as a comedy. There are 2 days in a weekend. 'Death Sentence' is incredibly smart and will get you going with the action. Kevin does an amazing job and James Wan has created a hard core film. 'Balls of Fury' is flat out fun with George Lopez, Christopher Walken, Maggie Q. and the film is non-stop laughter.

'Death Sentence' and 'Balls of Fury' opens on August 31, 2007.