In a recent interview, Gabrielle Union recalled how Whitney Houston's death impacted her role on BET's "Being Mary Jane" and influenced her career goals.

Union told The Associated Press that she was cast for the leading role on "Being Mary Jane" on the same day that Houston died. She recalled meeting with executive producer Salim Akil, who previously worked with Houston on the film "Sparkle."

"They had just done 'Sparkle' with her ... and there were so many people in that room and we were having this great conversation about basically my career going this great direction with this great character. ... and you see this other light just literally go out, and you see ... everyone's looking at their phones, you hear people gasp and run out of the room, and it was one of those really life-affirming and life-questioning times," Union said explained.

Upon hearing the news that Houston had died, Akil cancelled the rest of his meeting with Union to honor Houston, Union said, adding that she felt what Akil had done was noble.

"There's a lot of producers who would have kept going," Union explained.

While Union was saddened by the news of Houston's passing, she claims that Houston's death inadvertently challenged her to take more risks in her career and only take on roles that she is passionate about.

"[Whitney's death] just kind of made everyone say, 'What do you want your legacy to be?' And I really doubled down on 'I only want to do things that I care about, that mean something,' she explained. "I felt like a lazy actress. ... You get complacent, and when the checks are coming in it's like, 'Eh, maybe I'll get to challenge myself next week.' The next thing you know years have gone by and you've not really done anything that feeds your soul."

"Being Mary Jane" airs Tuesdays on BET at 10 p.m. EST.

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