After Lewis relocated to Los Angeles, she began appearing in television sitcoms, including "Murphy Brown", "Dream On", "In Living Color", "Roc", "Hangin' with Mr. Cooper", and "Friends". From 1992 to 1993 she played Dean Davenport in the sixth and final season of the NBC sitcom "A Different World". She also had a recurring role as Will Smith's Aunt Helen in the NBC sitcom "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" from 1991 to 1996. As regular, Lewis starred alongside Patricia Wettig in her short-lived legal drama "Courthouse" in 1995, playing Judge Rosetta Reide, the first main African American lesbian character on television.