Viola Davis

Birth Name: Viola Davis

Nickname/Stage Name: Viola Davis

Birth Date: August 11, 1965

Genres: Action, Drama, Thriller

Occupation(s): Actress, Producer

Years Active: 1992 till Present

Net Worth: N25 million

 

Personal Life

Viola Davis was born in South Carolina, the second youngest of six children, with four brothers and a sister.

The actress got married to fellow actor Julius Tennon in June 2003. The couple adopted their daughter Genesis in 2011.

Davis is a stepmother to her husband's two children from his previous relationships.

Education

She attended Central Falls High School and subsequently enrolled at the Young People's School for the Performing Arts in Rhode Island.

Following her graduation from high school, Davis studied Theater at Rhode Island College and also attended the Julliard School for four years.

Career

The actress got her first professional role in 1992 in an off Broadway production of William Shakespeare's As You Like It.

Her first screen performance was in the film The Substance of Fire (1996) where she played a nurse who passes a vial of blood.

In the early 2000s, Davis appeared in numerous films including Traffic and Syriana. In 2010, she had a minor role in Knight and Day and Eat Pray Love.

Other productions she has featured in are The Help, Blackhat, Suicide Squad, The Unforgivable, and The Woman King.

Awards

Screen Actors Guild Award (2011, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2020)

BET Award (2012)

Critics' Choice Award (2012, 2016)

Primetime Emmy Award (2015)

Academy Award (2016)

BAFTA Award (2016)

Golden Globe Award (2016)

Quotes

"We grew up in abject poverty. Acting, writing scripts and skits were a way of escaping our environment at a very young age."

" I can't deal with actors! I can't deal with myself. We're neurotic and miserable... I love doing what I'm doing, but while I'm doing it, I'm miserable."

"The only thing that separates women of colour from anyone else is opportunity."

Trivia

She is one of 10 African-American actresses to be Oscar-nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role.

She was named one of Time magazine's 100 Most Influential People in the World in 2012.

Davis is the first black actress to receive an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for How To Get Away with Murder (2014).

Movies

The Substance of Fire (1996)

Life Is Not a Fairy Tale (2006)

State of Play (2009)

Prisoners (2013)

Suicide Squad (2016)

Ma Rainey's Black Bottom (2020)

The Woman King (2022)