Viola Davis
Viola Davis | |
|---|---|
 Davis in November 2010 | |
| Born | August 11, 1965 St. Matthews, South Carolina, United States |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1996–present |
| Spouse |
|
| Children | 1 daughter; 2 stepsons |
Viola Davis (born August 11, 1965) is an American actress.
Known primarily as a stage actress, Davis won a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play and a Drama Desk Award for her role in King Hedley II (2001). She won a Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play for her role in the 2010 production of Fences. She won a second Drama Desk Award for Intimate Apparel (2004). She recently acted as Aibileen Clark in the film adaptation of Kathryn Stockett's book, The Help. Her powerful performance is gaining her much critical acclaim as a dramatic actress.
Some of her notable films include Traffic (2000), Antwone Fisher (2002), Solaris (2002) and The Help (2011). Her eight-minute-long performance in the film adaptation of John Patrick Shanley's Doubt (2008) garnered several honors, including a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.
Early life
Davis was born on her grandmother's farm in St. Matthews, South Carolina, the second youngest of six children.[1] Her mother, Mae Alice, was a maid, factory worker, and homemaker, and her father, Dan Davis, was a horse trainer.[2][3][4] Her family moved to Central Falls, Rhode Island when she was two months old. Davis has described herself as having "lived in abject poverty and dysfunction" during her childhood.[5]
Davis credits in part her involvement in the arts at her Alma mater, Central Falls High School, for her love of stage acting.[6] Davis majored in theatre at Rhode Island College, graduating in 1988; in 2002 she received an honorary Doctorate in Fine Arts from the college.[7] She was involved in the federal TRIO Upward Bound and TRIO Student Support Services programs.[8] While Davis was a teenager, her talent was recognized by Bernard Masterson when, as director of Young People's School for the Performing Arts in Rhode Island, he awarded Davis a scholarship into that program.[citation needed]
She also attended the Juilliard School for four years, characterizing the experience as a "hot mess".[3]
Career
In 2001, she was awarded the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play for her portrayal of Tonya in King Hedley II, a "35-year-old mother fighting eloquently for the right to abort a pregnancy."[9] She has also received two Drama Desk Awards, for her work in King Hedley II and, in 2004, for her work in an off-Broadway production of Intimate Apparel by Lynn Nottage.[citation needed]
Davis appears in numerous films, including three films directed by Steven Soderbergh - Out of Sight, Solaris and Traffic, as well as Syriana, which Soderbergh produced. Viola is also the uncredited voice of the parole board interrogator who questions Danny Ocean (George Clooney) in the first scene in Ocean's Eleven.[citation needed] She also gave brief performances in the films Kate & Leopold and Antwone Fisher. Her television work includes a recurring role in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit; starring roles in two short-lived series, Traveler and Century City (TV series); and a special guest appearance in "Badge", a Law & Order: Criminal Intent episode.
In 2008, Davis played Mrs. Miller in the film adaption to the Broadway play, Doubt with Meryl Streep, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Amy Adams. She was nominated for several awards for this performance, including a Golden Globe and an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.[citation needed]
On June 30, 2009, Davis was inducted into The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.[citation needed]
On June 13, 2010, Davis won the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play for her role as Rose Maxson in a revival of August Wilson's Fences.[citation needed] She is the second African-American woman to win the award, after Phylicia Rashād.
Davis played the role of Dr. Minerva in It's Kind of a Funny Story, a coming-of-age film written and directed by Anna Boden with Ryan Fleck, adapted from the 2006 novel by Ned Vizzini.[10]
In August 2011, Davis joined Octavia Spencer, Emma Stone, Jessica Chastain, and Bryce Dallas Howard in DreamWorks' production of The Help, in which she played the stalwart domestic, "Aibileen Clark." The film was directed by Tate Taylor, and produced by Brunson Green, Chris Columbus, Michael Barnathan, and Mark Radcliffe. Her role has garnered her critical acclaim, and has started buzz for various awards nominations.[11]
Personal life
Davis has been married to actor Julius Tennon since June 2003. She has an adopted daughter, Genesis (born 2011), as well as two stepsons from Tennon's previous relationships.[12]
Filmography
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | NYPD Blue | Woman | Episode: "Moby Greg" |
| 1996 | New York Undercover | Mrs. Stapleton | Episode: "Smack is Back" |
| 1998 | The Pentagon Wars | Platoon Sgt. Fanning | |
| 1998 | Grace & Glorie | Rosemary Allbright | |
| 2000 | Judging Amy | Celeste | Episode: "Blast from the Past" |
| 2000 | City of Angels | Nurse Lynnette Peeler | 19 episodes |
| 2001 | Amy & Isabelle | Dottie | |
| 2001 | Providence | Dr. Eleanor Weiss | Episode: "You Can Count On Me" |
| 2001 | The Guardian | Episode: "The Men from the Boys" | |
| 2001 | Third Watch | Margo Rodriguez | Episode: "Act Brave" |
| 2002 | Father Lefty | ||
| 2002 | Law & Order: Criminal Intent | Terry Randolph | Episode: "Badge" |
| 2002 | The Division | Dr. Georgia Davis | Episode: "Remembrance" |
| 2002 | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Attorney Campbell | Episode: "The Execution of Catherine Willows" |
| 2003 | Hack | Stevie Morgan | Episode: "Third Strike" |
| 2003 | The Practice | Aisha Crenshaw | Episode: "We the People" |
| 2004 | Century City | Hannah Crane | 9 episodes |
| 2005 | Jesse Stone: Stone Cold | Molly Crane | |
| 2005 | Threshold | Victoria Rossi | Episode: "Shock" |
| 2006 | Jesse Stone: Night Passage | Molly Crane | |
| 2006 | Jesse Stone: Death in Paradise | Molly Crane | |
| 2006 | Without a Trace | Audrey Williams | Episode: "White Balance" |
| 2006 | Life Is Not a Fairytale: The Fantasia Barrino Story | Diane Barrino | |
| 2007 | Fort Pit | ||
| 2007 | Jesse Stone: Sea Change | Molly Crane | |
| 2007 | Traveler | Agent Jan Marlow | 8 episodes |
| 2008 | Brothers & Sisters | Ellen Snyder | Episode: "Double Negative" |
| 2008 | The Andromeda Strain | Dr. Charlene Barton | |
| 2003–08 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Donna Emmett | 7 episodes from 2003 until 2008 |
| 2009 | United States of Tara | Lynda P Frazier | Nominated - NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series |
Theatre credits
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Seven Guitars | Vera | Broadway Mar 28, 1996 - Sep 8, 1996 Theatre World Award Nominated - Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play Nominated - Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play |
| 1997 | God's Heart | Eleanor | Off Broadway |
| 1998 | Pericles | 2nd Fisherman/Lychorida/Bawd | Off Broadway |
| 1999 | Everybody's Ruby | Ruby McCollum | Off Broadway Nominated - Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play |
| The Vagina Monologues | Performer (Replacement) | Off Broadway | |
| 2001 | King Hedley II | Tonya | Broadway May 1, 2001 - Jul 1, 2001 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play |
| 2004 | Intimate Apparel | Esther | Off Broadway Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play |
| 2010 | Fences | Rose | Broadway Revival Apr 26, 2010 - Jul 11, 2010 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play |
References
- ^ "Viola Davis’ path from poverty in Central Falls to Hollywood glamour" February 22, 2009, Providence Journal
- ^ Veteran Actors, First Time Nominees
- ^ a b Chats with Intimate Apparel's Viola Davis and New York Newcomer, King Lear's Geraint Wyn Davies from the Playbill website
- ^ "Viola Davis: "The Help" and "Daring Yourself to Dream Big" August 1, 2011, Life Goes Strong
- ^ "Viola Davis Tackles Fear, Shines In 'Doubt'" December 10, 2008, NPR
- ^ A.V. Club Viola Davis interview, Feb. 2009
- ^ RIC to Award 1,300 Degrees at Commencement Exercises, from the website of Rhode Island College
- ^ TVGuide Viola Davis: Biography}
- ^ Truly, Madly, Intimately, September 2004. American Theatre magazine
- ^ Sciretta, Peter (November 30, 2009). "Ryan Fleck's It's Kind of a Funny Story Begins Production". /Film. Archived from the original on June 12, 2010. Retrieved June 12, 2010.
- ^ "Does 'The Help' Guarantee an Oscar Nod for Viola Davis?" from "Time" NewsFeed website
- ^ "Viola Davis Adopts a Daughter, Genesis" October 18, 2011, People Magazine