The character arc of Viola Davis
Born 11 August 1965 in St. Matthews, South Carolina, raised in Central Falls, Rhode Island. Between then and now sit a childhood of real hunger in condemned, rat-infested apartments, a school stage that lifted her out, Juilliard, a Tony, an Academy Award, the first Emmy won by a Black woman in a lead drama role, and the rare EGOT. The line below draws the story so far, in order.
Tap the line to pluck it. Hover or tap any mark for its card. Drawn from the public record of her life; the sources are at the foot of the page.
Who is Viola Davis?
She was hungry and invisible. Now she is heard.
She has written and spoken plainly about a childhood of poverty most people cannot imagine: going to bed hungry, condemned apartments overrun with rats, a chaotic home. In her memoir she describes feeling invisible, a girl nobody expected anything from. What changed the trajectory was a stage: a school arts programme and a talent contest showed her that she could hold a room, and that the feeling could be turned into a life.
She trained at Juilliard, worked for years in theatre and small roles, and then broke through late and hard. An eight minute performance in Doubt earned an Oscar nomination. She won a Tony, then an Academy Award for Fences, and in 2015 became the first Black woman to win the Emmy for best actress in a drama, using the speech to say that the only thing separating women of colour from anyone else is opportunity.
In 2022 she published her memoir, Finding Me, and the following year its audiobook won a Grammy, completing the EGOT that only a couple of dozen people hold. Her line is worth reading for what she says the whole journey was really about: not the awards, but finding the worth in the hungry, invisible girl she used to be, and refusing to leave her behind.
The moments
Viola Davis's timeline.
The 1970s
A childhood of hunger
Setback, and it changed everything. Abject poverty in Central Falls: hunger, condemned and rat-infested rooms, and feeling invisible.
A stage lifted her out
Milestone, and it changed her direction. A talent contest and a school programme showed her she could hold a room.
The 1980s
Let the poverty define her, or the stage
Crossroads, decided.
The paths laid out: chase the craft, taken, or take the safe road out. She has said the journey was about finding the worth in the girl she used to be.
The 1990s
Graduated from Juilliard
Milestone. Formal training, and years of theatre and small parts before the world noticed.
The 2000s
Won a Tony on Broadway
Milestone. A first major award, for the stage that had lifted her in the first place.
Eight minutes, an Oscar nod
Milestone, and it changed her direction. A single searing scene earned a first Oscar nomination and changed the offers.
The 2010s
The record-breaking Emmy
Milestone, and it changed her direction. The first Black woman to win best actress in a drama. She said the difference is only opportunity.
An Academy Award for Fences
Milestone. The Oscar for best supporting actress, after two earlier nominations.
The 2020s
Published Finding Me
Milestone, and it changed her direction. She told the hungry, invisible girl's story in full, and refused to leave her behind.
Completed the EGOT
Milestone, and it changed everything. The audiobook of Finding Me won a Grammy, making her one of very few to hold all four.
The line reaches today still climbing, which is why it is drawn now rather than at the end. What it has set moving is already everywhere: the doors she opened for actors who look like her, and every person who was made to feel invisible and decided to be seen.
Your turn
Every story draws a unique line.
Hers is six decades in and still rising. Yours is already further along than you think, and drawing it takes about three minutes.
Sources
- Viola Davis, Finding Me: A Memoir, 2022.
- The Emmy Awards record, 20 September 2015.
- The Academy Awards records, 2009 and 2017.
- The Grammy Awards record, February 2023.
- Britannica: Viola Davis.