Danielle Brooks Bio
Danielle Brooks (born September 17, 1989) is an American actress. After studying drama at the Juilliard School, she earned her breakthrough in television before expanding to theater and film. She has received a Grammy Award as well as nominations for an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, two Emmy Awards, and a Tony Award. Her breakthrough role was as prison inmate Tasha “Taystee” Jefferson in the Netflix comedy-drama series Orange Is the New Black (2013–2019). She made her Broadway debut as Sofia in the musical revival of The Color Purple (2015), earning a nomination for a Tony Award as well as a Grammy Award. She reprised her role in the 2023 film adaptation for which she was nominated for an Academy Award, British Academy Film Award, and Golden Globe Award. She played the title role in the Lifetime film Robin Roberts Presents: Mahalia (2021), earning a nomination for a Primetime Emmy Award as an executive producer. In 2022, Brooks hosted Netflix’s reality series Instant Dream Home and was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Daytime Program Host. The same year, Brooks starred in the superhero series Peacemaker (2022–present) and returned to Broadway in the revival of the August Wilson play The Piano Lesson, for which she received a Drama Desk Award nomination. She is also known for her recurring role in the Netflix comedy series Master of None (2015–2017) and her role in the fantasy adventure comedy A Minecraft Movie (2025).
Early Life and Background
Danielle Brooks was born in Augusta, Georgia, and grew up in Simpsonville, South Carolina, in a Christian family. Her father, Dunnel, is a BMW worker and a deacon, while her mother, LaRita, is a teacher and a minister. She began acting at the age of six in a nativity play put on by her church. For her final two years of high school, she attended South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts & Humanities, a selective arts high school. She is a 2007 YoungArts alumnus. Brooks studied drama at the Juilliard School and graduated in 2011 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts.
Path to Hollywood
After graduating from Juilliard, Brooks won roles in two theater productions: the Shakespeare Theatre Company’s Servant of Two Masters and Blacken the Bubble. She left both productions in 2013 to join the cast of the Netflix-produced television series Orange Is the New Black, a show about a women’s prison, based on Piper Kerman’s memoir of the same name. Brooks played Tasha “Taystee” Jefferson. Her character was originally intended to be featured in the show for only two episodes but was written into the rest of the first season and subsequent seasons. While starring in the show, Brooks still worked a second job due to a low salary. In an interview with The New Yorker, she stated that she was paid less on the final season than the lead child actors made that same year on Stranger Things. Brooks’ performance on the show has been favorably reviewed by TV critics, with one writer calling her “the breakout actress of the show and one of the most refreshing and exciting new talents of 2013.”
Danielle Brooks Career
Early Career (2009–2013)
After her graduation, Brooks began her career in theater before transitioning to television. She made her big screen debut in 2014 with a role in the drama film Time Out of Mind. In 2015, she starred in the comedy-drama film I Dream Too Much. From 2015 to 2017, she also appeared in Netflix’s Master of None. In 2015, Brooks made her Broadway debut in the revival of The Color Purple as Sofia, alongside Jennifer Hudson and Cynthia Erivo. The musical opened on December 10, 2015, at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre. Brooks received good reviews for her performance and was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical.
Breakthrough (2013–2019)
Brooks’ breakthrough role came with her portrayal of Tasha “Taystee” Jefferson in Orange Is the New Black. Her character’s popularity led to her being upgraded from a recurring cast member to a series regular for the show’s second season. For her performance, Brooks received three NAACP Image Awards nominations and won the 2014 Young Hollywood Awards for Breakthrough. In September 2013, Brooks was cast in a third-season episode of the HBO series Girls, becoming the first African-American actress on the show. In June 2019, she played Beatrice in The Public Theater’s production of Much Ado About Nothing, receiving a Drama League Award nomination for her performance.
Notable Works and Milestones
Brooks is best known for her role in Orange Is the New Black and her Broadway performance in The Color Purple. She received a Grammy Award and multiple nominations for prestigious awards, including an Academy Award for her role in the 2023 film adaptation of The Color Purple.
Danielle Brooks Award Nominations
Throughout her career, Danielle Brooks has received numerous nominations for her performances in television and theater, including multiple NAACP Image Awards and a Primetime Emmy Award.
Danielle Brooks Awards Won
Danielle Brooks has won a Grammy Award and received several nominations for her work in theater and television, showcasing her talent and versatility as an actress.
Danielle Brooks Family
Danielle Brooks is married to Dennis Gelin, whom she wed in January 2022. The couple has one daughter, born in 2019.
Personal Life
Brooks announced her pregnancy with her first child in July 2019 and gave birth to a daughter later that year. She married Dennis Gelin in Miami, Florida, in January 2022. Brooks has also become an honorary member of the Delta Sigma Theta sorority.
