Acclaimed Actress of stage, TV, and film who won Tony Awards for her performances in King Hedly II and Fences. In 2014, she began starring as Annalise Keating on the TV series How to Get Away with Murder. She won an Academy Award for her supporting role in the 2016 film Fences.
Born in South Carolina, she grew up in poverty in Rhode Island. She graduated from Rhode Island College in 1988 and subsequently attended the Juilliard School.
Her roles in Doubt and The Help earned her both Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations.
She married actor Julius Tennon in June of 2003, becoming stepmother to his two children. The couple adopted a daughter in 2011.
She played a supporting role alongside Terrence Howard in the 2013 film Prisoners.
