Viola Davis Says She ‘Stayed As Black As I Could Be’ While Playing Annalise Keating On ‘How To Get Away w/ Murder’

Viola Davis Says She ‘Stayed As Black As I Could Be’ While Playing Annalise Keating On ‘How To Get Away w/ Murder’

Viola Davis is reflecting on the choices she made while playing Annalise Keating on How to Get Away with Murder.

At The Television Academy Hall of Fame, Davis told PEOPLE, “I’ve done a lot of TV, but that show [HTGAWM] sort of just put me on the map, and I think it’s because I made choices that made Annalise Keating my own. I did not follow the sort of script of what you’re supposed to do being a leading lady on television.”

She added, “I took my wig off. I took my makeup off. I stayed the size I am. I stayed as Black as I could be. And my age… Everything about me was unapologetic.”

Her bold choices paid off. The ABC series ran from 2014 to 2020 and earned Davis the distinction of being the first Black woman to win an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series.

Thoughts?

[VIA]

 

Authored by: Aaron Keenan