Academy Award-nominated actress Danielle Brooks stars opposite Jack Black and Jason Momoa in the Warner Bros. live-action feature film A Minecraft Movie, which shattered global box office records, earning more than $313 million opening weekend, beating the record previously held by Barbie. 

Brooks earned critical praise starring as the iconic “Sofia” in Warner Bros.’ feature film The Color Purple, directed by Blitz Bazawule. For her performance, she received an Academy Award nomination, a Golden Globe Award nomination, a SAG Award nomination, a Critics' Choice Award nomination, a BAFTA Award nomination, and a NAACP Image Award nomination. Additionally, she received the Palm Springs Film Festival Spotlight Award and the Virtuoso Award from the Santa Barbara International Film Festival. 

Danielle Brooks can be heard voicing the leading role of “Kitty Kat” in the DreamWorks animated feature The Bad Guys 2.  

Danielle starred as "Tasha 'Taystee' Jefferson" in Netflix’s Emmy-nominated series Orange Is the New Black, a role that garnered her two NAACP Image Award nominations for Best Actress in a Comedy Series. She also received the Young Hollywood Award for Breakthrough Actress. 

Brooks stars opposite John Cena on the hit HBO Max series Peacemaker, the spinoff series to James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad movie. 

Brooks starred as the legendary Gospel singer “Mahalia Jackson” in director Kenny Leon’s Mahalia. For her performance, Brooks earned the Actress Award for Television from the Critics Choice Association Celebration of Black Cinema & Television. Additionally, Brooks was nominated for a Critics Choice TV Best Actress in a Limited Series or Movie Made for Television Award, a NAACP Image Award in the Outstanding Actress in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special category, and received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination as a Co-Executive Producer on Mahalia for Outstanding Television Movie. 

On stage, Brooks starred in The Piano Lesson opposite Samuel L. Jackson and John David Washington, directed by LaTanya Richardson Jackson. Brooks made her Broadway debut in the Tony Award-winning revival of The Color Purple, which earned her a Tony Award nomination, a Drama Desk Award, and an Outer Critics Circle Award. She also received a Grammy Award and a Theatre World Award for Significant Broadway Debut. Brooks starred as “Beatrice” in The Public Theatre’s Shakespeare in the Park production of Much Ado About Nothing, directed by Kenny Leon. For her performance, she received the AUDELCO Award for Lead Actress in a Musical, the ANTONYO Award for Best Actor in a Play, Off-Broadway, and a Drama League Award nomination for Distinguished Performance. 

Her feature work includes a leading role opposite Anna Kendrick in Chris Morris' The Day Shall Come, produced by See-Saw Films and released by IFC, and a role opposite Alfre Woodard, Wendell Pierce, and Aldis Hodge in Clemency, which won the Sundance Grand Jury Prize and was released by Neon. Other television work includes a recurring role on Aziz Ansari’s Emmy Award-winning Netflix comedy series Master of None, and guest lead roles on HBO’s High Maintenance and Girls. Brooks' voice work includes Sony’s animated feature Angry Birds, HBO Max’s Close Enough, and Netflix’s Karma’s World. 

Danielle released her four-track EP entitled Four. Brooks co-wrote the songs, including Seasons, which is featured in the series finale of Orange Is the New Black. 

Brooks served as the host of Netflix’s Daytime Emmy Award-winning renovation series Instant Dream Home. For her work, she was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award in the category of Outstanding Program Host. 

Danielle is the co-founder of Black Women on Broadway, which honors the legacy of Black Women’s contributions to the theatre. She serves on the Artistic Board of Urban Arts Partnership, which advances the intellectual, social, and artistic development of underserved public school students through arts-integrated education programs to close the achievement gap. 

Danielle grew up in South Carolina and is a graduate of The Juilliard School.