Taraji P. Henson facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Taraji P. Henson
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Henson in 2016
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Taraji Penda Henson
September 11, 1970 Washington, D.C., U.S.
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| Education | North Carolina A&T State University Howard University (BFA) |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1992–present |
| Children | 1 |
| Awards | Full list |
Taraji Penda Henson (/təˈrɑːdʒi/ tə-RAH-jee; born September 11, 1970) is a famous American actress. She has won many awards, including a Golden Globe Award. She was also nominated for an Academy Award, a Tony Award, and six Emmy Awards. In 2016 and 2024, Time magazine named Taraji one of the 100 most influential people in the world. This means she is one of the most important people globally.
After studying acting at Howard University, she started her film career in 1998. She became well-known for her roles in Hustle & Flow (2005) and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008). For the latter, she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. In 2016, she played the brilliant mathematician Katherine Johnson in the movie Hidden Figures. She has also been in other popular movies like Baby Boy (2001) and The Karate Kid (2010). More recently, she starred in The Color Purple (2023).
Taraji has also had a big career in television. From 2011 to 2013, she played Joss Carter in the TV show Person of Interest. From 2015 to 2020, she was the star as Cookie Lyon in the show Empire. For this role, she won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama. She was also nominated for Emmy Awards in 2015 and 2016.
In 2016, Taraji wrote a book about her life called Around the Way Girl. It became a New York Times best-selling book. In 2019, she received a star on the famous Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Contents
Taraji's Early Life and School
Taraji Penda Henson was born on September 11, 1970, in Washington, D.C.. Her mother, Bernice, worked as a manager. Her father, Boris Lawrence Henson, was a janitor and metal worker. Taraji often talks about how important her grandmother, Patsy Ballard, was to her. Her grandmother even went with her to the Academy Awards.
Taraji's first and middle names come from the Swahili language. Taraji means "hope" and Penda means "love." Her family history can be traced back to the Masa people in Cameroon. She has also said that the famous North Pole explorer Matthew Henson was related to her family.
She finished high school at Oxon Hill High School in Oxon Hill, Maryland, in 1988. She first went to North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University to study electrical engineering. But she later moved to Howard University to study drama. To pay for college, she worked as a secretary in the mornings at The Pentagon. In the evenings, she worked as a singing and dancing waitress on a dinner-cruise ship.
Her Acting Journey Begins
Starting Her Career: 2001–2014
Taraji got her acting union card in the early 1990s by working as a background actor. Her first big role was in the 2001 movie Baby Boy. She played Yvette alongside singer Tyrese Gibson.
Taraji has appeared as a guest star on many TV shows. These include Smart Guy, House in 2005, and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation in 2006. In 2005, she starred in the movie Hustle & Flow as Shug. She also sang in this movie for the first time. The song from the movie won an Academy Award.
In 2008, she acted with Brad Pitt in the movie The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. She played Queenie, who was Benjamin's mother. For this role, she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Taraji said that Queenie showed "unconditional love."
She also appeared in two Tyler Perry movies: The Family That Preys (2008) and I Can Do Bad All By Myself (2009). In 2010, she was in the remake of The Karate Kid with Jaden Smith and Jackie Chan. This movie was very popular.
In 2011, Taraji starred as Tiffany Rubin in the TV movie Taken from Me: The Tiffany Rubin Story. This movie was based on a true story about a mother whose son was taken to South Korea. Her acting in this movie was highly praised. She was nominated for an Emmy Award for it. In 2012, Taraji was part of the cast in the movie Think Like a Man. She also appeared in its sequel, Think Like a Man Too, in 2014.
Empire and Beyond: 2015–Present
In 2015, Taraji got a main role in the TV show Empire. This show is about the hip hop music world. She played Cookie Lyon alongside her former Hustle & Flow co-star Terrence Howard. The show became very popular and received great reviews. This role made Taraji even more famous and earned her many awards.
In July 2015, she was nominated for an Emmy Award. She also became the first African-American woman to win the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actress in a Drama Series. In January 2016, she won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Television Series Drama for Empire. She was only the third African-American actress to win this award.
In 2016, Taraji starred in the movie Hidden Figures. This movie was a huge success and won many awards. It was nominated for three Oscars, including Best Picture. The movie also won the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture.
In 2018, she starred in the movie Proud Mary. She played a hit woman whose life changes when she meets a young boy. In March, she was in Tyler Perry's Acrimony. In November, she voiced the character Yesss in Disney's movie Ralph Breaks the Internet. In 2019, Taraji starred in What Men Want. She played a sports agent who can hear men's thoughts. In April 2019, she starred in The Best of Enemies, playing civil rights activist Ann Atwater.
In December 2020, Taraji started hosting a talk show called Peace of Mind with Taraji on Facebook Watch. In December 2021, she played Miss Hannigan in Annie Live! on NBC. Taraji also played Shug Avery in the 2023 movie The Color Purple.
Other Cool Things Taraji Does
Taraji first sang in the movie Hustle & Flow. She sang on the song "It's Hard out Here for a ..." by Three 6 Mafia. This song won an Academy Award for Best Original Song in 2006. Taraji and the group performed the song live at the Oscar ceremony. She also sang "In My Daughter's Eyes" on a charity album in 2006.
Taraji has appeared in several music videos. In 2005, she was in Common's music video "Testify". She also appeared in Tyrese Gibson's music video "Stay" in 2011.
In 2016, Taraji worked with MAC Cosmetics to create her own makeup collection. She also became a spokesperson for their Viva Glam Campaign to help the MAC HIV/AIDS fund.
She has also acted in plays, including Joe Turner's Come and Gone. Taraji started The Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation. This foundation is named after her father. It helps people with mental health issues, especially in the Black community.
In April 2022, President Joe Biden asked Taraji to join the President's Board of Advisors on Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
Taraji's Personal Life
In 1994, Taraji had a son named Marcell. His father, William LaMarr Johnson, passed away in 2003.
Taraji supports People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). In 2015, she was in an advertisement for the NOH8 Campaign, which supports the LGBT community. In late 2017, she started eating a vegan diet.
In May 2018, Taraji got engaged to former NFL player Kelvin Hayden. They later ended their engagement in October 2020.
Taraji is a Christian and believes that acting is a spiritual experience for her.
Awards She's Won
Taraji has won many awards for her acting in movies and on TV. In 2015, she won the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actress in a Drama Series for Empire. She was the first Black actress to win this award. She also won a Golden Globe for the same show.
She has been nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. She has also won Screen Actors Guild Awards, including Outstanding Motion Picture Cast in 2017 for Hidden Figures. Taraji has also received three Primetime Emmy Awards nominations for her roles in Taken from Me: The Tiffany Rubin Story and Empire.
Images for kids
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Henson in 2016
See also
In Spanish: Taraji P. Henson para niños
