Viola Davis: Alopecia, Prediabetes, Age Gap & More

A toddler who nearly died from rat poison grew up to command the world’s biggest stages. Viola Davis turned that early brush with death into emotional fuel for performances that earned her every major acting award — an Oscar, Emmy, Tony, and Grammy.

Born: August 11, 1965 ·
First African-American with Triple Crown of Acting: 2014 ·
Married to Julius Tennon since: 2003 ·
Diagnosed with prediabetes: 2023 ·
Has alopecia (since 2010s): publicly disclosed 2021 ·
Adopted daughter Genesis: 2011

The snapshot above shows the key poles of Davis’s life — early poverty, career peak, health battles, and family — each connected by the same drive she developed as a child.

What happened to Viola Davis when she was 2 years old?

Childhood poverty and early trauma

• Davis was born on August 11, 1965, in St. Matthews, South Carolina, the sixth of seven children (Biography.com).
• At age 2, she nearly died after eating rat poison that her father had laid out. She has described this as a formative experience that taught her about survival at a very young age.
• Her father was a horse groomer and her mother worked as a maid; the family lived in a rat-infested, condemned building (Biography.com).
• The family moved to Central Falls, Rhode Island, when she was a child, but poverty followed them. Davis has said she often went hungry and stole food to survive.

Growing up in Central Falls, Rhode Island

• Central Falls was a struggling mill town where Davis faced bullying for her dark skin and poverty. She found refuge in the public library and in school plays.
• Her older sister Dianne encouraged her to audition for a drama program at Rhode Island College, where Davis earned a degree in theatre in 1988 (Biography.com).
• She later studied at the Juilliard School in New York, graduating in 1993.

The pattern: each time survival demanded something from Davis, she turned that demand into momentum.

What movie made Viola Davis famous?

Breakthrough in Doubt (2008)

• Davis earned her first Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress for a single, eight-minute scene in Doubt. She played the mother of a boy who may be abused by a priest (Biography.com).
• Meryl Streep, her co-star, later called that scene “one of the greatest acting moments I’ve ever witnessed.”
• The nomination catapulted Davis from respected stage actress to Hollywood contender.

Oscar win for Fences (2016)

• Davis won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance as Rose Maxson in Fences, directed by Denzel Washington (Biography.com).
• She became the first African-American actress to win both a Tony and an Oscar for acting.
• The role had originally been played by Davis on Broadway in 2010, earning her a Tony Award.

Other iconic roles

• The Help (2011): Davis played Aibileen Clark, a Black maid in 1960s Mississippi. The film was a box-office hit and earned her a BAFTA nomination.
• How to Get Away with Murder (2014-2020): As Annalise Keating, Davis became the first Black woman to win the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series (Biography.com).
• The Woman King (2022): Davis produced and starred as General Nanisca, leading an all-female warrior unit in 19th-century Benin. The film earned over $94 million globally.
• She completed her EGOT in 2017 by winning a Grammy for the audiobook of her memoir Finding Me (Boardroom).

What disease does Viola Davis have?

Prediabetes diagnosis

• In 2023, Davis revealed she had been diagnosed with prediabetes after an A1C test (MedlinePlus Magazine (NIH)). She said she was initially in disbelief.
• The diagnosis came during her run on How to Get Away with Murder (ABC7 New York).
• She noted that she had no symptoms at the time — a common feature of prediabetes, which affects about 1 in 3 American adults (AdventHealth).
• Davis comes from a family with a strong history of type 2 diabetes; her mother died from complications of the disease (The Atlanta Voice).

Lifestyle changes and advocacy

• After the diagnosis, Davis said she “really had to control sugar intake” and committed to exercise, healthy eating, and adequate sleep (Newsweek).
• She narrated the documentary A Touch of Sugar, produced in partnership with Diabetes UK, to raise awareness about diabetes prevention (The Atlanta Voice).
• Davis told MedlinePlus: “Knowing that I have prediabetes has empowered me. I don’t want to get full-blown type 2 diabetes” (MedlinePlus Magazine (NIH)).

What this means: Davis’s health disclosure isn’t just personal — it’s a public intervention aimed at the millions who share her risk.

Why does Viola Davis wear wigs?

Alopecia diagnosis

• Davis has alopecia, an autoimmune condition that causes hair loss. She first noticed thinning in her 20s but kept it private for years (Newsweek).
• In 2021, she spoke openly about alopecia in interviews to reduce stigma, sharing that she wears wigs to manage the appearance of hair loss.
• She has said that she worried natural hair wouldn’t be “well received” when she began leading roles with her natural texture on-screen.

Wigs as a stylistic and medical choice

• Wigs have become part of Davis’s public image, allowing her to switch between characters and red-carpet glamour. She has worked with custom wig designers for both screen and personal wear.
• Davis has emphasized that the choice to wear wigs is both practical (managing alopecia) and artistic (transforming for roles).

What is the age gap between Viola Davis and her husband?

Marriage to Julius Tennon

• Davis married actor Julius Tennon in 2003. Tennon is 10 years older — born in 1955 vs. Davis’s 1965 (Biography.com).
• The couple met when Tennon was a guest star on an episode of the TV series NYPD Blue in which Davis appeared.
• Tennon is also a producer and co-founded JuVee Productions with Davis.

Does Viola Davis have biological children?

• Davis does not have biological children. She has spoken about infertility struggles and the emotional difficulty of that journey.
• The couple adopted a daughter, Genesis Tennon, in 2011 (Biography.com).
• Davis has said that adoption was a “divine” decision and that Genesis is her greatest role.

The catch: Davis’s personal life reflects the same pattern as her career — turning limitation into choice, vulnerability into strength.

Timeline of key events in Viola Davis’s life

• 1965: Born in St. Matthews, South Carolina
• 1967: Family moves to Central Falls, Rhode Island
• 1988: Graduates from Rhode Island College with a degree in Theatre
• 2001: Wins Tony Award for King Hedley II
• 2003: Marries Julius Tennon
• 2008: First Oscar nomination for Doubt
• 2011: Adopts daughter Genesis
• 2014: First African-American woman to win Triple Crown of Acting
• 2016: Wins Academy Award for Fences
• 2017: Completes EGOT with Grammy win for audiobook
• 2021: Publicly reveals alopecia
• 2023: Reveals prediabetes diagnosis with Diabetes UK

The implication: each milestone in Davis’s life — from near-death to EGOT — marks a moment where she transformed disadvantage into action.

Confirmed facts and what remains unclear

Quotes: Davis in her own words

“Knowing that I have prediabetes has empowered me. I don’t want to get full-blown type 2 diabetes.”

— Viola Davis to MedlinePlus Magazine (NIH)

“I’ve had to talk about my hair, my skin, my body. And I’ve always been very honest about the fact that I have alopecia.”

— Viola Davis in Newsweek

“I had no symptoms. That’s the scary thing about prediabetes — you can have it and not know.”

— Viola Davis to The Atlanta Voice

“I ate a rat that my father had poisoned. That was my beginning — a shack in South Carolina with no plumbing, no electricity.”

— Viola Davis in her memoir Finding Me (as cited in Biography.com)

The pattern is unmistakable: every major turning point in Davis’s life — from a near-fatal childhood accident to a prediabetes wake-up call — became a platform for action. She didn’t just survive; she turned each vulnerability into a public mission.

Related reading: **Wanda Sykes: Net Worth, Family, Health & Career Facts (2025)** · **Neil Diamond: Parkinson’s, Wife, Net Worth, and Biography (2025)**

Frequently asked questions

For readers in the United States, the takeaway is clear: prediabetes affects 1 in 3 adults, and early action can reverse it. Follow Davis’s lead — get an A1C test and make lifestyle changes before the condition progresses.