Interviews
Viola Davis on How She Questioned, Then Embraced, The Help
It's crazy to think that Viola Davis's Oscar-nominated breakthrough in Doubt came only three short years ago, considering how forcefully the theater and film veteran has emerged as one of the more compelling actresses of her generation. As Aibileen Clark, an unassuming middle-aged maid in 1960s Mississippi in Tate Taylor's ensemble drama The Help, Davis wears the emotional toll of the Jim Crow South in her gait and gaze, an everywoman living through one of the most difficult times in America's past. And yet, thanks to the film's origins and the controversy surrounding her role, Davis nearly balked at taking on the "extraordinary" project.
