Viola Davis lets daughter cosplay but only if she wears her natural hair
Mia Russell
Updated on March 10, 2026
I think Viola Davis is a gifted performer and I love watching her in any role. But she’s also a good role model of how to be the best version of yourself. Viola has spoken about the need for different skin tones to be seen on screen and that they are shown just as sexy and desirable as the next. Viola recently spoke about embracing and celebrating wearing natural hair, something she makes sure her daughter Genesis does regardless of who she’s pretending to be. Viola discussed the importance of not wanting what someone else has, but seeing how what you have fits into that aesthetic.
At the L.A. launch for Vaseline’s Cocoa Radiant Body Butter, Davis tells Yahoo Lifestyle that she used to want Oprah’s hair and Diana Ross‘s body. However, she is teaching her daughter, Genesis, not “to grow up wanting someone’s everything.”
This proves to be a bit challenging whenever the 6-year-old wants to dress up as a white Disney princess or comic-book character. But when trying to convince Genesis to wear her natural hair and not a wig, Davis says, “I really push it. I push it.”
As she explains, “I say, ‘You gotta wear your hair exactly the way it is. You can be Wonder Woman, but you gotta be Wonder Woman with your hair. You can be Elsa, but you gotta be Elsa with your hair.’”
The 52-year-old star reinforces this message with illustrated children’s books, such as I Love My Cotton Candy Hair and I Like Myself!, that paint positive images of young black girls with kinky tendrils and brown skin.
“You can do all of that stuff if you start with the palette of loving who you are,” says Davis.
Do we have any needlepointers? Because I need “You can do all of that stuff if you start with the palette of loving who you are” on throw pillows for every room in my house. I’m white with shoulder-length, slightly wavy, brown hair. I will not pretend that I can understand what it is to be someone other than that description. But I love that Viola is stressing the importance that dress-up should be in outfit alone. Obviously, there is nothing wrong with wigs or wearing hair in different styles as long as a person it doing that for a change up. I believe what Viola is stressing is that when your desire is to hide who you really are, that can cause damage. I am reminded of when Yara Shahidi spoke about wearing her hair natural because it takes up space and she’s been told too often not to take up space. Genesis should take up space. My daughter should take up space. Elsa and Wonder Woman should take up space. We all should start with our own palette.
As far as Genesis goes, it’s clear she’s getting the message. Viola posted this to her Instagram in July and damn, amazing quotes run in the family:
A post shared by Viola Davis (@violadavis) on
Photo credit: WENN Photos and Instagram
