She described the news as “the surprise of my life”.
Viola Davis is speaking out about the shocking diagnosis she received following her 2012 Oscar nomination.
The 61-year-old star spoke to People in an article published October 8 about her past health issues, including “debilitating pain” that seriously affected her well-being.
“I was a new mom. I had just adopted my daughter. I was walking away from my Oscar nomination after Help. So I was working, working, working, throwing myself into the ground,” Davis said.
Viola Davis said she fell ill while in the midst of a 2012 Oscar nomination for “The Help.” Pictured here with actress Octavia Spencer, the film’s director Tate Taylor and George Clooney at the 84th Academy Awards in Hollywood, California in February 2012.
She and her husband, actor Julius Tennon, 72, adopted their only child, Genesis Tennon, in 2011.
Viola Davis, Genesis Tennon and Julius Tennon at the Golden Gala: An evening of excellence before the 82nd edition of the Golden Globes, in Los Angeles, California, in January 2025.
“And then all of a sudden I woke up with flu-like symptoms and an extremely painful rash,” Davis recalled.
She continued: “I mean, I would rate it a nine out of 10. It started on my stomach and wrapped around my back. It left, then it came back with three blisters on my upper back. I was surprised at how painful it was. Hard to lie down, hard to get up, hard to walk. Nerve pain, all that.”
The painful and mysterious symptoms initially made Davis suspect that a venomous spider had bitten her.
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However, a doctor confirmed that she was suffering from something much more common: shingles.
Viola Davis was nominated for “Best Actress” for her role in “The Help.” Although Meryl Streep won the Best Actress Oscar in 2012 for her portrayal of Margaret Thatcher in “The Iron Lady,” Davis won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar in 2017 for her role in “Fences.”
Shingles can affect anyone who has had chickenpox and, in rare cases, people who have received the chickenpox vaccine, according to the Cleveland Clinic. It is more common in people over 50 and those with weakened immune systems.
Some experts have also suggested a link between shingles and increased stress.
The virus causes a rash that often appears in a single strip, with blisters that can be extremely painful.
Shingles can cause symptoms such as fever and headache and lead to complications including persistent nerve pain. The rash may take up to five weeks to completely disappear, although symptoms may subside after a week.
Viola Davis achieved EGOT status in 2023, after winning a Grammy for her memoir “Finding Me.” Pictured here at the Fifth Annual Academy Museum Gala in Los Angeles, California, October 2025.
Davis described the diagnosis as “the surprise of my life.”
“At that point, I felt like I was kind of immune to any illness because I was working out, I was eating right. I felt like I was healthy because I was doing all the right things. And then all of a sudden I got shingles,” she said.
Adding, “I felt like a soldier, and the more I could muster, the stronger I was. I didn’t know that’s not what strength is. Strength is kind of loving your body and being healthy as you get older.”
Viola Davis at the Golden Eve event ahead of the 83rd Golden Globes in Beverly Hills, California in January 2026.
This experience inspired Davis to partner with GSK for its new “Shingles, Actually” campaign. The initiative aims to raise awareness of shingles and encourage people over 50 to discuss preventive measures with their doctor.
Viola Davis walks on the runway during the Le Défilé L’Oréal Paris fashion show as part of Paris Fashion Week on September 28, 2026, in Paris, France.
Stéphane Cardinale – Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images
“I was there for my daughter. I was there for my husband, there for my employees, and I held them all at a higher level of importance than I did, you know? And I felt like that was what defined me as a powerful modern-day woman, that I could kind of sacrifice my life for other people,” Davis said.
Adding, “And that’s not the case for me anymore. I feel like I’m important enough and my body is important enough to listen to it and honor it.”
Viola Davis attends the 2017 Vanity Fair Academy Awards after winning an Oscar for her role in ‘Fences.’
John Shearer/Getty Images
While Meryl Streep ultimately won the Oscar in 2012 for her role in The Iron LadyDavis won an Oscar for her portrayal of Rose Maxson in Fencesagainst Denzel Washington.
The acclaimed star is one of the rare EGOT winners, meaning she has won the Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony awards.
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