“Growing up, I never thought there was a seat for me, so I’ve decided to build my own table. Come. Pull up a chair...” - Uzo Aduba

Consider yourself invited.

Best known for her two-time Emmy Award-winning portrayal as Suzanne "Crazy Eyes" Warren on Netflix's hit series Orange is the New Black, Uzo Aduba has quickly become one of the most sought-after actors in film and on stage. She can be seen in the new Netflix series Painkiller alongside Matthew Broderick, which explores the causes and consequences of America's opioid epidemic by following its perpetrators, victims and an investigator seeking the truth. She most recently starred in Shonda Rhimes' series The Residence for Netflix, which revolves around a murder mystery involving the White House staff and is based on the NYT best-selling book by Kate Anderson Brower. Her performance earned her an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series.

Aduba welcomes audiences to a more expansive conversation. With depth, humor, and presence, she captures the stage, the screen and the hearts of the audiences. She tells stories that both empower and remind us of our collective importance and need for equal participation in the pursuit of justice for all. The power of her own journey infuses her words and encourages others to find their voices, their identity, and tell their stories.

Acutely concerned on a global and domestic level, it is fitting that Aduba was named Heifer International's first-ever celebrity ambassador to Africa, in 2018. A passionate advocate for justice, the protection of women and the rights of the LGBTQIA community, she is building a table with many seats, voices, hues, and stories.

Her memoir, The Road Is Good: How a Mother’s Strength Became a Daughter’s Purpose, was published in 2024. The book is a coming-of-age story, centered around her family grappling with a master juggling act: being one of a few Black families in their white Massachusetts suburb, she and her siblings were the unexpected presence in whatever school room or sports team they joined. But Aduba was also rooted by a fierce and nonnegotiable sense of belonging and extraordinary worth that stemmed from her mother’s powerful vision for her children, and their connection to generations of family in Nigeria. The alchemy of being out of place yet driven by fearless conviction powered Aduba to success.

The Road Is Good is more than the journey of a young woman determined to survive young adulthood — and to create a workable identity for herself. It is the story of an incredible mother and a testament to matriarchal power. When Aduba’s mother falls ill, the origin of her own power crystallizes and Aduba leaps into a caretaker role, uniquely prepared by the history and tools her mother passed along to become steward of her ancestral legacy.

Deeply mining her family history — gripping anecdotes her mother, aunts, and uncles shared in passing at family celebrations and her own discoveries through countless auditions in New York and her travels to Nigeria — Aduba pieces together a life story imbued with guiding lessons that are both personal and profoundly universal.

More about Uzo Aduba

A formidable talent to be reckoned with, Uzo Aduba is a three-time Emmy award-winning and Tony award-nominated actress whose work spans television, film, and theatre.

Aduba recently wrapped production on both Searchlight’s The Supremes at Earl's All-You-Can-Eat, starring alongside Aunjanue Ellis and Sanaa Lathan, directed by Tina Marbry, as well as the independent comedy/mystery Providence, starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Lily James.

In 2022, Aduba starred in Disney Pixar’s Lightyear alongside Chris Evans, Keke Palmer, and Taika Waititi. The highly anticipated animated film features the origin story of Toy Story’s beloved Buzz Lightyear. Aduba plays Alicia Hawthorne, an LGBTQ+ fellow astronaut of Buzz's whose life and sacrifices shape him into the hero he is known as today. The film was released in theaters on June 17, 2022.

Aduba launched her production company, Meynon Media, and signed a multi-year producing deal with CBS Studios. Under her production company, Aduba produced Marianne Farley’s Frimas. The live-action short tells the story of Kara, who turns to an illegal mobile abortion clinic when she finds herself pregnant in a country where abortion is banned with devastating consequences.

Aduba starred alongside Ron Cephas Jones in Second Stage Theater’s Broadway production of Lynn Nottage’s play, Clyde’s. Aduba was nominated for a Drama League Award and Tony Award for her performance. She also received an Outer Critics Circle Award. The play staged at The Hayes Theater is set in a truck stop sandwich shop, where its formerly incarcerated kitchen staff are given a shot at redemption.

On the small screen, Aduba starred in the Emmy-winning drama series, In Treatment which returned for a fourth season in May of 2021 on HBO. Aduba earned her fifth Emmy® award nomination playing Dr. Brooke Taylor who is at the center of the series, treating a diverse trio of patients while also dealing with her own issues. Aduba also starred alongside Morgan Freeman, Anne Hathaway, and Helen Mirren in Amazon Studios’ anthology series, Solos. The dramatic and thought-provoking seven-part series explores the deeper meaning of human connection, as explored through the lens of the individual. Solos tells unique character-driven stories, each from a different perspective and moment in time.

Aduba was seen alongside J.K. Simmons in the STX film, National Champions. The film is an adaptation of Adam Mervis’s play of the same name which tells the story of a quarterback who ignites a players’ strike to fight for fair compensation, equality, and respect for athletes. Aduba played Katherine, the outside counsel to the NCAA in the Ric Roman Waugh-directed feature. Other film credits include the independent drama Miss Virginia, Beats(Netflix), Candy Jar(Netflix),My Little Pony(Lionsgate and Hasbro), American Pastoral(Lionsgate) opposite Ewan McGregor, Jennifer Connelly and Dakota Fanning, and Sian Heder’s Tallulah(Netflix).

In 2020, Aduba earned her third Emmy® award and second Critics Choice® award for her portrayal of Shirley Chisholm in FX on Hulu’s limited series, Mrs. America. Chisholm not only made history as the first African American Congresswoman but also became the first African American candidate to run for President from a national political party when she launched her unprecedented 1972 campaign. The critically acclaimed and award-nominated series tells the story of the movement to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), and the unexpected backlash led by a conservative woman named Phyllis Schlafly, played by Cate Blanchett.

Previously on television, Aduba finished her celebrated run as Suzanne “Crazy Eyes” Warren in the critically acclaimed Netflix Original Series Orange Is The New Black. Her performance garnered a sweep of awards including the 2016 and 2015 SAG Award for “Best Actress in Comedy,” the 2017 SAG Award nomination for “Best Actress in a Comedy,” the 2015 Emmy® Award for “Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series” and the 2014 Emmy® Award for “Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy.” In addition, Aduba was honored as part of the show’s win in the category of “Best Ensemble in a Comedy” at the 2017, 2016 and 2015 SAG Awards. For her Emmy® wins, Aduba joined Ed Asner to become only the second actor ever to win Emmys® for the same role in the comedy and drama categories. Furthermore, with her SAG and Emmy® honors, she became the first African American actress to win the award in each category. She was also nominated for the 2015 and 2016 Golden Globe Award® for "Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Series, Mini-Series, or TV Movie." The show’s seventh and final season launched on Netflix in Summer 2019.

On stage, Aduba made her Broadway debut in Coram Boy in 2007 followed by the hit musical revival of Godspell in 2011. She discovered her talent for singing at a very early age and became a classical music major at the Boston University School of Fine Arts. Work in theatre quickly followed with critically acclaimed performances at both The Huntington Theatre in Boston and A.R.T. where, under the direction of Dianne Paulus, she won the prestigious Elliot Norton Award for Best Actress in a Play. She made her West End Theatre debut in The Jamie Lloyd Company's contemporary adaptation of Jean Genet's The Maids. Directed by Lloyd, the play also starred Laura Carmichael and Zawe Ashton.

Aduba was nominated for a Helen Hayes Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Play for her work in the Kennedy Center/Olney Theater production of Translations of Xhosa. Other theater credits include Dessa Rose at the New Repertory Theatre, Turnado: Rumble for the Ring at the Bay Street Theater and Abyssinia at the Goodspeed Theatre.

She currently resides in Los Angeles.