The Powerful Meaning Behind Danielle Brooks' Number 26 Oscars Manicure

"I had to honour that."
Gilbert Flores via Getty Images

Danielle Brooks paid tribute to Black female nominees who came before her with a statement manicure at this year’s Oscars.

The Color Purple actor, who was nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for this year’s ceremony had the number 26 featured on her nails as she took to the red carpet.

Danielle told E! News on the Oscars red carpet (hosted by her fellow Orange Is The New Black alum Laverne Cox) that her crystal studded nail art featured the number 26 for a very important reason.

She said: “I have ’26’ on my nail, because I’m the 26th black woman to be nominated for Best Supporting Actress, so I had to at least honour that.”

Brooks received her first ever Oscar nomination for her role as Sofia in last year’s “The Color Purple,” a musical adaptation of the classic Alice Walker novel of the same name. She has also played Sofia in Broadway productions of “The Color Purple.”

The actor also received nominations for her performance at other award shows this season, including the Golden Globes and the Screen Actors Guild Awards.

Speaking about her recent award show recognition, Brooks told Entertainment Tonight last month that she “could have never imagined it being mapped out like this.”

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