Talent certainly runs in Niecy Nash’s family as she revealed that she’s related to fellow actors Sterling K. Brown and Danielle Brooks.
“Both of my COUSINS are OSCAR NOMINATED ‼️‼️ Yes! We are blood related! REAL cousins!” Nash, 53, captioned a photo of herself with Brown, 47, and Brooks, 34, via Instagram on Tuesday, January 23. “I’m so proud of my fam! @thedaniellebrooks @sterlingkbrown I’m rooting for you! 💜🎉💜🎉💜🎉💜🎉.”
Several fans were surprised by the relative reveal. “Wait a minute now…😮 I love this,” one Instagram user wrote, while another commented, “Wow this is a powerful photo for y’all family’s legacy! 🖤🖤🖤.”
On X, another fan joked, “How old were you when you found out that Niecy Nash-Betts, Danielle Brooks and Sterling K. Brown were FAMILY??!! I was today years old😅,” adding, “The talent their bloodline has >>>>.”
Brown and Brooks both became first-time Oscar nominees on Thursday. Brown earned a Best Actor in a Supporting Role nod for his work in American Fiction while Brooks scored a Best Actress in a Supporting Role nod for The Color Purple. Brooks’ nomination marks the only Oscars recognition for the movie musical, which premiered in December 2023. American Fiction, meanwhile, scored a total of five nominations, including Best Picture, Best Actor in a Leading Role for Jeffrey Wright, Best Original Score and Best Adapted Screenplay.
Brown shared his reaction to the news via an Instagram video on Tuesday, revealing he didn’t learn of his Oscar nomination until he plugged in his dead phone. “Thank you to the Academy. For somebody who’s been watching the Oscars their whole life, I’ve never been,” he shared. “I’ve had a few things that have been in contention or whatnot, but this will be my first time actually going to the party and it’s an honor to get the invite.”
Brown went on to note that he and Wright, 58, made history as the first time two Black actors from the same film were nominated for Best Actor and Best Actor in a Supporting Role.
Brooks, for her part, reposted several people’s reactions to her Oscar nomination via her Instagram Story. She also shared a photo of a 2007 newspaper article titled “Local girl seeks help on road to Juilliard school,” which she captioned, “How it started.” In the following Instagram Story, Brooks captioned a snap of her Oscar nod, “How’s it’s going!”
Much like her famous relatives, Nash’s acting chops were recently honored at the 2023 Emmys earlier this month, where she took home the award for Best Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story.
“I’m a winner, baby!” she began her viral speech before thanking voters and her wife, Jessica Betts. Nash also earned a round of applause after thanking herself, stating, “For believing in me and doing what they said I could not do. I wanna say to myself in front of all you beautiful people, ‘Go on girl with your bad self.’ You did that!”
