Gabourey Sidibe

Gabourey Sidibe is an American actress, director, and author who achieved widespread recognition for her film debut in the 2009 drama Precious. Her portrayal of the main character earned her nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actress, the BAFTA Award, the Golden Globe Award, and the Screen Actors Guild Award. Her Academy Award nomination made her the eighth Black actress to be nominated in that category.

Sidibe was born in the Bedford–Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York City, and was raised in Harlem. Her mother, Alice Tan Ridley, is an R&B and gospel singer, and her father, Ibnou Sidibe, is a cab driver from Senegal. Growing up, Sidibe lived with her aunt, feminist activist Dorothy Pitman Hughes. Sidibe earned an associate degree from Borough of Manhattan Community College and attended City College of New York and Mercy College. Prior to acting, she worked as a receptionist at The Fresh Air Fund.

Sidibe began acting in 2007, having previously been advised by Joan Cusack not to pursue the industry due to its image-conscious nature. She made her screen debut playing Claireece "Precious" Jones in Lee Daniels's Precious. Following her breakthrough, she appeared in the film Yelling to the Sky as Latonya Williams, the heist comedy Tower Heist in 2011, the satirical drama Seven Psychopaths in 2012, the romantic comedy Top Five in 2014, and the thriller Antebellum in 2020. She also appeared in the 2022 film All I Didn't Want for Christmas.

In television, Sidibe starred in the comedy-drama series The Big C as Andrea Jackson from 2010 to 2013. Beginning in 2013, she joined the anthology series American Horror Story, portraying the witch Queenie in its third season, Coven. She returned to the franchise for subsequent seasons, including Freak Show, Hotel, and Apocalypse, as well as the spin-off series American Horror Stories. In 2015, Sidibe began starring as Becky Williams in the musical drama series Empire, where she was later promoted to a series regular. Her additional television credits include roles in Difficult People and voice work for American Dad!.

Beyond acting, Sidibe published her memoir, This Is Just My Face: Try Not to Stare, in 2017. That same year, she made her directorial debut with the project The Tale of Four, and she later directed the drama/romance film Be Happy, which premiered on Lifetime in 2026. In her personal life, Sidibe was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and underwent laparoscopic bariatric surgery in 2017. She married Brandon Frankel in March 2021, and she gave birth to twin children, a boy and a girl, in June 2024.