1. Viola Davis in her first role as a nurse in The Substance of Fire in 1996:
Viola now:
1996 vs. now:
2. Gabrielle Union in one of her first roles as Ashli in Moesha in 1996:
Gabrielle now:
1996 vs. now:
3. Idris Elba in one of his first roles as a pizza delivery man in Space Precinct in 1994:
Idris now:
1994 vs. now:
4. Regina King in her first role as Brenda Jenkins in 227 from 1985 to 1990:
Regina now:
'80s vs. now:
5. Samuel L. Jackson in one of his first roles in The Displaced Person in 1977:
Samuel now:
1977 vs. now:
6. Halle Berry in her first role as Emily Franklin in Living Dolls in 1989:
Halle now:
1989 vs now:
7. Denzel Washington as Robert Eldridge in Wilma in 1977:
Denzel now:
1977 vs. now:
8. Angela Bassett in her first role as Salina McCulla in Search for Tomorrow in 1985:
Angela now:
1985 vs. now:
9. Zendaya in her first role as Rocky Blue in Shake It Up from 2010 to 2013:
Zendaya now:
Early '10s vs. now:
10. Jamie Foxx in In Living Color from 1991 to 1994:
Jamie now:
Early '90s vs. now:
11. Lupita Nyong'o as F in East River in 2008:
Lupita now:
2008 vs. now:
12. Will Smith in his first role as Will Smith in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air in 1990:
Will now:
1990 vs. now:
13. Don Cheadle in one of his first roles as Elliott Washburn in Hamburger Hill in 1987:
Don now:
1987 vs. now:
14. Octavia Spencer in her first role as Nurse Annette in A Time To Kill in 1996:
Octavia now:
1996 vs. now:
15. Tracee Ellis Ross in her first role as Kiki in Far Harbor in 1996:
Tracee now:
1996 vs. now:
16. Laurence Fishburne in one of his first roles as Josh Hall in One Life to Live from 1973 to 1976:
Laurence now:
'70s vs. now:
17. Keke Palmer in her first role as Gina's niece in Barbershop 2 in 2004:
Keke now:
1996 vs. now:
18. Mahershala Ali in his first role as Dr. Trey Sanders in Crossing Jordan from 2001 to 2002:
Mahershala now:
Early 2000s vs. now:
19. And finally, Whoopi Goldberg in one of her first roles as Celie in The Color Purple in 1985:
Whoopi now:
1985 vs. now:
Black History Month is here! Join us from Feb. 1 to Feb. 28 (or all year round) and support our content celebrating the culture.
