Knowing that she wanted to act when she was five-years-old, Saniyya Sidney has put in the work in a short amount of time to become Hollywood’s newest darling.
Ten-year-old Sidney’s career shot off like a rocket with her first project in 2012, The Babysitters. From there, she went on to film five weeks in New Orleans as “Young Kizzy” in Alex Haley’s Roots, immediately forming a bond with director Mario Van Peeples and falling in love with the city itself. From there, it was off to Atlanta where the young starlet was a part of another historic project—Hidden Figures—playing Taraji P. Henson’s daughter.
“She, [Henson], really taught me a lot,” commented in an interview with EURWeb in regards to working with Henson. “[She taught me] how to be fun and let your energy out, and not be nervous.”
Apparently, Henson’s advice worked because from there, the vicarious pre-teen landed another amazing project, starring alongside Hollywood elite—Denzel Washington and Viola Davis as their daughter in Fences. “I’ve been blessed so far with so many things and I wanna thank God for that of course; and, it’s just an exciting and fun process to get to express myself with the word.”
In addition to her heavy-weight film credits, Sidney has also appeared in four episodes of FX’s acclaimed American Horror Story.
What does this young star like to do for fun? Well, in between takes, she loves to sit on set and eat cream cheese with bagels. When not on set, she loves spending time with her family, eating ice cream, and watching Netflix.
In terms of her future, Sidney currently attends a performing arts school and plans to study her craft so that her education can help take her to the next level of her career. In the next five years, she sees herself continuing to be successful doing what she loves. And so do we! To follow Sidney’s journey, check out her Instagram here.
