From playing tennis royalty to former First Daughter Sasha Obama, Saniyya Sidney is making her mark in Hollywood this year.
Sidney portrays Obama in “The First Lady”, which reunited her with “Fences” co-star Viola Davis, who portrays Michelle Obama in the impending Showtime series.
“She was like, ‘Dang girl, you’re not a little girl anymore.’ The last time I saw her, I was 10,” Sidney says. “She was amazing as Michelle Obama. I can’t wait for the world to see it.”
But, she is staying Swiss neutral as her beloved co-stars Will Smith and Denzel Washington are nominated for the same award.
Smith (“King Richard”) and Washington (“The Tragedy of Macbeth”) are both nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role at the 2022 Screen Actors Guild Awards. Sidney starred as Venus Williams alongside Smith in “King Richard” and worked with Washington on 2016’s “Fences”.
“I knew this was going to happen eventually,” Sidney tells ET Canada. “I loved them both so much and they’re both my papas. So I’m rooting for both of them.”
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“King Richard” won one of its four Golden Globe Awards nominations and also has a pair of pending SAG Awards nods.
“Very excited. My heart is so full. This is what I love to do, so this is just the cherry on top of everything,” Sidney says of the film’s awards buzz. “We honestly just texted each other and congratulated each other. We do it all the time.”
Sidney, 15, dishes on Will Smith’s impeccable style at age 53.
“It’s funny because he has the best shoe game I have ever seen in my life,” the young actress shares. “He has this thing where he doesn’t tie his shoelaces. He just keeps it loose.”
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“It’s a style he has. That looks hot,” she continues. “It’s the Will Smith style.”
