The show may be named after John Cena’s The Suicide Squad character, but Peacemaker cast member Danielle Brooks has been stealing scenes left and right as Leota Adebayo since it premiered. In fact, I would say that her character is the heart and soul of creator James Gunn’s uproarious series, and I would not be surprised if she alone inspired some to get an HBO Max subscription in order to watch it.
If that happens to describe how you became acquainted with Peacemaker, then perhaps you have already seen the following Danielle Brooks movies and TV shows that are available to stream. If the DC TV show is actually how you first became acquainted with the Augusta, Georgia native and Julliard graduate and you would like to explore more of her filmography, please read on. We shall start with the groundbreaking series that first made Brooks a household name.
Orange Is The New Black (Netflix)
A mild-mannered, upper-middle-class woman (Taylor Schilling) is forced to abandon her fiancé (Jason Biggs) and her comfortable lifestyle when she is convicted of a crime she committed years earlier and is sent to a prison where she struggles to relate to her colorful fellow inmates.
Why it’s worth checking out if you like Danielle Brooks: Danielle Brooks shared several Screen Actors Guild award wins for Best Ensemble in a Comedy Series with the Orange is the New Black cast for her breakthrough performance as the silver-tongued Tasha “Taystee” Jefferson on showrunner Jenji Kohan’s acclaimed Netflix original dramedy, which was inspired by Piper Kerman’s revealing memoir of the same name.
Stream Orange Is The New Black on Netflix.
Master Of None (Netflix)
A professional actor of Indian descent (series co-creator and former Parks and Recreation cast member Aziz Ansari) and his friends (Emmy winner Lena Waithe and Eric Wareheim) struggle to navigate life through multiple avenues - from race to romance to religion and more - while living in New York City.
Why it’s worth checking out if you like Danielle Brooks: Speaking of acclaimed Netflix original dramedies, Danielle Brooks also appeared on three episodes of the clever and unique Emmy winner, Master of None, in the recurring role of Shannon, who could actually be described as who Taystee might have become if she steered clear of incarceration and took up a career as a casting agent.
Stream Master Of None on Netflix.
Social Distance (Netflix)
A recently single man trying to stay sober, a dysfunctional family who come together over webcam to honor their recently passed patriarch, a couple who try inviting over a third person to help get through their rough patch, and others struggle through various stressful circumstances that come with living in quarantine in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Why it’s worth checking out if you like Danielle Brooks: Danielle Brooks’ next Netflix original project was the third episode of the extremely timely anthology series, Social Distance as a nurse and single mother who is forced to leave her young daughter home alone and communicate with her via webcams while caring for her elderly patient.
Stream Social Distance on Netflix.
Sarah Cooper: Everything’s Fine (Netflix)
A TV host (comedian Sarah Cooper) struggles to hold her morning talk show (and her own sanity) together despite various stressful circumstances in the midst of...well, 2020, to put it simply.
Why it’s worth checking out if you like Danielle Brooks: In Danielle Brooks’ next Netflix original project with some timely social commentary, she plays a fellow TV host who refuses to do her show because of all the shit going on circa 2020, in Sarah Cooper: Everything’s Fine - a unique comedy special with a dizzying assortment of celebrity guest appearances, which was directed by Brooks’ Orange is the New Black co-star, Natasha Lyonne.
Stream Sarah Cooper: Everything’s Fine on Netflix.
The Angry Birds Movie (Amazon Rental)
A temperamental red bird (Jason Sudeikis) and his fellow, flightless friends (including Josh Gad as the speedy Chuck, and the explosive Bomb, played by Danny McBride) must band together and use their unique skills to defend themselves when their secluded island paradise becomes invaded by strange, green pigs.
Why it’s worth checking out if you like Danielle Brooks: For the first of her many voice acting roles, Danielle Brooks played two characters (the blue jay Olive Blue, and crossing guard Monica) in 2016’s The Angry Birds Movie - the fun, feature-length adaptation of the blockbuster mobile gaming app.
Rent/Buy The Angry Birds Movie on Amazon.
Close Enough (HBO Max)
A stoner couple in their early thirties struggle to cope with issues like raising their young daughter, fighting giant mutant spiders, and other common problems that arise with adulthood while living in Los Angeles.
Why it’s worth checking out if you like Danielle Brooks: One of Danielle Brooks’ more recent and notable voice acting roles is the elderly, retired LAPD officer Pearle Watson on Close Enough - a hilarious HBO Max exclusive animated series that fans of Adult Swim’s programming will love, which also has a number of awesome Regular Show callbacks.
Stream Close Enough on HBO Max.
Clemency (Hulu)
A prison warden (Alfre Woodard, in one of her many roles that should have gotten an Oscar) begins to question her own feelings about capital punishment and the emotional and psychological toll that the job has taken on her as she begins to develop a connection to a young inmate on death row (Aldis Hodge).
Why it’s worth checking out if you like Danielle Brooks: In the same year that Orange is the New Black had its final curtain call, Danielle Brooks gave a stunning performance in another drama about incarceration (not as an inmate, but as the former girlfriend of Aldis Hodge’s death row inmate character) in Clemency - a stark and distressing story masterfully told by writer and director Chinonye Chukwu.
Stream Clemency on Hulu.
Rent/Buy Clemency on Amazon.
Sadie (Amazon Rental)
Disappointed to learn that her father is still not yet coming home from active duty, a 13-year-old girl (Sophia Mitri Schloss), whose personality is largely modeled after her dad’s militaristic perspective, is convinced that she should take action to maintain his position in the family when her lonely mother (Melanie Lynskey) begins dating a new man (John Gallagher, Jr.).
Why it’s worth checking out if you like Danielle Brooks: In 2018, a year before she starred in Clemency, Danielle Brooks appeared in another tense, socially conscious drama - writer and director Megan Griffiths’ dark coming-of-age story, Sadie - as a bartender named Carla who is also friends with the title character’s mother.
Eat Wheaties! (Amazon Rental)
After he is named co-chair of his college class reunion, a geeky man (former Veep cast member Tony Hale) gets on social media for the first time and then uses it to get in touch with actress and filmmaker Elizabeth Banks, whom he claims he was friends with, and becomes the subject of viral mockery as a result.
Why it’s worth checking out if you like Danielle Brooks: Sadie also stars Emmy-winning actor Tony Hale, with whom Danielle Brooks also appears alongside in 2020’s Eat Wheaties! - an inventive, quirky, and endearing dramedy about learning to be comfortable in your skin without needing to prove anything to anyone else, from director Scott Abramovitch.
Rent/Buy Eat Wheaties! on Amazon.
The Day Shall Come (Hulu)
A preacher named Moses (Marchánt Davis), who has developed his own obscure belief system partially inspired by African nationalism, is given a chance to save his impoverished family from eviction by a woman (Anna Kendrick) who, unwitting to him, is an FBI agent conspiring to expose his otherwise well-natured intentions as evidence for incrimination.
Why it’s worth checking out if you like Danielle Brooks: Of all the thought-provoking, socially relevant titles in Danielle Brooks’ filmography, perhaps the absolute funniest (if not the most boldly ridiculous) is The Day Shall Come - a deliciously dark absurdist satire directed by British comedian Christopher Morris of The IT Crowd fame - in which the actress stars as Moses’ wife, Venus Al Shabaz.
Stream The Day Shall Come on Hulu.
Rent/Buy The Day Shall Come on Amazon.
Robin Roberts Presents: Mahalia (Amazon Rental)
A woman originally born in New Orleans (Danielle Brooks) who develops a strong singing talent at a young age grows up to become one of the most renowned gospel performers of her generation, especially after she begins to use her music as a tool in the fight for equality at the height of the Civil Rights Movement.
Why it’s worth checking out if you like Danielle Brooks: Danielle Brooks received an Emmy nomination for her role as an executive producer on Robin Roberts Presents: Mahalia - a powerful biographical drama that originally aired on the Lifetime Network in 2021, and in which she gives an inspired performance as the legendary, titular crooner, Mahalia Jackson, that would also earn her several additional acting nominations.
Rent/Buy Robin Roberts Presents: Mahalia on Amazon.
From Orange is the New Black to Peacemaker and all the stunning titles in between, it is no wonder how Danielle Brooks has made herself into one of the industry’s most acclaimed and versatile talents working today.
