Surpassing:'Color Purple' star Danielle Brooks can't stop talking like Oprah: 'I didn't even notice!'

Turns out,Surpassing having Oprah Winfrey as a mentor is just as cool as you imagined.

Take it from Danielle Brooks, who has been side by side with Winfrey promoting "The Color Purple" (in theaters now). In the movie musical, the "Orange Is the New Black" star steps into the volcanic role of Sofia, who refuses to be pushed around by husband Harpo (Corey Hawkins) and inspires friend Celie (Fantasia Barrino) to fight back against her abusive spouse, Mister (Colman Domingo).

Winfrey played Sofia in Steven Spielberg's 1985 original film, and later produced the 2005 Broadway musical. Brooks, 34, first portrayed the character in a 2015 revival, earning a Tony Award nomination.

She's been "holding my hand throughout this process, but also allowing my light to shine," Brooks says. "It's really been a dream. I’m always observing her, to the point my friends will be like, ‘Girl, you’re starting to sound like her!’ You know how Oprah does that big old, ‘I’m Opraaah!’ or ‘The Cooolor Purple!’ I'm just starting to draw out my words longer – I didn't even notice until my friends told me. But hey, if you're going to follow in anybody's footsteps, might as well be Oprah's."

Like Winfrey, Brooks is all but assured her first Oscar nomination for director Blitz Bazawule's "Color Purple," after picking up nods for best supporting actress from the Golden Globe and Critics Choice Awards. She tells USA TODAY about reprising Sofia onscreen and how her husband, Dennis Gelin, helped inform the performance.

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Question: You went through a six-month audition process for this film, after playing Sofia for a year on Broadway. What was going through your mind?

Danielle Brooks: There were moments where it was like, “Why do I have to keep proving myself?” The talent is still there; the voice is still there; I’m not a difficult actor to work with. I didn’t understand it. It wasn’t until someone from my agency said, “They just want to make sure that if they’re taking anybody from other renditions of ‘The Color Purple,’ that they’re really open to Blitz’s viewpoint on the story.” That made sense to me, because there is a nostalgia you hold when you’ve been a part of it. And we already have that as people of color who love this story: You don’t want to touch things that are so perfect in our eyes.

It's been eight years since you last played Sofia onstage. What were you able to bring to the character this time around?

The depth of who Sofia is has grown for me because I’ve just lived more. Having committed myself to someone, I understand the relationship between Harpo and Sofia more deeply: their desperation to keep their marriage intact and fight against the generational curses.

Also, a huge part of this for me was ancestor work and having conversations with people who have gone on: my grandmother, my godmother, a few friends. That helped me navigate the “why” of Sofia, because it’s not only about you. It’s also about the people who (shaped) you and honoring them with this story.

You shared a very sweet video of your 4-year-old daughter, Freeya, seeing "The Color Purple" trailer. Has she watched any more clips or listened to the soundtrack?

She watched me on “CBS Mornings” with Miss Oprah. She’s so proud, like, “I saw my Mommy on TV!” It’s really special, but she’ll keep you humble real quick, too. I said, “How did Mommy look on TV?” She was like, “All right.”

You tried to get her a cameo in the movie, is that right?

We put her in hair and costume and everything. She was really excited. She gets to set, she meets Miss O, she’s all lovey-dovey with Fantasia. It was going great. All she was going to do (in the scene) was go into Fantasia’s arms. But the minute Blitz said, “Action,” she was not having it. She was like, “Don’t touch me!” It was naptime and it just didn’t work, so they had to bring in a little 5-year-old boy. As a mom, I was really sad about it. But I have the pictures to remind her later down the road that she kind of messed that one up! (Laughs.)

As you gear up for the next couple months of awards shows, what are you doing to not get overwhelmed?

I stay prayed up! And what I mean by that is, just keeping my foundation strong: keeping my family close, staying in therapy, watching movies with my daughter. We watched "Candy Cane Lane" yesterday – cheesy movie. (Laughs.) But just going back to the basics and knowing what’s important in life. There’s amazing moments that are happening that I’m journaling about. I just want to remember all the details: how things smell, what people wore.

It’s what “The Color Purple” talks about: passing the color purple in a field and not noticing. I’m trying to notice everything, because this stuff goes by so fast. You can be wanting the awards so bad, and then what happens when it happens? Or when it don’t happen? You just let all of these beautiful moments pass you by? I can't have that. So I’m taking everything in – that’s all I can do.

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