Viola Davis’ daughter, Genesis Tennon, to spread her wings in new ‘Angry Birds’ movie

The 7-year-old will debut in the sequel based on the popular video game. But famous mom has some good advice for her as she starts her acting career

(L-R) Julius Tennon, Genesis Tennon, and Viola Davis attend the Premiere of Sony's "The Angry Birds Movie 2" on August 10, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Rich Fury/Getty Images)

She may be just 7, but Genesis Tennon, daughter of Oscar-winner Viola Davis and husband, Julius Tennon, is debuting her acting chops in The Angry Birds Movie 2.

Genesis spoke to Variety at the movie premiere in Los Angeles. While she is not new to movie premieres, thanks to her mom, this one is particularly exciting because she is voicing the character of Vivi in the animated film.

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“Well, I would randomly be like, ‘Oh, I have to go to this event with my mom,’ and then I would pause and be like ‘Hold up, wait a second, it’s about me!’ And I got excited,” Tennon said to Variety, about her role in the film. Other star’s daughters in the film include Gal Gadot’s daughter, Alma Versano, and Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban’s daughters, Sunday Rose and Faith.

Genesis saidher parents weren’t anxious over her acting debut, however they gave her some advice. “No matter what people say, you should keep moving forward,” she said they told her. “So that’s what I’m going to do.”

Sony Pictures’ first “Angry Birds” film, which is based on the popular video game of the same name, grossed more than $350 million worldwide. The sequel stars Sterling K. Brown, Leslie Jones, Eugenio Derbez, Josh Gad, Jason Sudeikis, Bill Hader, and Rachel Bloom.

“I’ve been doing the Spanish dubbing for all the big Hollywood movies — I am Donkey in ‘Shrek.’ I’m Snowball in ‘Secret Life of Pets.’ So I’ve been basically dubbing Kevin Hart, Jim Carrey, Eddie Murphy for my entire life, and this is the first time I do an original voice in English. So I’m very excited,” Derbez told Variety.

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Teen star, JoJo Siwa, also has a voice role in the film, and said she has long been a fan of the Angry Birds game, for which the film is based.

“I played a ton. I played the game all the time. I loved it from the beginning,” she said.

Angry Birds 2 hits theaters on Aug. 13.

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