Audra McDonald, Cynthia Erivo and More Broadway Stars Receive 2026 NAACP Image Award Nominations

A cavalcade of Broadway favorites have been nominated for this year's NAACP Image Awards, which celebrate Black excellence in media. Cynthia Erivo is among the contenders vying for Entertainer of the Year (competing against the likes of Doechii, Kendrick Lamar, Michael B. Jordan and Teyana Taylor) and received three subsequent nominations for her work in Wicked: For Good. First Lady of Theater Audra McDonald nabbed a nomination in the Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series category for her turn in HBO Max’s Broadway star-filled period drama The Gilded Age.

Tessa Thompson, who is set to make her Broadway debut alongside Adrien Brody in The Fear of 13 this spring, was nominated for Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture for her performance in Hedda. Ayo Edebri, who will also make her Broadway debut this spring in Proof, received two nominations: one for Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series for her lauded role on The Bear and another for Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance (Television) for her work on the animated series Big Mouth.

Cedric the Entertainer also received a nomination in the latter category for his voiceover work on The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder, as well as an Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series nomination for starring in the CBS sitcom The Neighborhood. Cedric will be returning to Broadway this spring in the landmark August Wilson play Joe Turner’s Come and Gone, which will co-star Taraji P. Henson. Henson herself received an Outstanding Actress in a Limited Television (Series, Special, or Movie) nomination for her leading role in Tyler Perry’s Straw. The highly-decorated Paul Tazewell will be designing the costumes for Joe Turner and received an Image Award nomination for his spellbinding Wicked: For Good creations.

Broadway veteran Colman Domigo received two nominations for his work on the Netflix series The Four Seasons, both as an actor and as a director. Taye Diggs—who most recently graced the Broadway stage last summer in Moulin Rouge!—received an Outstanding Actor in a Limited Television (Series, Special, or Movie) nomination for starring in the Lifetime original Terry McMillan Presents: His, Hers & Ours. Brian Tyree Henry, a theater alum with Broadway runs in The Book of Mormon and Lobby Hero under his belt, garnered an Outstanding Actor in a Limited Television (Series, Special, or Movie) nomination for his work on the Apple TV miniseries Dope Thief.