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Taraji P. Henson Reveals Her Technicolor Hair Transformation Was a Total Accident
"I guess the universe wants me to be orange," said Fight Night star Taraji P. Henson about her fiery new look.
Actress Taraji P. Henson always steals the show with her captivating performances. Thanks to her bold new 'do, her hair does, too.
Henson, who is currently starring in Peacock series Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist, is totally embracing the Crayola-colored coif, even though the splash of orange, she told the New York Post, was “sort of a fluke.”
The Hidden Figures star talked with the outlet about her latest 'do while checking out designer Jonathan Simkhai’s Spring 2025 show at New York Fashion Week.
“I changed my hair the night before the premiere of Fight Night,” explained Henson. “It was a steady transition.”
RELATED: Meet Peacock's Fight Night Cast And Their Real-Life Inspirations
Taraji P. Henson's Hair Transformation
Fans first caught a glimpse of Henson's initial haircut when she appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, where she discussed attending the Olympics to cheer on Team USA and her role on the Peacock limited series.
“We started with cutting to a longer bob, then we went to a shorter bob,” Henson told the New York Post of her look. “And then by the time I did Jimmy Fallon we cut it again, and by the premiere we finalized the cut. The next time you see me, I’ll be totally bald.”
That was a joke, of course. But going shorter and shorter was an adventure for Henson, who knows her way around hair. Her personal line of haircare products, TPH, “celebrates you as you experiment with your looks.”
But being a carrot top wasn’t part of her and hairstylist Tym Wallace's plan, the actress admitted to the New York Post.
“It’s sort of a fluke. We were trying to go blond, and at about 2 o’clock in the morning when my hair didn’t lift, it kept turning this color,” she said. “I was like, ‘I guess the universe wants me to be orange.’”
Henson ultimately attended the New York City premiere of Fight Night with a fiery orange hairstyle on Wednesday, Sept. 6. Her bold new look was complemented by a similarly daring sequined dress by Retrofete that featured a plunging neckline.
RELATED: The Insane True Story That Inspired Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist
Why Taraji P. Henson loves her Fight Night character Vivian Thomas
Fight Night, streaming now on Peacock, is set in 1970 and is inspired by a massive armed robbery that coincided with Muhammad Ali’s comeback boxing match in Atlanta.
Henson plays Vivian Thomas, the mistress to Kevin Hart’s character, a married small-time hustler known as “Chicken Man.” Don Cheadle, Samuel L. Jackson, Terrence Howard, Chloe Bailey, and Lori Harvey also star.
Henson welcomed the chance to flex her acting chops in a part that was a world away from Katherine Johnson, a brilliant NASA mathematician and devoted mom Henson previously portrayed in Hidden Figures.
“I play a lot of characters who are the heart and soul and the protector,” she said. “[Vivian] kept her heart out of it and operated like a man.”
This quality intrigued Henson, who is an outspoken advocate for women.
“She wasn’t a mother. She had no interest in having children or being married,” she said. “When it comes to women, they expect us to have children. There’s a certain standard.”
See Henson in action on screen, Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist is streaming on Peacock.
