Danielle Brooks Needed Physical Therapy, Chiropractor After Arrest Scene in “The Color Purple ”'Took a Toll' on Her

“I ended up having to do that scene over the course of two days for multiple hours a day, and it pulled my back out,” the actress recalled

Danielle Brooks is opening up about how she needed physical therapy after filming one particular scene in The Color Purple.

The actress — who was nominated for a Tony Award for her performance as Sofia in the musical's 2015 Broadway revival — reprised her role in the big-screen adaptation and admitted to IndieWire that filming Sofia’s arrest scene “really took a toll” on her body.

In the film, Sofia is attacked, beaten and later arrested by a group of men after she refused to work as a maid for a racist housewife.

“I ended up having to do that scene over the course of two days for multiple hours a day, and it pulled my back out,” Brooks, 34, told the outlet. “Swinging back and forth trying to get the mob off of me.”

She continued, “Of course, we have an incredible stage combat leader [stunt coordinator Mark Hicks] and his crew were fabulous, but doing it over and over, that really took me out, where I had to do physical therapy and go to the chiropractor for a few weeks to recover while still having to work.”

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Related: Danielle Brooks 'Had to Work Hard' to Get Cast in 'Color Purple' Movie Despite Playing Role on Broadway

Brooks explained that the arrest scene is portrayed much differently in the film compared to the Broadway adaptation, where Sofia’s attack isn’t physically played out.

“When we did the mob scene on Broadway, you don’t even see it. You just see me come down center stage and fall to my knees, and then you’ll see I lift my head up and now I’ve transformed into a new version, a downtrodden, spirit-stolen Sofia, which I can sustain for a year,” she said. “But it’s much different doing [it for real], and having 10 to 15 guys surrounding you and you wanting to put everything in it because you want it to make sense from every angle, to not feel like you phoned it in.”

“I pride myself on being a physical actor,” Brooks explained. “That’s where I live. I love finding how I can use all of my body for the character. I just want to use everything that I can.”

With a role that was so heavy and physically taxing, the Orange Is the New Black alum told the outlet that she credits her Juilliard training for helping her recover and feel like herself after filming.

“I wrote in my journal at the end of it, I was like, ‘After 70-plus days of playing Sofia, I’m completely depleted.’ I was so drained,” Brooks recalled.

“I do credit Juilliard for teaching us how to come out of character, how to not always go to the darkest of places within ourselves, to know when you do go there, that there is a way to pull out that you don’t have to stay there,” she said. “Each actor, you find your own way. And again, mine is taking off that wig right away, putting that hot towel on my face, taking the clothes off, wearing my jumpsuit and my Dr. Martens, getting my swag back, getting my spirit back. That helps me.”

For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on People.