Angela Bassett is a household name whose acting ability captivates any audience. Her understanding of how to completely embody a character has granted her many accolades, including seven Primetime Emmy Awards and one Golden Globe Award.
With over 100 acting credits under her belt, some fans and industry professionals find it almost impossible to believe the Hollywood Walk of Famer has never won an Academy Award and was only nominated one time nearly 29 years ago for her portrayal as Tina Turner in “What’s Love Got to Do with It.”
In an exclusive interview with Essence magazine, Bassett opened about her expectations after receiving her first and only Oscar nomination in 1994.
She remembered feeling as if that moment in her life was a moment that would shift her acting career.
“That’s perhaps when I thought, ‘Okay, I’ve made it’ ” she shared. “But then the phone didn’t ring for a year-and-a-half after that. ‘But I’ve made it,’ I thought. Yes, you’ve made it, but now there are other things to consider.”
Bassett is not the only star in Hollywood whose expectations were not met after being recognized by the Academy.
After her Oscar win in 2002 for “Monster’s Ball,” Halle Berry thought the doors for other Black actresses to win the award would open up right before her eyes. To Berry’s surprise, no other Black actress has been granted the opportunity to stand beside her in the past 20 years.
In an interview with The New York Times, Berry said, “It [Academy win] didn’t open the door. The fact that there’s no one standing next to me is heartbreaking.”
After receiving the “Best Actress” award, Berry even name dropped Bassett as an individual she was dedicating the award to in her acceptance speech .
“This award is for the women that stand beside me — Jada Pinkett, Angela Bassett, Vivica Fox —and it’s for every nameless, faceless woman of color that now has a chance because this door tonight has been opened.”
Although Bassett’s talents may not have earned her an Oscar, her well–deserved flowers have still been given out in other forms of fashion, for she has been deemed the highest-paid Black actress on TV for her role as Athena Grant on FOX’s “9-1-1.”
