Denzel Washington said to the Hollywood Reporter that he told his daughter her dark skin could hold her back in the entertainment industry. His advice: work harder.
I tell my daughter — she’s at NYU — I say: “You’re black, you’re a
woman, and you’re dark-skinned at that. So you have to be a
triple/quadruple threat.” I said: “You gotta learn how to act. You gotta
learn how to dance, sing, move onstage.” That’s the only place, in my
humble opinion, you really learn how to act. I said: “Look at Viola
Davis. That’s who you want to be. Forget about the little pretty girls;
if you’re relying on that, when you hit 40, you’re out the door. You
better have some chops.”
The 2012 nominations for the Academy Awards were announced today.
As expected, the Help [unfortunately] received several nominations.
'The Help' was nominated for Best Picture. [My first thought was that if it wins, the award acceptance will be like when Crash won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 2006. Right, it's okay if everyone's a little bit racist?]
Tony Award winner, Viola Davis, who was excellent in 2008's Doubt is also nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role.
In the Best Actress in a Supporting Role category is both the outcast Southern Belle from the film, Celia Foote, played by Jessica Chastain, as well as Minny, played by Octavia Spencer. Spencer won a Golden Globe for her role during last week's award ceremony.
It is a shame that Black actresses are still being lauded for roles Hattie McDaniel and Butterfly McQueen mastered in 1939. [See McDaniel's acceptance speech.]
[Not to mention the obvious Oscar snub to Pariah.]
