Honorary Howard University grad and iconic actress Angela Bassett made history at the 2023 Golden Globes on Tuesday as the first performer to win an award for an acting role in a Marvel film.
She took home the award for Best Supporting Actress in a film for her role as Queen Ramonda in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
Prior to Bassett’s win, only four actors, and no women, had been nominated for a Golden Globe for a superhero film.
This marks Bassett’s second Golden Globe win, as she previously won the award for Lead Actress in a Film, Comedy or Musical for the 1993 Tina Turner biopic What’s Love Got to Do with It.
During her acceptance speech, Bassett spoke about the loss of her ‘Black Panther’ co-star Chadwick Boseman, who died of colon cancer in 2020.
“We embarked on this journey together with love. We mourned, we loved, we healed and we were surrounded each and every day by the light and the spirit of Chadwick Boseman.”
– Angela Bassett, 2023 Golden Globes Acceptance Speech
“We have joy in knowing that with this historic ‘Black Panther’ series, it is a part of his legacy that he helped to lead us. We showed the world what Black unity, leadership and love looks like, behind and in front of the camera” she said.
Bassett and Boseman have a history dating back to 2000 when she received her honorary doctorate from Howard University.
Boseman, who was also a Howard alum, was the student assigned to escort her around the university that day. In an interview on The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon, she said that Boseman reminded her of this encounter during the premiere party for Black Panther. “I couldn’t believe that he held that back from me until this very moment,” the actress said. “While we were shooting, yeah, the entire time. But he finally, he shared that.”
In Bassett’s speech, she also thanked Marvel fans for “embracing these characters and showing us so much love.” “We just made history with this nomination and with this award. It belongs to all of you and all of us,” she said.
According to Variety, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever has generated $767.8 million globally, making it the sixth-highest grossing movie of 2022.
