Colman Domingo may be a name unfamiliar to some, but the actor is currently stealing the spotlight after getting nominated for the Best Actor category for this year’s Oscar event. He starred in George C. Wolfe’s Rustin as the openly gay Black civil rights leader Bayard Rustin.
Despite not bagging the winning title at the Academy Awards after Oppenheimer’s Cillian Murphy took the honor this evening, Domingo is already a star with a roster of projects lined up ahead of him.
Colman Domingo’s Oscar Nomination Is A Huge Leap Forward
Colman Domingo’s nomination for Best Actor is a huge deal because he is the first Afro-Latino to get a nod for Best Actor and the first openly gay performer to get nominated for playing a gay role in the 21st century. The only other actor who received this recognition was Sir Ian McKellen for 1999’s Gods and Monsters.
Speaking with USA Today, Domingo said of his performance in Rustin: “Being amplified for my work, portraying this incredible unsung hero, has been everything.” When asked what he thinks about his Oscar nomination, the 54-year-old star stated:
“I’m somebody who would like to be the party at all times. I’m walking in to have a great time, to hug on people, to laugh, to enjoy it. And if I lose, I’m the first one clapping and standing for my colleagues.”
The nomination was already a huge accomplishment for Domingo. The actor recalled he and his husband woke up at 5 am to watch the announcement and revealed to Variety:
“When they said my name, he literally laid on the floor. We had a little cry together. It’s unbelievable as someone who has been doing this work for three decades.”
Domingo hopes that this is not the last time an openly gay actor would become the recipient of such a prestigious award, remarking that Hollywood needs more people to tell the stories of gay characters.
The Future Is Bright For Colman Domingo
Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer was the star of the Oscars night after it bagged seven awards. Apart from Cillian Murphy securing the Best Actor win, the epic biopic thriller also took home Best Picture, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor, Best Film Editing, Best Original Score, and Best Cinematography.
Colman Domingo has still many opportunities to get his much-deserved Oscar win in the future. In fact, the actor is currently juggling a couple of projects: the upcoming Netflix thriller series The Madness and Antoine Fuqua’s Michael Jackson biopic.
