Angela Bassett was in the running for Best Supporting Actress for the role of Queen Ramonda in the 2022 film Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Bassett delivered a career-defining performance as the grieving mother of T’challa and the reigning monarch of Wakanda. It was thought to be a no-brainer that Bassett would get the Academy Award for the role. However, Jamie Lee Curtis won the award instead, for her work in Everything, Everywhere, All at Once.
While Basset was immensely disappointed at her not winning the Academy Award, the actress decided to handle the situation with “grace” for her own sake and the sake of her children. The actress revealed to Oprah her exact thoughts when she lost the award, and how she decided to handle this situation.
Angela Bassett was “gobsmacked” at her Oscar snub
Speaking to Oprah, Angela Bassett talked about how well she thought she handled losing the Academy Award to Jaimie Lee Curtis. Oprah was able, to sum up what fans of the actress were thinking at the time pretty succinctly:
“I just knew your name was going to be called. I was beside myself [when it wasn’t]! We were beside ourselves.”
While a myriad of fans echoed Oprah’s sentiments at the time of the snub, Bassett herself was pretty disappointed at the outcome.
Talking about her initial reaction and how she mitigated it, She relayed:
“I was gobsmacked! I was. I thought I handled it very well. That was my intention, to handle it very well. It was, of course, a supreme disappointment, and disappointment is human. So I thought, yes, I was disappointed and I handled it like a human being.”
Despite the disappointment, however, Angela Basset understood that the loss, while upsetting, did not merit an outward reaction that would paint her in an unsophisticated light. She thought that it was a very human thing to be disappointed, and the situation needed to be dealt with with grace and understanding, despite how heartbroken she was.
It was important for Angela Bassett to handle the loss with grace
Angela Bassett revealed why it was important for her to handle this loss with grace. It was vehemently important for her and her children who were there with her, the actress revealed. She further said:
“There are going to be these moments of disappointment that you’ll experience, but how do you handle yourself in the midst of them? We’re going to smile, we’re going to be gracious, we’re going to be kind, we’re going to party anyway.”
While Bassett might have missed out on an Academy Award for her role, in 2024 the actress received an honorary Oscar at the 2024 Governor’s Awards. She took the time to encourage Black actresses, saying:
“Take comfort knowing that your performances have given hope, offered a different perspective and for others just pure joy in a time of need”
Jamie Lee Curtis won the award for Best Support Actress for her role as Deidrie Beaubeirdre in Everything, Everywhere, All At Once, an IRS inspector who serves the role of a secondary antagonist.
The character is something vastly different from Queen Ramonda in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, but some fans felt that the actress was slighted at the Academy Awards for not receiving a win for her role. However, Bassett herself has decided to treat the situation with poise and class, reveling in the celebrations, regardless of whether she wins or not.
