"Did it matter?" - Halle Berry looks back on being the only black best actress Oscar winner

The Catwoman star, Halle Berry, wonders if it mattered or made any difference at all being the first African-American or black actress to win an Oscar in a leading role. Berry is the one and only black actress to bag an Academy Award in the Best Lead Actress category. The renowned American actress is a part of the star cast of Apple TV's latest production, Number One on the Call Sheet, a two-part documentary film released on March 28, 2025.

Directed by Shola Lynch and Reginald Hudlin, Number One on the Call Sheet focuses on the experiences of black artists, primarily actors and actresses, in the Hollywood industry. The first part of the film explores the lead actors, and the second part focuses on the lead actresses.

Halle Berry, who is a crucial part of the film, opened up about how it feels to still be the only black actress to have won an Academy Award, even though numerous incredible and exceptional black actresses in the industry have delivered countless extraordinary performances over the years. Berry won the Oscar for best lead actress in 2002 for her stunning performance in Marc Forster's romantic thriller, Monster's Ball.

In the recently released Apple TV documentary film, the 58-year-old actress said:

"It’s forced me to ask myself, did it matter?"

Berry further asked:

"Did it really change anything for women of color? For my sisters? For our journey?"

In the docu-film, Berry also mentioned that during the 2021 Academy Awards, she thought and, to some extent, was quite sure that a black actress would win an Oscar. The Kidnap actress stated:

"A few years ago, I was at the table with Andra Day, and I was across the room from Viola Davis, and they were both nominated for stellar performances (Day for The United States vs. Billie Hoilday and Davis for Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom), and I felt 100 percent sure that this was the year one of them was gonna walk away with this award."

However, Frances McDormand won the Oscar for Best Actress in 2021 for her performance in Chloé Zhao's drama film Nomadland. Halle Berry also discussed how the Hollywood industry functions and that the system does not always work in their favor. The Oscar-winning actress explained:

"The system is not really designed for us, and so we have to stop coveting that which is not for us. Because at the end of the day, it’s ‘How do we touch the lives of people?’ and that fundamentally is what art is for."

A few more details about Apple TV's brand new documentary film, Number One on the Call Sheet

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The two-part documentary film Number One on the Call Sheet, directed by Shola Lynch and Reginald Hudlin, is currently streaming on Apple TV. The documentary film is currently a hot topic of discussion as it showcases intimate interviews with some of Hollywood's most iconic black actors and actresses, who discuss in detail their experiences and life-changing journey in the American film industry.

Produced by Jamie Foxx, Dan Cogan, Datari Turner, and Kevin Hart, Number One on the Call Sheet features some of the well-established and most successful black actors and actresses like Halle Berry, Cynthia Erivo, Denzel Washington, Dwayne Johnson, Will Smith, Morgan Freeman, Angela Bassett, Idris Elba, Viola Davis, Morris Chestnut, Meagan Good, Marlon Wayans, Taraji P. Henson, Tessa Thompson, Gabrielle Union, Octavia Spencer, and Whoopi Goldberg.

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