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Halle Berry became the first and only Black women in history to win an Academy Award as Best Actress in 2002. An accomplished actress who needs no introduction, she has raised a vital question in the documentary, Number One on the Call Sheet: Black Leading Women in Hollywood. Berry says in the documentary, about her Oscar win:
"It's forced me to ask myself, did it matter?" She adds: "Did it really change anything for women of color? For my sisters? For our journey?"
In the documentary, Berry, who has witnessed every challenge that Black women face when it comes to recognition of their talent in the industry, mentioned that the system is not designed for them. She, however, says at the end all that matters is the art and the impact an actress leaves on people.
"The system is not really designed for us, and so we have to stop coveting that which is not for us," says Berry. "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."
As per Entertainment Weekly, Berry was the seventh Black actress to be nominated in the lead actress category at the Oscars. Before her, there were Dorothy Dandridge, Diana Ross, Cicely Tyson, Diahann Carroll, Whoopi Goldberg and Angela Bassett. According to the publication, in 23 years since Berry's win, only eight other Black actresses have been nominated. The Entertainment Weekly report states:
Only eight more Black nominees have followed in the 23 years since Berry's win: Gabourey Sidibe, Viola Davis (twice), Quvenzhané Wallis, Ruth Negga, and Cynthia Erivo (twice), and Andra Day.
Berry mentioned in the documentary that she had a strong feeling that either Andra Day or Viola Davis would win an award in the Best Actress category at the 2021 Academy Awards. It was the second time when two Black actresses were nominated in the Best Actress category at the Oscars.
"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, and I felt 100% sure that this was the year one of them was gonna walk away with this award," Berry said. "For equally different and beautiful reasons, they both deserved it, and I thought for sure."
The Oscar went to Frances McDormand for Nomadland.
According to Entertainment Weekly, actress Taraji P. Henson also expressed her opinion on Oscars and Black women. The actress expressed her frustation and wondered whether the Academy even sees Black actresses as leads in films?
"I've seen amazing work by Black women in those leading positions, and you can ask Halle — she's pissed off too that she's the only one," the Hidden Figures star said, adding: "I don't think the industry really sees us as leads, you know? They give us Supporting [Actress awards] like they give out candy canes."
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In an interview with CNN, during an episode of What Now? podcast by Trevor Noah, Berry hoped that someday another Black woman would win an Oscar, saying she does feel lonely.
“I hope this year, someone stands next to me. This year, I hope it happens. Because I’m tired of occupying that space alone,” Berry told Noah. “I hope this is the year.”
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