Heading into last year’s Oscars ceremony, Angela Bassett was feeling confident about her chances of finally winning an Academy Award. The actress had just cleaned up at the Golden Globes and Critics Choice Awards for her her performance as Queen Ramonda in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. However, Bassett did not take home the gold for Best Supporting Actress. The award went to Jamie Lee Curtis for Everything Everywhere All At Once.
Naturally, Bassett handled the loss with poise and grace, and in a viral moment, was a rock of comfort for Austin Butler when he lost to Branden Fraser for Best Actor. Only recently has Bassett opened up to Oprah about the disappointment of seeing another Oscar slip through her fingers. (Bassett was nominated once before in 1994 for her iconic performance as Tina Turner. Unfortunately, she lost to Holly Hunter for her performance in The Piano.)
Via Variety:
“I was gobsmacked! I was,” Bassett responded. “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.”
Bassett said handling the Oscar loss with grace was of the utmost importance “for myself and for my children who were there with me.”
Bassett then delivered some sage advice.
“There are going to be these moments of disappointment that you’ll experience, but how do you handle yourself in the midst of them?” she said. “We’re going to smile, we’re going to be gracious, we’re going to be kind, we’re going to party anyway.”
(Via Variety)
