Halle Berry won an Academy Award for Best Actress in 2002 for her role in “Monster’s Ball.” Now, a good 15 years later, with her win still being on the only time a woman of color won the award, she’s saying it meant nothing.
The kind of attention-starved star — remember when she cradled her food baby on the red carpet? — shared her thoughts on the Oscars and diversity in a Teen Vogue interview at the Cannes Lion International Festival of Creativity. Musing on the #OscarsSoWhite controversy last year, she said “I sat there and I really thought, ‘Wow that moment really meant nothing. It meant nothing. I thought it meant something, but I think it meant nothing.’
“I was profoundly hurt by that,” she continued. “It inspired me to try to get involved in other ways, which is what I want to start directing. I want to start producing more. I want to start making opportunities for people of color.” She says she has “conversations more deeply with Academy members” in an effort to find ways to add more diversity to the Academy.
She also said that, basically, people of color can only win these awards when they’re given the opportunity to produce, which, yeah. “I think black people, people of color only have a chance to win based on how much we’re allowed to put out,” she said. “That says to me that we need more people of color writing, directing, producing — not just starring. We have to start telling stories that include us.”
I love it when Halle Berry says something kind of smart! I am really rooting for her, despite her innately thirsty ways.
Here’s hoping she’s not all talk: as I once said at the ripe age of 16-years-old, you got to take action to get action. I was talking about boys, but it works for diversity, too.
