Viola Davis has won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in Fences as Rose, the long-suffering wife of an alcoholic sanitation worker. This is Davis’s first win and third nomination, which makes her the most nominated African American actress in history. Many people believe that Davis should have been nominated in the lead actress category, although others say that this category is more fitting for her as Denzel Washington was the lead in Fences. Davis was expected to be a shoe-in given her strong and moving performance and I’m so happy to see her win. She gave an incredibly moving acceptance speech that moved me to tears, but I guess I would expect nothing less from Viola she’s a force of nature. Here’s part of her speech.
There’s one place that all the people with the greatest potential are gathered and that’s the graveyard… exhume those bodies, exhume those stories, the stories of the people who dreamed big and never saw those stories to fruition. The people who loved and lost. We are the only profession that celebrates what it is to live a life. Here’s to August Wilson who exhumed and exalted the ordinary people.
Denzel Washington, thank you for putting two entities in the driving seat. August and God, they served you well… to my husband and my daughter, my heart, you and Genesis teach me every day how to live how to love. I’m so glad that you are the foundation of my life.
I really doubt anyone will top that speech tonight but I’d like to see them try. Congratulations to Viola! I look forward to so much more from her.
YAY VIOLA!!!
*doing happy dance*
+1 <3
I was crying too! She is so incredible and inspiring. She was incredible in fences and deserved this award. And I agree. Denzel was the lead in fences. He had WAY more dialogue than rose. Worth the watch. The monologues in fences are something else.
Congrats, it’s about time!
I was nervous for awhile thinking there maybe an upset. So happy that Viola won tonight. She earned that award. And she looked so gorgeous.❤❤❤
I cried too and I wish she had won in the Best Actress category, but at least she won.
I’m bummed Naomie didn’t win. Viola’s great, but I’m so sick of the ‘it’s their time’ wins. It screws up the awards for years to come.
Naomie gave the better performance in the better film, it’s not her fault Viola didn’t win when she should have for Doubt.
I get what your saying. Sometimes people don’t win when they really should. Sometimes the academy will vote for ones performance over the course of their career instead of their performance in the movie they were nominated for. Other times it can just be a real tough race with everyone giving a great performance.
Viola definitely should have won for “The Help.”
She is so flawless! Lost it when she thanked her parents. That was really beautiful.
Amazing!! Her win was everything I wanted and more.
Although I was torn between Naomie and Viola, I’m so happy for Viola. She was simply wonderful, just wonderful.
Congrats to her, and she looked gorgeous.
My cable box went out and rebooted at the exact wrong time. I missed this, grrr!
“And the Oscar goes to…Viola Davis!” I knew we’d hear that someday! I’m so happy for her. Now she just needs to do something that wins her a Grammy…
“We are the only profession that celebrates what it is to live a life. ” <—HATED that part of the speech. Love Viola, but that just came of so…Hollywood.
She has a real tendency towards that kind of BS, almost every speech she makes includes a bit of that. If she were anyone else she’d be mocked endlessly for it.
I cringed.
UNBEARABLE BVLLSH!T
@ Neha I totally agree. Why did she say that?!
Thank you SO much for saying this. I really admire her work and this was a much deserved award. The speech though…I had serious Hathaway vibes and then wondered how much hate she would’ve gotten had she given that speech. It felt very, drahamatic and theeeatrical which never gives me the warm fuzzies — it does give me 🙄
That was a total WFT statement!! What about the rest of us… we don’t have/celebrate our lives?? We exist to just reflect the glory of actors???? WTF Viola!! Full of ourself, aren’t we???? I am a big admirer of your talent, but your star slipped a few notches for me with this statement.
You live your life. But, as an actress, she lives many others, while exploring their nuances. Calm down. It’s not a big deal. Live your life.
Absolutely. Such fart sniffing.
Go Viola!!!
I’m so proud of her!!!
Oh my God. Emma Stone? For LaLaLand? Compared to the demanding roles of the other actresses in this category? Oh. My. God.
Why do people assume only dramatic roles are demanding?
Her speech..
🤔
Love her tho.
I’m very glad she won, she’s amazing. I didn’t really love her speech though, it was very emotional and I was very touched when she was thanking her parents, but then that thing about acting being the only profession that celebrates what it means to live a life? Not really.
I think Viola meant she is glad she became an artist because she gets to live the life of different people through the characters she plays. It allows her to tell the stories of those who never got a chance to. I don’ t know I hope that’ s what she meant because that speech was iffy and i can see why some folks are annoyed. Viola be ready for some backlash lol. Luv ya!
I get what she was saying but it was really stupid. I’m a historian, and my job is to research and tell the stories of, and give a voice to, the forgotten people in our history. In fact, without historians and writers, actors wouldn’t be able to “celebrate what it is to live a life.”
Still, I’m very happy she won the Oscar, because she’s a brilliant actor!
WOW she looked gorgeous! Very very beautiful, love the hair, makeup, and color of her dress.
I did watch the oscars but Viola deserved it. ❤