Angela Bassett covers the latest issue of Town & Country, mostly to promote her new Netflix limited series Zero Day. She reunites with Robert DeNiro (they worked together in The Score) and she plays POTUS. Angela also talks about her “day job” on episodic network television, her work on 9-1-1, and her thoughts about losing the Best Supporting Actress Oscar two years ago. That’s the part that’s getting the most attention, and let me say right upfront that Angela Bassett can be as mad and as petty as she wants – she was absolutely robbed that year. She’s not even petty about it though, she just expresses her disappointment. Some highlights from T&C:
On her early days: “You’re just trying to find little pieces where you are, little moments of daylight to be able to do this. So no matter how small it was, it was just a joy and a blessing. I wonder if that’s why, when I get the opportunity, whatever opportunity it is, to perform or to be in front of an audience, to me it’s daylight. It’s really… You don’t take it for granted.” She repeats it, this time in a whisper. “Don’t take it for granted.”
She never wanted to play weak women: “All of that, I think, was thrown into the pot that is my life, the gumbo that is my life, and seasoned it, so that my choices were a strong woman who was in control of herself and her situation. So that appealed to me. Gentle is something different. But weak? She never takes command of her situations? That didn’t appeal to me.”
Imposter syndrome at Yale: At Yale she suffered from impostor syndrome, unsure she could compete with the privileged kids surrounding her. “They didn’t have that term for it then. But I felt a little of that. I still do feel that. But you put on a face, and you go, and you do it anyway. Courage is doing it even when you’re scared to do it, right?”Losing the Oscar to Jamie Lee Curtis & the conversation about her visible sadness: She later told Oprah Winfrey that she was “gobsmacked,” both by the loss and the chatter that ensued. “I found it interesting. Interesting that I wouldn’t be allowed to be disappointed at an outcome where I thought I was deserving.” While she may have moved past the episode, she hasn’t forgotten it. “I love applauding people. But in that moment…” She trails off, talks about how she had thought she had put in the work to be recognized, then corrects herself. “No, I have put in: put in the time, put in good work over time. I didn’t think that was a gift. I thought it was a given.” The following year the academy bestowed on her an honorary Oscar.
Her work on 9-1-1: “I never thought about doing a procedural. I never thought about doing a series, really,” Bassett says. But her experience on American Horror Story—the bold storytelling, the quality writing—convinced her that with Murphy at the helm, they could breathe new life into an old format. It didn’t hurt that, at a reported $450,000 per episode, she has also become one of the highest-paid actresses of color in the history of television. And with contemporary TV’s shorter seasons, she still has room for the occasional big screen turn; she’s reprising her role as CIA director Erika Sloane opposite Tom Cruise in Mission: Impossible—The Final Reckoning, due out in May.
I didn’t realize that 9-1-1 made Angela the highest-paid woman of color in TV history. That’s amazing, and it’s amazing for a network procedural. Let me look something up… Mariska Hargitay gets $500K per episode of Law & Order: SVU, and Mariska has been on that show for 20-plus years. So… yeah, Angela is in some rarefied air for television. As for what she says about losing the Oscar… she can feel anyway she wants, as I said. It was awful and it’s horrible to expect Angela to put on a happy face after losing to THAT performance. Anyway, I’m glad that Angela stays booked and busy. She and her husband Courtney B. Vance deserve the world.
Cover courtesy of T&C, additional photos courtesy of Avalon Red.
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- 08 February 2024 – Hollywood, California – Angela Bassett. Los Angeles Premiere Of National Geographic Documentary Series Queens at Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.,Image: 844917789, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: imago is entitled to issue a simple usage license at the time of provision. Personality and trademark rights as well as copyright laws regarding art-works shown must be observed. Commercial use at your own risk., Model Release: no, Credit line: IMAGO/AdMedia/Starface/Avalon
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- INGLEWOOD, LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, USA – AUGUST 15: Angela Bassett arrives at the Intuit Dome Grand Opening – Ribbon Cutting Ceremony And Red Carpet held at the Intuit Dome on August 15, 2024 in Inglewood, Los Angeles, California, United States.,Image: 899225846, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Pictured: Angela Bassett, Credit line: Xavier Collin/Image Press Agency/Avalon
She should’ve won thirty years ago!!!
Yep! I first saw her in Strange Days and I’d have even nominated her for that.
She was AWESOME.
Agreed, Monica.
Controversial opinion, but why care about whether ppl who dont look like her, and who very well may not like her, give her an award? I see ppl rave about awards and grammy and oscars. The value system is skewed. As I mentioned, my husband is a musician and grammy nominated. never won. Does he care? Nope. Why do ppl let “awards” define them?
Are you a BW? If you are not I find it interesting you would pose this to a BW. AB has been around for along time. Do you know what it’s like to work so hard only to get half as far as your white counterparts? It’s not about defining, it’s about being tired of not being seen. People dared to rag on her because she wasn’t smiling when she lost to someone else. Also, winning those awards can make a difference in terms of getting other roles or financing for your next movie. It seems Demi Moore is allowed to be disappointed that she didn’t win but AB again gets questioned about her disappointment.
The number of logical fallacies present in this “controversial opinion” are impressive. But, we still see you.
Like it or not, the Academy Awards *are* the highest — be it often questionable — honors the movie industry hands out.
Nothing else comes close — no SAGs, César, BAFTA, Silberner Bär.
So to lose this, as a Black woman who are woefully under-nominated anyway, to an at best mediocre performance by a *white* woman? AB is right to be p¡ssed off, angry, hurt.
Still much classier about it though than many white actors who missed out.
I’m not trying to “pile on” but I just wanted to add that, from what little I know about the entertainment business, winning a coveted award can also affect how much money a performer (or technician) gets in their subsequent projects. So, there’s a financial aspect to it too.
Really? Would you say that about her time at Yale too? When she was breaking barriers and feeling — and being made to feel — out of place? Why would she — or anyone? — care about whether “ppl who don’t look like her and who very well may not like her” have the courage to acknowledge her skills and her abilities and her brilliance fairly? “Fairly” — in the sense of using the same standards that these people use to judge their own abilities and skills. Yeah, the value system IS skewed. But why do people convince themselves that such awards from people who “should” be peers and mentors don’t matter? I’d argue that deliberately locking SOME people out of awards and honors actually shows how very much they do and can matter — in prestige, in professional recognition, and in power. Such things don’t have to matter to your husband @AlexandraS, but pretending that the don’t matter at all, ever, even a tiny tiny bit in the wider world is a lapse in reality.
My parents attended racially segregated schools. Actually, so did I. There were some advantages to that. There are also advantages to having a bigger, better resourced set of opportunities to utilize when you make your way in the world. It’s good to have the exposure and courage to recognize what’s actually out there — whatever path you choose to walk for yourself.
I am so applauding Angela for her strength, her courage, and her many many personal and professional accomplishments! 💙
I love that’s she gets that 9–1-1 money and can still do other projects.
They say the best revenge is good living, and $450K per episode is pretty good living. Get that procedural money!
Black women are not allowed to be human. I see nothing wrong with her being disappointed that she didn’t win the Oscar. She was deserving and should have won for What’s love got to with it.
Hear hear! I agree. She really should have won for What’s Love Got to Do With It because she was freaking FANTASTIC in the role, which must have been VERY difficult to play.
Honestly, I thought Stephanie Hsu was the one who was robbed that year, not Angela. Angela was robbed in 1994 she should have won for What’s Love Got to Do With It.
YES! Angela Bassett was robbed of Best Actress from What’s Love Got to Do With It!!!! She was brilliant as Tina Turner. That’s the one I’m still sore about.
It’s not like she ran on the stage, snatched the trophy, and yelled in the mic that she should have won. People are allowed to be human and show emotions.
This. I don’t understand why some people feel such glee when they see sad or disappointed faces of “losers”. It’s OK to feel bad, and I think the artists don’t need to faux smile and clap if they don’t feel like it. As long as they don’t fall into some unhinged rage fits.
The biggest thing that surprises me about this is that after so many years in the business, Angela Bassett thinks awards go to the people that most deserve them.
Sadly cynical, but with a solid ring of truth which brings me back to sad.
I totally agree, and for such a successful actress it’s even more surprising…it’s not like she came out of nowhere without decades of experience of how it all works. FWIW I agree Angela could have won for What’s Love Got To Do With It but only because she gave an incredible performance, not because she “deserved” it (what does that even mean?)
I think it’s possible she thought maybe Oscar’s might overcome a bias they have. I don’t think I have to type out what that bias is. We know what it is.
Even when a much younger actress winds up winning over an older actress that everyone says is going to win the trophy, I still wind up a little surprised. I know it’s going to happen but I still have that initial surprise.
I’ll quote Barack Obama here: “Hope is that thing inside us that insists, despite all the evidence to the contrary, that something better awaits us.”
I’m sure that Angela Bassett would see what you see @KNB. Still, even the most cynical among us can hope for change.
Unpopular opinion, the Academy doesn’t owe any actor/actress anything. How narracistic that Angela Basset feels she deserved the Oscar. Stephanie Hsu had the best acting that year. I think it is this attitude that has kept her from the Oscar.
Obviously, you were not aware of how difficult it is for Black actresses to work in the industry, as they do not have the same opportunities in terms of roles, salaries, and nominations. In 97 years of editions, only one Black actress has won the Oscar for Best Actress, while others have had to settle for the Best Supporting Actress award.
Since she was robbed of her Oscar for What’s Love Got to Do with It, she believed that, given the statistics, this time she would have a better chance in the supporting role category. Marvel carried out an entire promotional campaign to ensure she won this Oscar, precisely by emphasizing that she had been robbed of it before.
I must remind you that this is the same strategy used by Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert Downey Jr or Sandra Bullock. Yet, they were not called narcissistic. On the contrary, all of Hollywood campaigned for them and they won.
I don’t think Bassett or JLC should have won that year. I mean, Bassett was fine in Wakanda Forever but I don’t think she was ROBBED. The three people who were actually robbed in that category were Kerry Condon, Hong Chau, and Stephanie Hsu. Mostly Stephanie Hsu, who was in the SAME MOVIE as JLC and gave the better supporting performance, IMO.
I think it’s totally fine to admit that you wanted to win an award and were disappointed in not winning. Who wouldn’t be? And of course she’s deserving — that’s what the nomination indicates. But only one person can win, which means there will always be four people who don’t.
Every time a Black actress talks about being underpaid or unrecognized for their work there’s a handful of commenters who let their racism LEAP. I see y’all
Every. Damn. Time.
No surprise there…🙄
A year from now Demi Moore will likely express she was disappointed to lose the Oscar, but I doubt anyone will say she is being narcissistic. If everyone keeps asking you the same thing repeatedly, your actual thoughts about it are bound to come out.
Timothee Chalamet outright said he wanted to be one of the greats and while he might not have meant that he wanted to win the Oscar specifically, there is a there indication he wants to be associated with prestige and recognized for it. No one found fault with him for that — everyone thought he was cute for saying what he really thinks.
I commented on another article today that had a false headline. The piece you quoted mentioned Bassett is one of the highest paid actresses of colour in history, but then you wrote “I didn’t realize that 9-1-1 made Angela THE highest-paid woman of color in TV history.” I’m starting to wonder how much of the commentary from your site is accurate and why that is? Are you just moving too fast to do research (e.g. the article where it mentioned Trudeau cussed out Trump, and Trump dropped tariffs, when in reality Trump was the one who was unprofessional and tariffs are merely paused – as was widely reported in both of our countries) and in this instance, perhaps you read too fast? Is this because you’re rushing to get stories out?
She is so extraordinary. Such a rare talent and beauty. There is non one like her. She should have won. I’m sorry but Jamie Lee Curtis does not hold a candle to her and I could bot believe she won the oscar that year. (And I love Jamie Lee Curtis)