After winning the Golden Globe for best supporting actress and receiving an Oscar nomination for her role in The Help, it’s safe to say that Octavia Spencer is on a roll. Now she’s won Essence magazine’s Black Women in Hollywood award. Spencer will be honored by Essence at a luncheon on February 23rd and will receive the Breakthrough Award.
Alongside Spencer, other incredible honorees will include actresses Paula Patton, for the Shining Star Award, Pam Grier for the Legend Award and Kerry Washington for the Vanguard Award. Grey’s Anatomy creator and executive producer, Shonda Rhimes has also been honored for the Visionary Award.
As awards season continues on, black people in Hollywood are able to shed light on the roles, or lack thereof, given to black actors and actresses. Essence editor-in-chief Constance White wrote, “Black women actors, writers, directors and producers still lack diverse opportunities in Hollywood and, unfortunately, are often overlooked during awards season.”
This is essentially the reason why Essence decided to create the Black Women in Hollywood Awards and Luncheon, allowing for these very talented people to receive the honor and praise they truly deserve.
As part of the Oscar week build-up, Essence.com will be airing a live stream of the red carpet arrivals for beginning at 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and re-airing on the same evening at 9 p.m. The awards luncheon will be hosted at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Be sure to watch and support your favorite stars as they make their way down the red carpet!