Fans rushed to defend Angela Bassett after she appeared unhappy about losing out on the Best Supporting Actress award to Jamie Lee Curtis.
Last night's award ceremony was hotly contested, with both Academy Award regulars and newcomers vying for the coveted prizes.
The 95th Academy Awards could be seen as the year of comebacks after Ke Huy Quan won Best Supporting Actor for his role in Everything Everywhere All At Once, and Brendan Fraser won Best Actor for his performance in The Whale.
Eyes turned to the Best Supporting Actress category, as Angela Bassett was nominated for her role in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever alongside Jamie Lee Curtis for Everything Everywhere All At Once, Hong Chau for The Whale, Kerry Condon for The Banshees of Inisherin, and Stephanie Hsu for Everything Everywhere All At Once.
Despite being a household name, this was Curtis' first Oscars nominee and she went on to claim the prize, and much has been said about Bassett's reaction to losing out.
As the rest of the nominees smiled and politely clapped Curtis as she took to the stage, Bassett appeared to remain still and showed very little emotion.
"Angela Bassett's reaction to Jamie Lee Curtis' name being called…you can tell how much that Oscar would have meant to her. she is, was, and always will be incredible. I better see her on that stage SOON," one person wrote on Twitter.
A second added: "It took Angela Bassett 30 years as a Black woman in Hollywood to earn her second #Oscar nomination in her career. Yale grad deserved it for portraying Tina Turner. She doesn't have another 30 to wait. Why have Ariana DeBose up there to announce she lost at the #Oscars? SMH."
Since Bassett has come under fire for her reaction, fans have rushed to defend her with one person stating: "I’m glad she didn’t fake a reaction to entertain idiots telling us how a Black woman should handle Hollywood once again throwing awards at White women. I like Jamie Lee Curtis but she didn’t outperform Angela Basset or Stephanie Hsu."
Addressing the critics of Bassett's reaction, a second person added: "Please shut up. Angela Bassett has been snubbed for an Oscar [for] decades, she’s not allowed to feel or look disappointed?"
A third said: "Good for Angela Bassett not smiling nor clapping. Y’all expect Black women to not only be exceptional, but be happy for other [sic] who get accolades we deserve over and over."
Bassett's performance in Wakanda Forever is undeniably a performance worthy of many accolades, and if she won last night it would have been a landmark moment as the first character from the MCU to pick up an Academy Award.
Having to act happy while feeling disappointed must be tough, especially with the eyes of the world on you.
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