Angela Bassett

At 66 years old, Angela Bassett has this physical status:

Angela Evelyn Bassett (born August 16, 1958) is an American actress and activist best known for her film roles, most notable her role as Tina Turner in the 1993 film "What's Love" for which she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Comedy or Musical.

Betty Shabazz in both Malcolm X (1992) and Panther (1995), Kathryn Hughes in Notorious (2009) and Coretta Scott King in Betty & Coretta (2013).

Reva Styles in Boyz n the Hood (1991), Bernie Harris in Waiting to Exhale (1995), Rachel Constantine in Olympus Has Fallen (2016), and King Ramonda in Avengers: Endgame (2019). Bassett began her film career in the 1980s after receiving a bachelor of arts degree from Yale University and a master of fine arts degree from Yale University.

She appeared in films almost every year in the 1990s.

Bassett appeared in a number of films over the years, with her appearance in at least one film each year.

Bassett's success has continued into the 2010s.

Bassett received nominations for her appearances in films including The Score (2001), Akeelah and the Bee (2006), Meet the Browns (2008), and Jumping the Broom (2011), among other things.

Bassett's appearance in the 2002 film The Rosa Parks Story was lauded with her first Primetime Emmy Award nomination. Bassett appeared on the FX horror anthology film American Horror Story: Coven, receiving her second Primetime Emmy Award nomination for her role as Voodoo queen Marie Laveau.

Desiree Dupree, a three-breasted woman for whom she received another Emmy Award nomination, returned to Freak Show, the series's fourth season.

Ramona Royale, a well-known movie actress, was portrayed by actress Deborah Coveney in Hotel's fifth season.

Bassett reprised her role as Marie Laveau in the eighth season of Apocalypse, playing struggling mother and former police officer Lee Harris in the My Roanoke Nightmare film.

Bassett, a Los Angeles police sergeant, started producing and starring in the Fox first responder drama series 9-1-1 in 2018.

Early life and education

Bassett was born in New York City, the daughter of a social worker Betty Jane (née Gilbert), a public servant, and Daniel Benjamin Bassett, a preacher's son. Bassett's middle name was given to her in honor of her aunt Evelyn. Bassett's sister D'nette was born ten months after Bassett's birth, and she had a second child. Bassett said the pregnancy "only made life difficult," causing her parents to take her to her father's sister, Golden, in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Although her aunt did not have any children of her own, she "loved children and was an excellent teacher."

Bassett was picked up by her mother after her parents divorced and then moved with her sister to St. Petersburg, Florida, at the age of four. Bassett did not see her father for many years after she attended her grandmother's funeral. Bassett met her father's daughter from his first marriage, Jean, who was twelve years old at the time, was much older than Bassett. Since graduating from Jordan Park Elementary School, she began being busted out of her neighborhood to attend Disston Middle School for seventh grade. She began in 1970, one year before the first year that busing was introduced in St. Petersburg to integrate public schools. She was admitted to Azalea Middle School in the eighth and ninth grades after completing seventh grade. Bassett's mother became more involved in her daughter's education, notifying her and her sister that they would attend college.

Bassett was "in love" with the Jackson 5 years as a child and wanted to marry a family member of the family association, according to Bassett, who claimed that it would be "whoever had the cutest, roundest Afro at the time." We'll have children and live in a real house in my imagination." Angela and her sister would often put on shows, reading stories, or performing popular songs for their families as their interest in entertainment grew.

Bassett was a cheerleader and a member of the Upward Bound college prep program, student government, drama club, and choir at Boca Ciega High School. Bassett, who earned her first "C" in physical education and attempted to warn her mother that her mother would not be dissatisfied by the grade, was an "A" and "B" student for the bulk. Bassett rated the school "average," leading her mother to state that she did not have "average children" at that time. Bassett wrote, a "sense of pride" arose in her, but she didn't get another "C" until college. Bassett was the first African-American from Boca Ciega to be accepted into the National Honor Society during high school. She was a participant in Upward Bound, an academic and cultural enrichment program for underprivileged students. Bassett claims that she and the other participants did not see themselves as underprivileged.

Bassett earned her B.A. from Yale University and earned her B.A. In 1980, she obtained a bachelor's degree in African-American studies. She obtained an M.F.A. in 1983. Despite her paternal aunt's warning not to "waste" her "Yale education on theater," she earned a degree from Yale School of Drama. She was the only member of Bassett's family to have attended both college and graduate school. Courtney B. Vance, a 1986 Yale drama student, met Bassett, her future husband. Bassett was also a student at the University of Dutton, alongside actor Charles S. Dutton.

Bassett worked as a receptionist for a beauty salon and as a photographer after graduation. Bassett began to work in the New York theater and found it quickly. She appeared in J. E. Franklin's Black Girl at Second Stage Theatre in 1985, one of her first New York appearances. She appeared in two August Wilson performances at Yale Repertory Theatre under the direction of her long-time instructor Lloyd Richards. Bassett's Black Bottom (1984) and Joe Turner's Come and Gone (1986) were among the Wilson's performances. She had the opportunity to work on the Wilson canon once more in 2006, costarring Laurence Fishburne at the Pasadena Playhouse in California.

Bassett was given an honorary D.F.A. in 2018. Yale University's alma mater earned her a degree.

Personal life

In 1997, Bassett married actor Courtney B. Vance. They first met at Yale School of Drama and then became a couple a decade later in Los Angeles. They appeared together in a production of His Girl Friday at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in the summer of 2005. A survivor carried the couple's twins, son Slater Josiah Vance, and daughter Bronwyn Golden Vance, were carried by a survivor.

Bassett is a promoter of arts education, especially for youth. She regularly attends events for children with diabetes and those in foster care. She is a West Angeles Church of God in Christ and a regular UNICEF Ambassador for the United States. Bassett is a sponsor of the Royal Theater Boys & Girls Club in St. Petersburg, Florida, who lives near the city.

She is portrayed by the Executive Speakers Bureau of Memphis, Tennessee.

Bassett contributed $2,300 to Barack Obama's presidential campaign in early 2007. Bassett's reelection bid favored Obama. She made a public appearance in June 2012 at his St. Petersburg campaign's headquarters, but said the election was not one "where we can sit on the sidelines" rather than "where we can sit on the sidelines." Bassett attended Barack Obama's second inauguration on January 20, 2013. During the 2016 United States presidential election, Hillary Clinton supported Hillary Clinton for president, saying, "Bar none, Clinton will make a great president." Bassett spoke at the 2016 Democratic National Convention, introducing survivors of the previous year's Charleston church shooting, an event about which she spoke during her address. "Only 1455 days until November 3, 2020," Bassett tweeted after Clinton was defeated in the general election. My country is resting. "ProudOfHer" is a meme that appears on YouTube.

Bassett was elected as an honorary member of Delta Sigma Theta sorority on July 13, 2013.

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Career

Bassett made her first television appearance as a prostitute in 1985's made-for-TV film Doubletake. She made her film debut in F/X (1986), for which she was required to join the Screen Actors Guild. (SAG) Bassett left Los Angeles in 1988 for additional acting roles, appearing on A Man Called Hawk and 227 (both 1989).

Bassett's performance in the films Boyz n the Hood (1991) and Malcolm X (1992) gained critical notice and public attention for her performances. She was given an Image Award for her role as Betty Shabazz in the second film. Despite the award, the film received no critical reception, despite being criticized as struggling to "capture" Malcolm X's fanaticism. Spike Lee gave Bassett a tape of the exact moment when Malcolm X was shot during his assassination because they would be filming the scene. Bassett referred to the recording as "haunting," but she later said that after listening, she was "able to take hold of the agony and re-create the scene." Bassett felt it was important for her to get the assassination scene correct, and she wondered how Betty "found the courage to continue living, to educate her children, to educate, and to maintain them." Bassett was worried that after her appearance as Betty Shabazz in Malcolm X, she would not find another role "as engaging." She expressed her dissatisfaction with the film's debut at the time that she said she was certain that her career would never see such high-profile roles again. "I believe I have been incredibly lucky, but it's probably just all downhill from here."

Bassett appeared in The Jacksons: An American Dream later in life. Bassett's agents attempted to discourage her from playing the role after she was accused of child molestation. She confessed to not worrying about the poor reputation of members of the Jackson family at the time, citing her childhood enthusiasm for the Jackson 5 as an example of her enthusiasm for the venture and that her "instinct" about the role had been correct after learning of the positive reviews that had been posted. Bassett had admired the group as a teenager and said that the Jackson family had been positive influences on the African-American community for their successes.

Bassett appeared in What's Love Got to Do With It (1993), the next step. Bassett returned to Los Angeles after Malcolm X filming was finished, and she was called back for an audition for a film based on I, Tina Turner's memoir. Bassett earned a Golden Globe and an Academy Award nomination for her portrayal of Turner. She was the first African-American woman to win the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. Bassett earned the role after beating Halle Berry and Robin Givens, but he only had a month to prepare before filming began. Tina Turner visited Tina twice, and the woman was given tips by the woman that she would be portraying from wigs and clothes to dancing styles. Turner also did Bassett's makeover, causing Bassett to call her "supportive" and her "biggest fan" as Bassett's "strongest fan." Bassett recalled to the Orlando Sentinel that he was screaming profusely at one of Turner's concerts and cried out in pain. "Elmost a river of tears" after discovering that she knew some of Turner's dance steps, Bassett said. Bassett "gave the appearance of a lifetime" portraying Turner in the biopic, according to Entertainment Weekly's Marc Bernardin.

Bassett appeared in three films in 1995, with varying reactions from critics: Vampire in Brooklyn, Strange Days, and Waiting to Exhale (where she worked with author Terry McMillan). Bassett played Lornette "Mace" Mason, a chauffeur and bodyguard in Strange Days. Rita Veder, a tortured cop with a dark past, appeared in Vampire in Brooklyn. She was eager to work with Eddie Murphy in Vampire in Brooklyn, as well as director Wes Craven. Bassett had appeared on television shows before serving with Craven. Bassett's character in Waiting to Exhale, Bernadine Harris, was betrayed by her husband, who set fire to his entire wardrobe and vehicle and then sold what was left for one dollar. Bassett recalled the then-recently shot party scene and her role in Waiting to Exhale to the Orlando Sentinel. "The thing is that my character is worried about how her husband has left her," Bassett said. I have a cigarette in one hand and I'm bingeing. Basically, the four of us are sitting around discussing male rights and having some fun."

In 1997, she appeared as the President's advisor in Contact. Bassett's "largely wasted as a Presidential assistant," Stephen Holden of The New York Times said.

Fatboy Slim sampled Bassett's voice from 1995's Strange Days, specifically the line "this is your life, right here, right now!" "Right Here, Right Now," his hit song, "Right Here, Right Now." Bassett appeared in How Stella Got Her Groove Back in 1998, and she and McMillan collaborated again in 1998. Stella, a 40-year-old American professional woman who falls in love with a 20-year-old Jamaican man, was the focus of her performance. Bassett's character was described as "the best thing in the film," according to Stephen Holden of The New York Times, who wrote that Bassett "portrays this high-strung superwoman with such intensity that she makes her almost believable."

Bassett appeared in Music of the Heart in 1999, once more collaborating with horror icon Wes Craven. Matthew Eng wrote about her "terrifically precise chemistry" with Meryl St. Joeep.

Bassett decided against playing lead roles in Monster's Ball due to the script's sexual content; Halle Berry was given the Academy Award for Best Actress in 2000. Bassett's first film in that year was Supernova, where she appeared as a medical officer. Whispers: An Elephant's Tale and Boesman and Lena were two of her other films released in 2000. In Boesman and Lena Bassett, Todd McCarthy of Variety wrote, "abandons her newly cultivated glamour image to reach Lena's ferocious, reflective, compassionate personality." Bassett's "mercurial mood swings" were captured by Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times, and both Bassett and her costar Danny Glover "rise to the challenge of these larger-than-life roles, just as you would expect."

She appeared in The Score, a 2001 film. Her appearance was in a symbiosis with Robert De Niro's. She became fascinated by the film's script and became a little intrigued. Robert De Niro would "like to meet with you" after being called by director Frank Oz, who told her Robert De Niro would "like to meet with you." Bassett met with De Niro and later realized that the chat was supposed to break the ice before they started filming. She appeared in Ruby's Bucket of Blood last year, in addition to The Score. Bassett appeared in Sunshine State and The Rosa Parks Story the following year. Bassett was played as Rosa Parks in The Rosa Parks Story. Bassett "takes her physical ability and turns it inward to portray Parks," Laura Fries of Entertainment Weekly wrote, and she expressed her worry that "lesser hands" would encourage misinterpretation or gross mischaracterization of Parks' personality. Bassett was considered the "star" of the film due to her excellent reception of her role, and she was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie for her role.

In Unchained Memories, she ripped from the WPA slave tales. About 100,000 former slaves were still living during the Great Depression in the 1930s, of whom 2,300 were interviewed as part of the Federal Writers' Project. The transcripts of the Library of Congress's Slave Narratives collection are a record of slavery, delination, and slumbery. She appeared in the film Masked and Anonymous in which she played a mistress. Ann Hornaday referred to her as one of the "endless parade of actors who turn up even for the briefest of appearances."

She appeared in the films The Lazarus Child and Mr. 3000 in 2004. Mr. 3000 was a comedy in which Bassett costarred with Bernie Mac. Bassett replied when asked if it was much easier to act in than the more demanding roles she had in the past, "This was much simpler." This was a walk in the park. It was remarkably straightforward in comparison to some of the roles I've played. Bernie Mac and Laurence Fishburne, who she had worked with in the past, became her "favorites" and said the pair were both "highly skilled and extraordinarily gifted" at the time of the film's release. Mr. and Mrs. Smith in an uncredited voice role was the only film she appeared in during the following year.

Bassett played Tanya Anderson, the film's lead, played by Keke Palmer in the 2006 film Akeelah and the Bee. Bassett said she loved the film, seeing the lead character as someone that "could be anyone" because every one of us has aspirations and aspirations and wants to be and being encouraged and directed," she said. Palmer was as good an actor as any adult she had worked with, according to Bassett. Bassett appeared in the television film Time Bomb the same year. Brian Lowry of Variety's character was described as just a "extended cameo" in her role.

Bassett appeared in Meet the Robinsons, a 2007 film. Bassett said, "For one, it was a character I had never played before, which is always important to me to keep me up." But it was also the desire to be part of a well-written film that has a lot to say about families and all the other ways there can be to make a family.

She appeared in the 2008 film Gospel Hill. Bassett's "fiery self-possession" gives her "a zing of energy to her stick-figure character," Stephen Holden of The New York Times said. Rieta Cole, the matriarch of a Chicago family killed in an accident in the beginning of the film, is seen through flashbacks for the remainder of the film. Robert Townsend and Victoria Rowell, both of her costars, were photographed by Robert Gillard of Los Angeles Sentinel as doing marvelous jobs of "capturing the emotions of a family stricken by grief." Bassett appeared in Nothing But the Truth in 2008. Bassett appeared on the show's final season (2008-2009). Dr. Catherine Banfield, an exacting Chief of the ER who was still mourning the loss of a son and the introduction of another child into her family, was her character. On ER as Russell Banfield, Bassett's wife Courtney Vance played her television husband.

Bassett portrayed Voletta Wallace, the mother of The Notorious B.I.G. in the 2009 film Notorious. Bassett and Wallace interacted with her on and off the film set, and she even practiced her accent with tapes made by Wallace. Bassett said she jumped at the opportunity to be part of the film after reading the script. "It's a "wonderful job of bringing" the Notorious B.I.G. "Life to the page" is a film that is intended for children. Bassett received accolades for her role in the film, being one of the more experienced actors in the field.

Bassett lent her voice to portray First Lady Michelle Obama on a Simpsons episode titled "Stealing First Base" in 2010. Bassett was seen as a "terrible" fill-in for Obama. Bassett appeared in the film Green Lantern, which was released in 2011, as the famous DC Comics character Amanda Waller. Bassett said being on the film was "a lot of fun" and that she loved being a part of it. Despite this, Bassett was "out of her element" with the arrangements that accommodated the computer-generated effects. She said it was her first time seeing "this kind of film" but expressed an interest in seeing how her scenes looked like. Bassett will be seen in One Police Plaza in 2010, according to Deadline Hollywood. Bassett co-starred with Samuel L. Jackson in The Mountaintop, a fictionalized depiction of the night before Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination. (Jackson portrays MLK) while at the Lorraine Motel in 2011. Katori Hall's critically acclaimed performance premiered in London's West End in 2009 and went on to win the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Play. On October 13, 2011, the show premiere on Broadway opened on Broadway. Bassett had signed up for a lead role in the ABC pilot Identity in March 2011.

She appeared in the 2011 film Jumping the Broom, portraying the matriarch of a wealthy family. Bassett had a positive feeling about the film from the get-goal, and she believed her character had a "true presence" in the film and felt she was involved in the plot. Bassett and Loretta Devine's roles in the film were described as "in some ways too loud for the room," providing shades of hostility and hurt that the film can't quite comprehend" and contributing to the film's "unevenness." Bassett and Devine had been described as "superb, distinguished actresses" by Kirk Honeycutt of The Hollywood Reporter, but they were later identified as having been "asked to overdo every moment with permanent scowls and body language more appropriate to Mortal Kombat." Despite this, Bassett's appearance attracted some praise, with Elizabeth Weitzman of New York Daily News' reporting that Bassett "makes the movie hers." Bassett's second time filming with Devine was the pair's second time together in Waiting to Exhale. Bassett's presence, according to director Salim Akil, makes a huge difference.

Bassett was cast in the 2012 film This Means War, having been attached to the film for two years. Bassett's lack of appearances in promotional material was attributed to her small role and her target audience not being impacted by the film, according to Tambay A. Obenson of IndieWire. Bassett also appeared in I Ain't Scared Of You.

Coretta Scott King was portrayed in the television film Betty and Coretta, which aired on February 2, 2013, continuing her trend of portraying real women. Bassett had appeared in Malcolm X and Panther, but instead played Coretta Scott King opposite Mary J. Blige, who appeared in Shabazz. Bassett was shocked to learn that Coretta had opposed Martin Luther King Jr.'s "advances" and called Mrs. King a "modern day iconic heroine." Bassett said, "The admiration" she had for their lives, their struggles, strength, and determination when she was asked what drew her to be real-life women was a motivator." Bassett began filming her scenes in the latter part of the year. When asked what it was like to work with Bassett, Mary J. Blige said she was "one of Angela's top followers" while still referring to her as a "amazing woman". Ilyasah Shabazz and Bernice King, Betty Shabazz's daughters and Coretta Scott King's niece, received mixed feedback about the film.

In the action thriller Olympus Has Fallen, Bassett appeared as Secret Service Director Lynne Jacobs. Bassett was said to be cast in the film in June 2012, the month before filming began. Bassett said in a Huffington Post interview that "never was a female head of the Secret Service, much less a woman of color." The decision to have a female African-American Secret Service director "was a brave casting pick," she said. Bassett's film was overall more convincing. Bassett praised working with Morgan Freeman as an honor, but she confessed to being threatened by him. She was wowed by director Antoine Fuqua's preparations, who said, "was just hilt" and expressed her excitement in working with him. In the 2013 film Black Nativity, she appeared. She sang and it was seen as contributing to the film's "unreal unreality." When she was asked by film's producer, Kasi Lemmons, she could sing, and Bassett confessed to lying in order to get the role. "I can sing, you didn't ask how well," she joked to reporter Jennifer H. Cunningham. Bassett's first appearance in a film was a new one for him, since he had never had to sing before and had never been asked to sing.

Bassett appeared on FX's American Horror Story: Marie Laveau, a voodoo witch, in 2013. Bassett praised the writers, describing them as "amazing." Her agent contacted Ryan Murphy about her involvement in the film, and the agent informed her that she was the person in charge of Marie Laveau. Until meeting with Murphy, Bassett read the previous seasons of the series and found the writing "wonderful" and the characters "so realized." Bassett's performance earned her a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie. Desiree Dupree, a three-breasted woman, returned to the show for its fourth season. In a Miniseries or a Movie, she received yet another award for Outstanding Supporting Actress.

Bassett would debut with Whitney, a television film based on Whitney Houston's life that Bassett had worked with before, was announced in May 2014. Bassett had already expressed an interest in steering the year before. Yaya DaCosta would appear in Houston in the film, which was confirmed in early June 2014. In an interview, Houston's daughter, Bobbi Kristina Brown, mocked Bassett for not portraying her as her mother in the film, despite the fact that Bassett denied knowing about casting Brown on Twitter. Ruby Dee died of natural causes on June 11, 2014. Bassett had previously worked with Betty and Coretta, and was confirmed to attend the Riverside Church memorial for Dee on September 20, 2014.

Bassett played the United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom Mauge Crane in the 2015 film Survivor. Bassett "appears from behind closed doors like a celebrity celebrity guest on Stars in Their Eyes," Mark Kermode wrote in a critical review of the film.

In the first-person shooter game, Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege, Basset also voiced Six.

Bassett appeared in London Has Fallen in March 2016, reprising her role as Lynne Jacobs. Bassett said it was "the very first sequel I've ever made" and that she was excited about the possibility of another film after the initial success of Olympus Has Fallen. The Human Rights Campaign launched a video in June 2016 in honor of the victims of the Orlando nightclub shooting; Bassett and others told the tales of the people injured there. Bassett appeared in American Horror Story: Roanoke. She also produced its sixth episode, which aired on October 19, 2016. This is the third time a woman has directed the show. In an interview with E!, co-creator Ryan Murphy praised Bassett. According to the news, he told her she would "do this big, important episode and you're going to knock it out of the park." And I've seen it time and time again with these women who were brought into this direct career that we're just killing it, and they're already working twice as hard because they know they have a lot to prove."

Bassett appeared in "Ache," an episode of the television show Underground's underground in March 2017. Anthony Hemingway, an executive producer and director, said her character "was written with Angela in mind" and that the entire cast appeared to see Bassett the day she was filming her appearance. Bassett appeared in a Master of None episode in May 2017, portraying Denise's mother Catherine, a central character. After being impressed by her previous work, Lena Waithe wanted Bassett, but she was worried she'd leave the job, and Bassett's inclusion in the series brought "another layer" of tension to the series. After seeing Bassett's appearance in The Jacksons: An American Dream and comparing her character's growth in the series to Catherine, the writers of the series also favored Bassett for the role.

Bassett joined the Fox first responder procedural drama 9–1–1, of which she is also a producer. Athena Grant, a young officer, appears, and the role is likely to switch to Lone Star 9-1-1 during the show's fifth season in 2022.

Bassett appeared in the acclaimed Marvel superhero film Black Panther as Queen Ramonda, the titular character's mother.

In July 2018, she played CIA Director Erika Sloane in the action spy film Mission: Impossible – Fallout.

In December 2018, she played the Decepticon villain 'Shatter' from Transformers' live-action film Bumblebee.

She appeared in Gunpowder Milkshake in 2019. She also appeared in Avengers: Endgame as Ramonda.

In the Pixar animated film Soul, which was released on Disney+ on December 25, 2020, Bassett played Dorothea Williams. She also narrator of the Magic Kingdom nighttime spectacular Disney Enchantment, which premiered on October 1, 2021. In Damsel, she will be seen alongside Millie Bobby Brown.

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