Wednesday’s NAACP Image Award nominations arrived with a few nods for “Widows,” a brilliantly paced heist drama which has failed to win any major accolades this awards season.
Directed by British filmmaker Steve McQueen (“12 Years a Slave”), the film which released in U.S. theaters in November and stars Viola Davis, Michelle Rodriguez, Cynthia Erivo, Brian Tyree Henry and Daniel Kaluuya, received three nominations including an Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture nod for Davis and a director’s nomination for McQueen.
At the press conference held Wednesday in Pasadena, there were plenty of exciting nominations and few surprises.
“Crazy Rich Asians” scored a Best Picture nomination as did the Marvel juggernaut “Black Panther,” which also earned multiple nominations including individual nods for its main stars Danai Gurira, Letitia Wright and Lupita Nyong’o, who were nominated in the same Best Supporting Actress category.
Other films nominated include “The Hate U Give,” “If Beale Street Could Talk,” and Spike Lee’s “BlacKkKlansman.”
This year’s nominees for the NAACP Entertainer of the Year are Beyoncé, Chadwick Boseman, LeBron James, Regina King and Ryan Coogler. Voting is now open to the public by visiting the NAACP Image Awards website.
In addition to the traditional awards categories, Congresswoman Maxine Waters will be honored with the prestigious NAACP Chairman’s Award, which is bestowed in recognition of individuals who demonstrate exemplary public service and use their distinct platforms to create agents of change. Leon W. Russell, Chairman of the NAACP National Board of Directors, will present Ms. Waters with the award at the 50th NAACP Image Awards on March 30 live at 9pm/8c on TV One.
By Samantha Ofole-Prince
