Golden Globes 2020: Awkwafina made history last night
At last night’s Golden Globe Awards ceremony, Awkwafina became the first person of Asian descent to win Best Lead Actress in a Comedy or Musical.
Last night’s Golden Globe Awards ceremony was full of memorable moments, including speeches that addressed important topics both at the political and personal level. There’s so much to reflect on, but one of the biggest moments of the show was undoubtedly when Awkwafina won an award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy for her performance in The Farewell.
What makes this such a noteworthy achievement is that Awkwafina is the first woman of Asian descent to win an award in this category. Given how much criticism award shows like the Golden Globes receive for their lack of diversity, this seems like a stride in the right direction. Awkwafina is only the second person of Asian descent to be nominated in this category (following Constance Wu for her role in Crazy Rich Asians), and the fact that she won is comforting, even if there’s still work to do.
Upon realizing that she made history with her win, Awkwafina said, “I actually just heard that fact, and it was pretty mind-blowing. It feels incredible, but I think there’s also this other feeling that you want there to be more. I hope this is just the beginning.”
The other nominees in the running for Best Actress in this category included Cate Blanchett, Ana de Armas, Emma Thompson, and Beanie Feldstein. Given that all were up for performances in beloved and highly acclaimed films, Awkwafina taking home the gold would have been a worthy accomplishment even without the history-making — but those moments of progress during awards ceremonies that tend to be more of the same every year are what make them truly special (and what keep audiences tuning in).
Next. Golden Globes 2020: 5 of the best acceptance speeches. dark