Angela Bassett

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Angela Bassett

Bassett in 2015

Born Angela Evelyn Bassett

August 16, 1958 (age 62)

New York City, U.S.

Education Yale University (BA, MFA)

Occupation Actress, director, producer, activist

Years active 1985–present

Courtney B. Vance
Spouse(s)
 
 (m. 1997)

Children 2

Angela Evelyn Bassett (born August 16, 1958) is an American actress, director, producer, and
activist. She is known for her biographical film roles, most notably her performance as Tina Turner in
the biopic What's Love Got to Do with It (1993), for which she was nominated for the Academy
Award for Best Actress and won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Comedy
or Musical. Bassett has additionally portrayed real life figures Betty Shabazz in both Malcolm
X (1992) and Panther (1995), Katherine Jackson in The Jacksons: An American Dream (1992),
Voletta Wallace in Notorious (2009), and Coretta Scott King in Betty & Coretta (2013). Her other
notable film roles include Reva Styles in Boyz n the Hood (1991), Bernie Harris in Waiting to
Exhale (1995), Rachel Constantine in Contact (1997), Lynne Jacobs in Olympus Has Fallen (2013)
and London Has Fallen (2016), and Queen Ramonda in Black Panther (2018) and Avengers:
Endgame (2019).
Bassett began her film career in the 1980s, after earning a bachelor of arts degree from Yale
University and a master of fine arts degree from the Yale School of Drama. In the 1990s, she
appeared in films nearly every year. The 2000s saw a succession of films starring Bassett, with her
appearing in at least one film every year. Bassett's success has continued into the 2010s. Bassett
earned nominations for her roles in films such as The Score (2001), Akeelah and the
Bee (2006), Meet the Browns (2008), and Jumping the Broom (2011) and won awards for her
performances in How Stella Got Her Groove Back (1998) and Music of the Heart (1999), among
others. Bassett's performance as Rosa Parks in the 2002 film The Rosa Parks Story was honored
with her first Primetime Emmy Award nomination.
In 2013, Bassett had a recurring role on the FX horror anthology series American Horror Story:
Coven, earning her second Primetime Emmy Award nomination for her performance
as Voodoo queen Marie Laveau. She returned as a series regular for Freak Show, the series' fourth
season, portraying Desiree Dupree, for which she received another Emmy Award nomination. For
the fifth season, Hotel, she portrayed Ramona Royale, a famous movie star. Bassett returned to the
series's sixth cycle, Roanoke, portraying an alcoholic actress named Monet Tumusiime, who plays
struggling mother and former police officer Lee Harris in the My Roanoke Nightmare documentary,
and she reprised her role as Marie Laveau in a guest role in the eighth season Apocalypse. In 2018,
Bassett began producing and starring in the Fox first responder drama series 9-1-1,
playing LAPD patrol sergeant Athena Grant.

Contents

 1Early life and education

 2Career
o 2.1Early work
o 2.21990s
o 2.32000s
o 2.42010s
o 2.52020s
 3Media image
 4Personal life
 5Filmography
 6Awards and nominations
 7References
 8Further reading
 9External links

Early life and education[edit]

Bassett was born on August 16, 1958, in New York City, the daughter of Betty Jane (née Gilbert;
1935–2014)[1] and Daniel Benjamin Bassett (1924–1981),[citation needed] and was raised in Harlem.[2][3]
[4]
 Bassett's middle name was given to her in honor of her aunt Evelyn. [3] The Bassett surname comes
from her great-grandfather William Henry Bassett, who took the surname of his former slave owner.
[5]
 Ten months after Bassett was born, her mother became pregnant and had a second child,
Bassett's sister D'nette. Bassett said the pregnancy "only made things harder." Bassett's parents
"shipped" her to stay with her father's sister Golden. While her aunt did not have any children of her
own, she "loved children, and she was good with them." [6]
After her parents' divorce, she relocated from Winston-Salem, North Carolina, to St. Petersburg,
Florida, where she and her sister D'nette were raised by their social worker/civil servant mother.
[7]
 Bassett did not see her father again for several years, until she attended her grandmother's
funeral. There, Bassett met his daughter from his first marriage, Jean, who at twelve years old, was
several years older than Bassett.[8] After graduating from Jordan Park Elementary School, she began
being bused out of her neighborhood to attend Disston Middle School for seventh grade. The year
she began attending was 1970, the first year busing was implemented to integrate public schools in
St. Petersburg. After completing seventh grade, she was bused to Azalea Middle School for eighth
and ninth grade. Bassett's mother became more involved in her daughter's grades and told her and
her sister the pair were going to college. [9]
In her younger years, Bassett was "in love" with the Jackson 5 and dreamed of marrying a member
of the family group, stating it would probably be "whoever had the cutest, roundest Afro at the time.
In my imagination we would have children and live in a real house." [8] As her interest in entertainment
developed, Angela and her sister would often put on shows, reading poems or performing popular
music for their family.[10]

Boca Ciega High School, where Bassett as a teenager was a member of the debate team and student
government among other endeavors.

At Boca Ciega High School, Bassett was a cheerleader and a member of the Upward Bound college
prep program, the debate team, student government, drama club and choir. A straight "A" and "B"
student for the most part, Bassett got her first "C" in physical education, and tried to get her mother
to not feel disappointment in the grade. Bassett called the grade the "average," leading her mother
to say she did not have "average kids." As Bassett described, a "sense of pride" developed in her
and she did not get another "C" until college. [11] During high school, Bassett became the first African-
American from Boca Ciega to be admitted to the National Honor Society. She participated in Upward
Bound, an academic and cultural enrichment program for underprivileged students. Bassett says she
and the other participants did not see themselves as underprivileged. [10]
Bassett attended Yale University and received her B.A. degree in African-American studies in 1980.
In 1983, she earned an M.F.A. degree from the Yale School of Drama, despite opposition from her
paternal aunt who warned her to not "waste" her "Yale education on theater." She was the only
member of Bassett's family to have gone to both college and graduate school. [11] At Yale, Bassett met
her future husband Courtney B. Vance, a 1986 graduate of the drama school. Bassett was also
classmates with actor Charles S. Dutton.[12]
After graduation, Bassett worked as a receptionist for a beauty salon and as a photo researcher.
Bassett soon looked for acting work in the New York theater. One of her first New York
performances came in 1985 when she appeared in J. E. Franklin's Black Girl at Second Stage
Theatre. She appeared in two August Wilson plays at the Yale Repertory Theatre under the direction
of her long-time instructor Lloyd Richards. The Wilson plays featuring Bassett were Ma Rainey's
Black Bottom (1984) and Joe Turner's Come and Gone (1986). In 2006, she had the opportunity to
work on the Wilson canon again, starring in Fences alongside longtime collaborator Laurence
Fishburne at the Pasadena Playhouse in California.
In 2018, Bassett was awarded an honorary D.F.A. degree from her alma mater, Yale University.[13][14]

Career[edit]
Early work[edit]
In 1985, Bassett made her first television appearance as a prostitute in the made-for-TV
movie Doubletake. She made her film debut as a news reporter in F/X (1986), for which she was
required to join the Screen Actors Guild (SAG).[15] Bassett moved to Los Angeles in 1988 for more
acting jobs[16] and gained recognition in the films Boyz n the Hood (1991) and Malcolm X (1992). For
her portrayal of Betty Shabazz, she earned an Image Award. Despite the award, the movie was not
entirely given positive reception, being referred to by critics as failing to "capture" the rage
of Malcolm X's autobiography.[17] During the production of Malcolm X, Spike Lee showed Bassett a
tape of the exact moment when Malcolm X was shot during his assassination, since they would be
filming the scene. Bassett called the recording "haunting", but noted that after listening, she was
"able to grab hold of the pain and re-create the scene." Bassett felt it was important for her to get the
assassination scene correct, and wondered how Betty "found the strength to keep going, to raise her
family, to educate, to sustain them."[18] Malcolm X was released on November 18, 1992.

1990s[edit]
In 1990, Bassett played an airline stewardess alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger, a tough cop who
went undercover as a kindergarten teacher to crack a case. This became Basset's first movie role. In
1992, Bassett played Katherine Jackson in The Jacksons: An American Dream. Bassett's agents
tried to discourage her from playing the role, given the negative reception that Michael Jackson had.
She admitted to not caring about the negative view of members of the Jackson family at the time,
citing her childhood fondness of the group as an example of her passion for the project and believed
her "instinct" about the role had been correct once learning of the positive reviews the miniseries
received after airing.[19] Bassett had previously idolized the group growing up and said the Jackson
family were positive influences on the African-American community for their successes. Bassett had
previously worried that after her role as Betty Shabazz in Malcolm X, she would not find another role
"as satisfying". Bassett at the time of the film's release expressed her belief that her career would
never receive such high-profile roles again. "I think I have been incredibly blessed and it is probably
just all downhill from here."[20]
Later that year, Bassett was cast as Tina Turner in What's Love Got to Do with It (1993).[21][22] Bassett
returned to Los Angeles after Malcolm X filming was completed, and got a call for an audition for a
movie based on I, Tina, Tina Turner's memoir.[23] Bassett won a Golden Globe and earned
an Academy Award nomination for her portrayal of Turner. She was the first African-American to win
the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. Bassett obtained the
role after beating Halle Berry and Robin Givens, but only had a month to prepare before filming
began. She met Tina Turner twice, and was given advice by the woman she would be portraying
from wigs and outfits to dancing styles. Turner also did Bassett's make up, leading Bassett to call her
"supportive" and her "biggest fan."[16] Bassett described to the Orlando Sentinel going to one of
Turner's concerts and crying profusely. According to Bassett, upon realizing that she knew some of
Turner's dance moves, she was "almost a river of tears." [24] Marc Bernardin of Entertainment
Weekly wrote that Bassett "gave the performance of a lifetime" portraying Turner in the biopic. [25]

Bassett at the NABOB Awards, 1996

Bassett starred in three movies in 1995, which were released with varied reactions from
critics: Vampire in Brooklyn, Strange Days, and Waiting to Exhale (where she worked with
author Terry McMillan). In Strange Days, Bassett played Lornette "Mace" Mason, a chauffeur and
bodyguard. In Vampire in Brooklyn, she played Rita Veder, a tortured cop with a dark secret. She
was excited to work with Eddie Murphy in Vampire in Brooklyn, as well as director Wes Craven.
Bassett had previously worked with Craven on television shows.[26] Bassett's character in Waiting to
Exhale, Bernadine Harris, was betrayed by her husband and in revenge she set fire to his entire
wardrobe and vehicle, then sold what was left for one dollar. Bassett described the then-recently
filmed party scene and her character in Waiting to Exhale to the Orlando Sentinel. Bassett said, "The
thing is that my character is thinking about how her husband has left her. I have a cigarette in one
hand, and I'm drinking. Basically, the four of us are sitting there talking about men and having some
fun."[24]
In 1997, she starred as the President's advisor in Contact.[27] Stephen Holden of The New York
Times opinioned that Bassett was "largely wasted as a Presidential assistant." [28]
In 1998, Fatboy Slim sampled Bassett's voice from 1995's Strange Days, specifically the line "this is
your life, right here, right now!", for his hit single "Right Here, Right Now". Also in 1998, Bassett
starred in How Stella Got Her Groove Back, once again collaborating with McMillan. She played
Stella, a 40-year-old American professional woman who falls in love with a 20-year-old Jamaican
man. She received praise for the performance,[29][30] Stephen Holden of The New York Times calling
Bassett's character "the best thing in the movie" and writing that Bassett "portrays this high-strung
superwoman with such intensity that she makes her almost believable." [31]
In 1999, Bassett starred in Music of the Heart, once again collaborating with horror icon Wes
Craven.[32][33] Matthew Eng wrote of her "terrifically specific chemistry" with Meryl Streep.[34]

2000s[edit]
In 2000, Bassett turned down the lead role in Monster's Ball because of the script's sexual content;
the role earned Halle Berry the Academy Award for Best Actress. The first film Bassett appeared in
that year was Supernova, where she played a medical officer.[35][36] Her other two films released in
2000 were Whispers: An Elephant's Tale and Boesman and Lena. Todd McCarthy of Variety wrote
that in Boesman and Lena Bassett "abandons her recently cultivated glamorous image to dig to the
core of Lena’s fierce, probing, contentious, compassionate character." [37] Kevin Thomas of the Los
Angeles Times wrote Bassett captured all of her character's "mercurial mood swings" and both
Bassett and her costar Danny Glover "rise to the challenge of these larger-than-life roles, just as you
would expect."[38]
She appeared in the 2001 film The Score. Her character was in a relationship with Robert De Niro's.
She read the film's script and became interested. She was then telephoned by director Frank Oz,
who told her Robert De Niro would "like to meet with you". Bassett met with De Niro and later
realized the conversation was meant to break the ice before they started filming. [39] In addition to The
Score, that year she also had a role in the television film Ruby's Bucket of Blood. The following year,
in 2002, Bassett acted in Sunshine State and The Rosa Parks Story. In The Rosa Parks Story,
Bassett was cast as Rosa Parks.[40] Laura Fries of Entertainment Weekly wrote that Bassett "takes
her physical strength and turns it inward to portray Parks" and expressed her belief that "lesser
hands" would allow for misinterpretation or gross underplay of Parks' personality. [41] In addition to
positive reception of her role, Bassett was seen as the "star" of the film due to playing the lead and
earned a nomination for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or a
Movie for her performance.[42]
In 2003, she read from the WPA slave narratives in Unchained Memories. In the 1930s, about
100,000 former slaves were still living during the Great Depression, of which 2,300 were interviewed
part of the Federal Writers' Project. The transcripts of the Slave Narratives collection of the Library of
Congress is a record of slavery, bondage and misery.[43][44] That year she also appeared in the
film Masked and Anonymous, playing a mistress.[45][46] Ann Hornaday noted her as among the
"endless parade of actors who show up even for the briefest of appearances". [47]
In 2004, she had roles in the films The Lazarus Child and Mr. 3000. Mr. 3000 was a comedy in
which Bassett costarred with Bernie Mac. When asked if the film was much easier to act in than the
more intense roles she had in the past, Bassett responded, "This was much easier. This was a walk
in the park. It was pretty easy compared to some of the roles I’ve done that call for so much emotion
or physicality." At the time of the film's release, she called both Bernie Mac and Laurence Fishburne,
who she had worked with in the past, her "favorites" and said the pair were both "highly professional
and extraordinarily talented."[48] The only film she appeared in during the following year was Mr. and
Mrs. Smith in an uncredited voice role.[49][50]
Bassett at the 2007 The Heart Truth's Red Dress Collection.

In the 2006 film Akeelah and the Bee, Bassett portrayed Tanya Anderson, the mother of the film's
lead, Akeelah, played by Keke Palmer. Bassett said she loved the story,[51] viewing the lead character
as someone that "could be anyone because each of us have had dreams and aspirations and
wanting to be and needing to be supported and directed", [52] and described working with Palmer as
being "really wonderful." According to Bassett, the two bonded and that Palmer was as good an
actress as any adult she had worked with.[51] Bassett appeared in the television film Time Bomb the
same year. Her role was seen as just an "extended cameo" by Brian Lowry of Variety.[53]
Bassett provided her voice for the 2007 film Meet the Robinsons.[54] When asked about her motives
in taking on the role, Bassett said, "For one, it was a character I had never played before, which is
always important to me, to keep me sharp. But it was also the desire to be part of a well-written
movie that has something really positive to say about families and about all the different ways there
can be to make a family."[55]
She appeared in the 2008 film Gospel Hill.[56][57] Stephen Holden of The New York Times wrote that
Bassett's "fiery self-possession brings a spark of passion to her stick-figure character". [58] She next
appeared in Of Boys and Men, portraying Rieta Cole, the matriarch of a Chicago family who is killed
in an accident in the beginning of the film and is seen through flashbacks for the remainder of the
film. She and her costars Robert Townsend and Victoria Rowell were seen by Robert Gillard of LA
Sentinel as doing wonderful jobs of "capturing the emotions of a family stricken by grief." [59] Bassett
also had a role in Nothing But the Truth in 2008.[60] Bassett joined the regular cast of ER for the
show's final season (2008–2009). [61][62] She portrayed Dr. Catherine Banfield, an exacting Chief of the
ER who was also working to recover from the death of a son and to bring another child into her
family. Bassett's husband Courtney Vance played her television husband on ER as Russell Banfield.
In the 2009 film Notorious, Bassett portrayed Voletta Wallace, the mother of The Notorious B.I.G.[63]
[64]
 To portray Wallace's Jamaican accent, Bassett conversed with her on and off the film set, and she
practiced her accent using tapes that Wallace made. [65] Bassett said she jumped at the chance to be
part of the film after reading the script. She felt it did a "wonderful job of bringing" The Notorious
B.I.G.'s "life to the page."[66] Bassett earned positive reviews for her performance in the film, noted as
being one of the more experienced actors involved. [67][68]

2010s[edit]
In 2010, Bassett lent her voice to portray First Lady Michelle Obama[69] on an episode of The
Simpsons titled "Stealing First Base". Bassett was seen as a "terrific" fill in for Obama. [70] Bassett was
also cast in the superhero film Green Lantern, released in 2011, as notable DC
Comics character Amanda Waller.[71] Bassett said working on the film was "a lot of fun" and that she
enjoyed being a part of it.[72] Despite this, Bassett was taken "out of her element" with the
arrangements made that accommodated the computer-generated effects. She called it her first time
doing "this kind of movie" but expressed interest in seeing what her scenes looked like. [73] In
2010, Deadline Hollywood reported that Bassett would have a role in One Police Plaza.[74] In 2011,
Bassett co-starred with Samuel L. Jackson in the play The Mountaintop a fictionalized depiction of
the night before the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. (Jackson portrays MLK) while at
the Lorraine Motel. The critically acclaimed play by Katori Hall originally debuted in London's West
End in 2009 and went on to win the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Play. The production
opened on Broadway on October 13, 2011. In March 2011, it was reported that Bassett had signed
up for a lead role in the ABC pilot Identity.[75]
She also appeared in the 2011 film Jumping the Broom, playing the matriarch of a wealthy family.[76]
[77]
 Bassett had a good feeling about the film from "the start", [73] and believed her character had a "real
presence" in the film and felt she was active in the plot. [72] Bassett's and Loretta Devine's
performances in the film were called "in some ways too fierce for the room, offering nuances of
hostility and hurt that the movie cannot really handle" and contributing to the "unevenness of the
performances" in the film.[78] Bassett and Devine were noted as "superb, distinguished actresses" by
Kirk Honeycutt of The Hollywood Reporter, but were seen as having been "asked to overdo every
moment with permanent scowls and body language more suitable to Mortal Kombat."[79] Despite this,
her performance was given some positive attention, with Elizabeth Weitzman of New York Daily
News saying Bassett "makes the movie hers".[80] The film was Bassett's second time working with
Devine, as the pair had worked together previously in Waiting to Exhale.[81] Director Salim Akil said
Bassett's presence quietly makes a big difference. [73]
Bassett was featured in the 2012 film This Means War,[82] having been known to be attached to the
film since two years prior.[83] Tambay A. Obenson of IndieWire attributed Bassett's lack of
appearances in promotional material to her having a small role and her demographic not being
targeted by the film.[84] Bassett also appeared as herself in I Ain't Scared Of You.
Bassett portrayed Coretta Scott King in the television film Betty and Coretta, which aired on
February 2, 2013, continuing her trend of portraying real women. [85][86] Bassett had previously played
Shabazz in both Malcolm X and Panther, but instead played Coretta Scott King opposite to Mary J.
Blige, who played Shabazz. Bassett was surprised to learn after researching that Coretta initially
refused Martin Luther King Jr.'s "advances" and called Mrs. King a "modern day iconic heroine."
While being asked about what drew her to play real-life women, Bassett answered "The respect that
I have for their lives—their stories, vulnerabilities, strength, and resolve." [87] Bassett began filming her
scenes during the latter part of the previous year. [88] Mary J. Blige, when asked about what kind of
experience it was to work with Bassett, said that she was "one of Angela's biggest fans" while calling
her an "amazing woman."[89] The film received mixed reviews, including negative reactions
from Ilyasah Shabazz and Bernice King, the daughters of Betty Shabazz and Coretta Scott King.
Bassett recently appeared as Secret Service director Lynne Jacobs in the action thriller Olympus
Has Fallen, released on March 22, 2013. Bassett was reported to have a role in the film in June
2012, the month before filming began.[90][91] In an interview with The Huffington Post, Bassett noted
that there had "never been a female head of the Secret Service, much less a woman of color". She
called the decision to have a female African-American Secret Service director "a bold casting
choice". Overall, Bassett viewed the film as authentic. [92] Bassett described working with Morgan
Freeman as wonderful, but she admitted to being intimidated by him. She was impressed with the
preparation of director Antoine Fuqua, who she said "was just preparation to the hilt" and expressed
her interest in working with him again.[93] She appeared in the 2013 film Black Nativity. She sang and
it was seen as contributing to the film's "blissful unreality". [94] She was asked by the film's
director, Kasi Lemmons, if she could sing and Bassett admitted to lying to get the role. She joked to
reporter Jennifer H. Cunningham, "Yes, I can sing — you didn’t ask how well!" Singing in a film was
a new experience for Bassett, who had never had to sing before and had always lip-synced. [95]
Bassett at PaleyFest 2014 for American Horror Story: Coven.

In 2013, Bassett appeared on FX TV show American Horror Story: Coven[74] as Marie Laveau, a

voodoo witch. Bassett praised the writers, calling them "amazing". [96] Her agent approached Ryan
Murphy about her having a role in the series and he told the agent that she was the person he had in
mind for Marie Laveau. Bassett watched the previous seasons of the series before meeting with
Murphy and found the writing "wonderful" and the characters "so realized". [97] Bassett's performance
earned her a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a
Miniseries or a Movie. She returned to the show for its fourth season American Horror Story: Freak
Show, playing Desiree Dupree, a three-breasted woman. She received another nomination for
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie.
It was announced in May 2014 that Bassett would make her directorial debut with Whitney, a TV film
based on the life of Whitney Houston, who Bassett had worked with previously.[98] Bassett had
previously expressed interest in directing the year before. [93] It was announced in early June 2014
that Yaya DaCosta would play Houston in the film. Houston's daughter, Bobbi Kristina Brown,
insulted Bassett on Twitter for not casting her as her mother in the film, to which Bassett admitted in
an interview that she had never thought about casting Brown.[99] On June 11, 2014, Ruby Dee died
from natural causes. Bassett had previously worked with her on Betty and Coretta and was reported
to attend the Riverside Church memorial for Dee on September 20, 2014. [100]
In the 2015 film Survivor, Bassett portrayed United States Ambassador to the United
Kingdom Maureen Crane.[101] In a negative review of the film, Mark Kermode lamented Bassett
"appears from behind closed doors like a celebrity guest on Stars in Their Eyes."[102]
Basset also voiced the character Six in the first person shooter game, Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six
Siege.
In March 2016, Bassett appeared in London Has Fallen, reprising her role as Lynne Jacobs.
[103]
 Bassett noted it was "the very first sequel I've ever done" and that she had been excited at the
prospect of another film after the initial success of Olympus Has Fallen.[104] In June 2016, the Human
Rights Campaign released a video in tribute to the victims of the Orlando nightclub shooting; in the
video, Bassett and others told the stories of the people killed there. [105][106] Bassett appeared
in American Horror Story: Roanoke. She also directed its sixth episode, which aired October 19,
2016. The episode marks the third time a woman has directed the show. Co-creator Ryan Murphy
praised Bassett in an interview with E! News, saying he told her she would "'do this big, big episode
and you're going to knock it out of the park,' and she did. And I've seen it time and time again with
these women that we brought into this directing world that they're just killing it, and they're working
twice as hard because they know they have a lot to prove." [107]
In March 2017, Bassett appeared in "Ache", an episode of the television series Underground.
[108]
 Executive producer and director Anthony Hemingway said her character "was written with Angela
in mind" and that the entire cast came to see Bassett the day she filmed her performance. [109] In May
2017, Bassett appeared in an episode of Master of None, portraying major character Denise's
mother Catherine.[110] Lena Waithe wanted Bassett after being impressed by her previous work
though was convinced she would turn down the role and said Bassett's inclusion influenced the
series drastically with "another layer" of tension. [111] The writers of the series also favored Bassett for
the role after seeing her performance in The Jacksons: An American Dream and related her
character's evolution in that feature to Catherine. [112]
In January 2018, Bassett starred in the Fox first responder procedural drama 9-1-1, of which she is
also a producer.[113] In February 2018, Bassett starred in the acclaimed Marvel superhero film Black
Panther, as Dowager Queen Ramonda, mother of the titular character.[114][115][116] In December 2018,
she voiced the Decepticon villain 'Shatter' from the Transformers live-action film Bumblebee.
In 2019, she joined the cast of Gunpowder Milkshake.[117] She also reprised her role as Ramonda
in Avengers: Endgame.[118]

2020s[edit]
Bassett provided the voice of Dorothea Williams in the Pixar animated film Soul, which was released
on Disney+ on December 25, 2020.

Media image[edit]
Bassett has been noted for portraying real life African-American women who are usually strong and
intelligent. Bassett said in 2001 that she liked those roles and added: "That's the image that I like to
put out there, and those are the parts I'm attracted to. But not iron-fist kind of strong, just self-
assured. I'm nice too."[39] She has turned down roles which she viewed as demeaning to her image.
"This is a career about images. It's celluloid; they last for ever. I'm a black woman from America. My
people were slaves in America, and even though we're free on paper and in law, I'm not going to
allow you to enslave me on film, in celluloid, for all to see. And to cross the water, to countries where
people will never meet people who look like me. So it becomes a bigger thing than me just becoming
a movie star, and me just being on TV. So if you're going to show every black woman as 400lb or
every black woman as the prostitute on the street ... But I have always maintained that [the roles] I
cannot do because of the way I'm made up, or because of the way I think, I don't begrudge that
there is someone else who has no issues with that." [119]

Personal life[edit]

Bassett with her husband, Courtney B. Vance, March 1, 2007

Bassett married actor Courtney B. Vance in 1997. In the summer of 2005, they starred together in a
production of His Girl Friday at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The couple's twins –
son Slater Josiah Vance and daughter Bronwyn Golden Vance – carried by a surrogate, were born
on January 27, 2006.[120]
Bassett is a supporter of programs for the arts, especially for youth. She annually attends events for
children with diabetes and those in foster homes. She is an active Ambassador of UNICEF for the
United States and a member of the West Angeles Church of God in Christ. Bassett is a supporter of
the Royal Theater Boys & Girls Club in her hometown of St. Petersburg, Florida. [121][122]
She is represented by the Executive Speakers Bureau of Memphis.[123]
In early 2007, Bassett donated $2,300 to the presidential campaign of Barack Obama.[124] Bassett
supported Obama in his reelection campaign. In June 2012, she made an appearance at the St.
Petersburg office of his campaign and said the election was not one "where we can sit on the
sidelines".[125] Bassett attended the second inauguration of Barack Obama on January 20, 2013.
[126]
 She endorsed Hillary Clinton for president during the 2016 United States presidential election,
saying "Bar none, Clinton would make a great president." [127] Bassett also spoke at the 2016
Democratic National Convention, introducing survivors of the previous year's Charleston church
shooting, an incident about which she spoke during her remarks.[128] After Clinton was defeated in the
general election, Bassett tweeted, "Only 1455 days until November 3, 2020. Rest up my country.
#ProudOfHer".[129]
Bassett was initiated as an honorary member of Delta Sigma Theta sorority on July 13, 2013.[130]