LOS ANGELES – The Oscar for supporting actor went to Daniel Kaluuya for his role in “Judas and the Black Messiah” at the 93rd Academy Awards on Sunday night. This was Kaluuya’s second nomination; he had been previously recognized for his role in 2017’s “Get Out.”
Kaluuya was in the unusual position of competing against his costar in the movie, LaKeith Stanfield, also nominated for supporting actor. This was the 20th time in Oscar history that multiple performers from the same film have been nominated for supporting actor, but the first for two Black actors. Kaluuya is also the first Black actor to win competing against a costar. Of the 19 previous showdowns, only six resulted in a win for one of the nominated costars.
In “Judas and the Black Messiah,” Kaluuya plays Fred Hampton, the young, charismatic leader of the Illinois Black Panther Party who was killed by police while at home in Chicago on Dec. 4, 1969. Directed by Shaka King, the film explores the dynamic between Hampton and William O’Neal (Stanfield), the head of his security detail who was also an FBI informant and instrumental in the raid that took Hampton’s life.
In a recent interview with NPR, the British-born Kaluuya said it was simply an opportunity to learn more about Hampton that attracted him to the part, noting, “He’s just a brilliant mind and a brilliant heart, you know, and really taking him in. And I realized that there’s no — there’s a lot of information about how he died, how he was murdered, not a lot of information how — about how incredibly and remarkably he lived.”
Kaluuya was also a winner for the role at the Golden Globes, BAFTAs and SAG Awards.
Aside from Stanfield, also nominated in the category were Sacha Baron Cohen, with his first acting nomination for “The Trial of the Chicago 7" (he’s also a screenwriting nominee this year for “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”); Leslie Odom, Jr., also nominated for original song for “One Night in Miami”; and Paul Raci for “Sound of Metal.”
