The historic nomination that fell slightly short
Dolly De Leon almost became the first Filipina to win a Golden Globe - but it's still a win for the Filipino community.
Entangled in scandals and in light of the pandemic, the Golden Globes have not sparkled us on TV with the red carpet walked on by celebrities dazzling us with their custom made gowns and formals in the last two years. The Hollywood Foreign Press Association (or the HFPA) was accused in 2021 for unethical practices and corruption, outlining the lack of diversity and questionable qualifications of their members, that NBC refused to air the Golden Globes last year in 2022.
In recent years, however, they’ve been scrubbing their public image clean and have aired the 80th Golden Globes yesterday on January 10th — the red carpets now studded with A-listers and recognizable talents in the entertainment industry. How well have they cleaned up their act? One thing’s for sure, history was made when the first Filipina actress received a nod for their performance.
Dolly de Leon, a professional actress trained and equipped with a BA in Theatre Arts at the University of the Philippines, according to the Golden Globes website, grew up in the Philippines and acted on stage and the screen in the Philippines — having appeared in a leading role at HBO’s Folklore and starred in over thirty stage productions. She played Abigail in the Palm d’Or winning film by Ruben Östlund, Triangle of Sadness, in which she was nominated Best Performance for a Supporting Role in any Motion Picture.
Triangle of Sadness, a satirical black comedy film, tells the story of a group of rich folks who are stuck on an island after their yacht sunk. De Leon plays cleaner, Abigail, who plays an empowering character that moves up in status as the only one who knows survival skills. Although Angela Basset beat her to the trophy (deservingly, for her brilliant performance in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever), her recognition by Hollywood is still a win for the Filipino community as she became the first Filipina actress to get a nomination at the Golden Globes.
It’s truly inspiring and empowering to see our fellow kabayans and their talents being recognized on a bigger stage. It would’ve been amazing for De Leon to win the golden trophy - a historic win, not just for De Leon, but for Filipinos everywhere - but a nod to her performance is another step towards more representation and diversity in the Hollywood.
I know many actors and actresses who are paving the way for other Filipino talents in the industry: from Eva Noblezada who played the lead in Yellow Rose, West End’s Miss Saigon, and the lead voice in Apple TV’s Luck, to Jacob Batalon who plays the best friend of Tom Holland’s Spiderman. And Dolly de Leon is another who’s inspiring our community.
Over the next few years, I hope to see more Filipino faces and stories on the screen!
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