Angela Bassett has spent 4 a long time redefining what strength, elegance, and longevity appear to be in Hollywood. From her electrifying breakout as Tina Turner in “What’s Love Got to Do with It” to her Oscar-nominated turn as Queen Ramonda in “Black Panther: Wakanda Perpetually,” Bassett has built a profession rooted in power, grace, and emotional depth, the type that makes her certainly one of the industry’s most respected performers. Her portrayals of real-life icons equivalent to Betty Shabazz, Katherine Jackson, and Rosa Parks further cemented her status as an artist who can channel each fire and vulnerability in a single breath. And today, at 66, the “9-1-1” star continues to steer conversations around representation and longevity, proving that her influence only grows stronger with time. So it’s no surprise she tops this yr’s list of Hollywood’s most inspiring women over 50, and in true Angela Bassett fashion, she accepted the dignity with humility and a message that radiates optimism.
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Angela Bassett Reflects On Aging With Power And Joy
“Half the time, I forget how old I’m!” Bassett told AARP Movies for Grownups with amusing. “Just keep putting one foot in front of the opposite, keep embracing life, and know that the most effective is yet to come back.”
Long praised for her “innate strength, diamond-sharp beauty, and depth of feeling,” as The Recent Yorker once put it, Bassett brings a way of emotional voltage to each performance. But behind the accolades and gravitas, she carries herself flippantly, never letting a number define what she’s able to.
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Bassett’s Work Ethic Continues To Encourage Hollywood
Her “Black Panther: Wakanda Perpetually” director, Ryan Coogler, says her brilliance is universally recognized amongst those that work along with her.
“Everybody loves Angela.… She’s a national treasure, know what I mean? She’s so incredible that sometimes you forget.… Her work ethic is insane,” Coogler stated.
That work ethic helped turn her volcanic portrayal of Tina Turner in “What’s Love Got to Do With It” right into a cultural milestone, earning her a Golden Globe, an Oscar nomination, and a everlasting place within the pop-culture canon.
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Angela Bassett Reflects On Her Impactful Roles
She went on to bring powerful resonance to roles equivalent to Betty Shabazz in “Malcolm X,” Katherine Jackson in “The Jacksons: An American Dream,” and the long-lasting civil rights heroine in “The Rosa Parks Story.” “If you happen to’re lucky,” she tells AARP Movies for Grownups, “your work touches others, and you’ll be able to make an impact.”
In 2023, Bassett made history as the primary actor ever nominated for an Oscar for a Marvel film, due to her commanding performance as Queen Ramonda. Today, she channels that very same intensity into her role as Athena Grant on FOX’s hit series “9-1-1,” now entering its ninth season.
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Why Naomi Watts Says Community Is All the pieces At This Stage Of Life
Coming in second on AARP Movies for Grownups’ list is Naomi Watts, who’s admired not only for her award-winning performances in movies like Mulholland Drive and 21 Grams, but in addition for her honesty about aging, menopause, and feminine empowerment. “I like being in my 50s,” she said. “We get to know ourselves higher … and we will stop the people-pleasing. There is no need to offer a f-ck what everyone else thinks. We are able to let go of the coulda, shoulda, wouldas and go after what we would like, unapologetically.”
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Off-screen, Watts is constructing community and sparking conversations through Stripes, her skin-care and wellness brand dedicated to supporting women through midlife changes. She brings that very same message of sisterhood to her recent Hulu series “All’s Fair,” starring alongside Glenn Close, Sarah Paulson, and Kim Kardashian as a bunch of fierce female divorce attorneys forging their very own path.
“I feel especially grateful now for the deep friendships I actually have with remarkable women,” Watts said. “We have grown up together, through thick and thin. Community is every part.”
Angela Bassett And Hollywood’s Powerhouses Over 50 Rewrite The Rules Of Aging
This yr’s list spotlights women who aren’t just thriving over 50, but who’re leading conversations about representation, longevity, and what it means to maintain evolving long after Hollywood would traditionally expect them to fade.
Angela Bassett’s reminder that “the most effective is yet to come back” seems like the collective thesis of the list itself that aging just isn’t an ending, but an expansion.