La Cañada Flintridge’s Angela Bassett (right) plays Queen Ramonda alongside Letitia Wright in “Black Panther,” which has earned more than $1.3 billion worldwide.
La Cañada Flintridge resident Angela Bassett, one of the stars of Oscar best picture nominee “Black Panther,” is set to be a presenter at the Academy Awards this Sunday, Feb. 24.
In the Ryan Coogler-directed film, Bassett plays Queen Ramonda, the mother of Chadwick Boseman’s T’Challa, a.k.a. Black Panther. The film, set in the fictional African country of Wakanda, also stars Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong’o and Letitia Wright, among others. Released in February 2018, the movie became the first comic book blockbuster to feature a predominantly black cast and dealt with themes of racism, international relations, isolationism and identity in America and Africa.
It has grossed more than $700 million at the domestic box office, part of a $1.3 billion-plus worldwide take. Moreover, it’s the first superhero film to be nominated for the best picture Oscar. All told, “Black Panther” is nominated for seven Oscars, in categories including costume design, production design and original song — for “All the Stars,” the film version of which features Kendrick Lamar and SZA.
Boseman also will be a presenter at the show, scheduled to be presented live at 5 p.m. on ABC.
“The array of talent anchoring the show this year has brought some of the most indelible moments in recent cinematic memory to audiences around the world,” said Academy Awards producer Donna Gigliotti and co-producer and director Glenn Weiss in a recent statement. “They join together to reconnect us with the nominees, their tremendous movies and outstanding performances.”
Other presenters include Jason Momoa, Daniel Craig, Jennifer Lopez, Charlize Theron, Javier Bardem, Samuel L. Jackson, Melissa McCarthy and Constance Wu.
For the first time since 1989, there will not be an Oscars host this year. Without a host, presenters will likely play a larger role.
In a video interview with the Associated Press last year, Bassett, who is married to fellow actor Courtney B. Vance, said the movie’s success “feels like heaven” and numerous people have reached out to her.
“I just turn my phone on and I’ve gotten a text from somebody,” she said. “Everyone’s so proud, but no more proud than I am. In the making of it, I don’t know, I don’t think we thought we would change history. We thought it would be special. But to this degree and with this urgency and with this speed, and with all this love and good feeling emanating from it, we’re humbled.”
The 91st Oscars will be held at the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood and Highland Center in Hollywood.
