America Ferrera ‘stunned’ by her surprise ‘Barbie’ Oscar nomination

By Alli Rosenbloom, CNN

(CNN) — While there has been some head-scratching about some overlooked contenders who weren’t nominated for Oscars for the “Barbie” movie on Tuesday morning, America Ferrera’s wonderfully unexpected best supporting actress nod is certainly one to celebrate.

“I’m stunned and so moved to be nominated among the brilliant artists who have done beautiful and important work this year,” Ferrera said in a statement sent to CNN later on Tuesday.

Her statement continued, “I’m so proud to get to bring Latiné representation to this years Academy Awards, along with my fellow Latiné nominees. May the diversity of voices acknowledged by the Academy continue to grow!” (Latiné is a gender neutral identifier used in Latin America’s LGBTQ+ community, similar “Latinx.”)

Born in the United States to parents who immigrated from Honduras, Ferrera was one of three people of color nominated in the supporting actress category, alongside Da’Vine Joy Randolph for “The Holdovers” and Danielle Brooks for “The Color Purple.”

“Oppenheimer’s” Emily Blunt and Jodie Foster in “Nyad” round out the category nominees. This is Ferrera’s first Oscar nomination.

The “Ugly Betty” star delivered one of the most empowering cinematic monologues of the year when her “Barbie” character Gloria gave an impassioned feminist pep talk about the very relatable, and conflicting, expectations of being a woman.

Her recognition on Tuesday is just further proof that her message resonated beyond the massive audience who saw the film, which was 2023’s highest-grossing domestic movie and brought in over $1 billion worldwide.

“I’m thrilled to celebrate my phenomenal Barbie family and all their achievements,” Ferrera said, adding that director Greta Gerwig and producer/star Margot Robbie “made history and raised the bar with Barbie.”

Gerwig was nominated in the best adapted screenplay category and Robbie was recognized in the best picture category as a producer on the film. But, to the chagrin of many, they did not earn nominations in the best director and lead actress categories, respectively.

Their contribution to the massive global success of “Barbie,” however, is not lost on Ferrera, who on Tuesday said that “the cultural and industry impact they’ve achieved will be felt for generations.”

“I’m so thankful to them for asking me to be a part of it,” she added.

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