The Filipino actress was chosen to be a member of the Oscars’ Academy, among other stars like Ke Huy Quan, Park Hae-Il, Austin Butler, and Keke Palmer.
One actress continues to pave the way for Filipino talent in the international scene, and it’s none other than Dolly De Leon. The 54-year-old made headlines for her breakout role in the satirical black comedy, Triangle of Sadness.
Her role as Abigail, a resourceful cleaning lady on a luxury cruise ship, earned her a slew of nominations in the BAFTAs, Golden Globes, and Satellite Awards—as well as a Guldbagge Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role.
READ ALSO: Triangle Of Success: Dolly De Leon Cast In High-Profile Roles After Awards Recognition
Since then, De Leon has been keeping busy, adding more accomplishments to her already glowing portfolio of work. One of the more recent ones is receiving a membership invitation to the Oscars’ Academy.
This means that she can join the body that determines the recipients for the annual Oscar Awards. The announcement comes nine months before the 96th Oscars ceremony slated for March 10, 2024.
Encouraging Filipino Talent
De Leon posted on Instagram shortly after the list was released. The post’s picture was a screenshot of the invite with her name on it, paired with a brief but heartfelt caption:
“My dream has always been clear to me — to work with artists I admire and respect. This was never part of the plan. So did I ever dream of this to happen? No. Did I ever even wish for it to happen? No. Because I never thought it could. But it’s happened and it’s a step closer to the goal and gives many others like me HOPE. For those of you who dare to dream, know that nothing is impossible. Now it’s your turn. Laban!!!”
De Leon made it clear that an important part of her career is paving the way for more Filipino talents to be recognized in the international scene. Her message is one of encouragement, a reminder to never stop pursuing one’s passions. After more than 30 years of acting and establishing herself in the local film industry, the actress continues to explore new frontiers.
More to Come
As of now, the star has a strong and extensive line-up of upcoming projects. The dark comedy entitled A Very Good Girl is one of them, where she’ll perform alongside Kathryn Bernardo. De Leon also has two Cinemalaya film projects, including the group’s first full-length animated film entitled Iti Mapukpukaw [The Missing].
In terms of international work, she’ll be starring in the Hulu TV series Nine Perfect Strangers together with Nicole Kidman. The Filipina actress was also casted in Amazon’s action-comedy series, Grand Death Lotto, alongside other big stars like Simu Liu, Awkwafina, and John Cena.
Star-Studded Invites
The Academy invited a total of 398 professionals in the film industry, including De Leon. The group’s official list consists of 22 Oscar winners and 76 nominees. These individuals were invited to branches that correspond to their contributions in the film industry.
Some of the categories include the following: Actors, Casting Directors, Cinematographers, Costume Designers, Directors, Documentary, Executives, Film Editors, Music, Producers, Production Design, Short Films and Feature Animation, and Writers. However, the Academy also invited certain professionals to multiple branches.
Among the other actors invited were Ke Huy Quan (Everything Everywhere All at Once), Keke Palmer (Nope), Park Hae-Il (Decision to Leave), Paul Mescal (Aftersun), Austin Butler (Elvis), Nicholas Hoult (The Favorite), Noémie Merlant (Portrait of a Lady on Fire), and NT Rama Rao Jr. (RRR), just to name a few.
Major pop stars like Taylor Swift and The Weeknd (Abel Makkonen Tesfaye) were also in the list for their contributions in film, namely the soundtracks of Where the Crawdads Sing for Swift and Avatar: Way of Water for Tesfaye.
Diversifying Film
According to an article by ABC News, a majority of invitees are from countries outside of the US. This comes as part of the Academy’s efforts to diversify their body. Should all professionals accept the membership, the organization is expected to be composed of 34% women, 18% ethnic minorities or racial communities, and 20% non-US citizens.
“The Academy is proud to welcome these artists and professionals into our membership. They represent extraordinary global talent across cinematic disciplines and have made a vital impact on the arts and sciences of motion pictures and on movie fans worldwide,” shared Academy president Janet Yang and CEO Bill Kramer in a recent statement.
Banner photo by Sina Östlund via Instagram @dollydeleon.
