Viola Davis is now the most-nominated Black actress in Oscars history
- Davis now has four career Oscar nods thanks to her best actress nod for "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom."
- It breaks a tie she had with Octavia Spencer.
- If Davis wins, she will be the first Black actress to win lead actress since Halle Berry in 2002.
Viola Davis has another honor to add to her already illustrious acting career.
With her best actress nomination on Monday for Netflix's "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom," Davis is now the most nominated Black actress in Oscars history.
She now has a total of four nominations, including an Oscar win in 2017 for "Fences."
Before this nomination, Davis was tied with Octavia Spencer for the most nominations by a Black actress. Spencer won in 2012 for "The Help," a movie in which Davis was also nominated, and earned Academy recognition for "Hidden Figures" and "The Shape of Water."
For her latest role, Davis gives an incredible performance playing the no-nonsense Ma Rainey, the singer who is regarded as the "Mother of the Blues." We watch as Ma records an album with her band in late 1920s Chicago, desperate to get respect in a predatory record business that takes advantage of Black artists and lines the pockets of white producers.
If Davis wins, she would be making more history. It would mark the first time a Black actress has won multiple Oscars.
A win would also be only the second time in Academy Awards history that a Black actress received an Oscar in the lead actress category, following Halle Berry's memorable win for "Monster's Ball" in 2002.
The 93rd Academy Awards will take place on Sunday, April 25 at 8 p.m. ET., airing live on ABC.