Angela Bassett

Highest Rated: 100% Passion Fish (1992)

Lowest Rated: 8% Survivor (2015)

Birthday: Aug 16, 1958

Birthplace: New York, New York, USA

A respected actress of the stage, screen, and television, Angela Bassett has been one of the few African-American actresses to break Hollywood's color boundary. She has specialized in playing strong women familiar with adversity and has worked in genres from "chick flick" (Waiting to Exhale) to sci-fi action (Strange Days) to biography (What's Love Got to Do with It?), the last of which featured her in a star-making performance as Tina Turner.Born in New York City on August 16, 1958, Bassett was raised in St. Petersburg, Florida by her mother. Growing up in a household where money was tight, she was taught determination and independence. These values were called into service after an eleventh grade Upward Bound trip to Washington, D.C., when Bassett saw James Earl Jones in a Kennedy Center production of Of Mice and Men. Deciding that acting was her calling, she became involved in a number of local productions in St. Petersburg. She continued to act at Yale University, where she earned a scholarship; after completing a B.A. in African-American studies, she also spent three years at the Yale School of Drama. One of Bassett's mentors at Yale was the drama school's dean, stage director Lloyd Richards, who was so impressed with her talent that he cast her in two of his productions, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom and Joe Turner's Come and Gone. Although she enjoyed relative success on the stage, Bassett, like other African-American actors, had a difficult time finding roles in television and film.In 1986, Bassett made her screen debut in the cult favorite F/X. Following supporting roles in Kindergarten Cop (1990) and John Sayles' City of Hope (1991), she had her first significant screen role in John Singleton's acclaimed Boyz 'N the Hood, playing a struggling single mother. Two years later, after playing the wife of civil rights leader Malcolm X in Spike Lee's biopic and the Jackson Family matriarch in the made-for-TV The Jacksons: An American Dream, Bassett had her screen breakthrough as Tina Turner in What's Love Got to Do with It?, a performance that earned her a Best Actress Oscar nomination and a Golden Globe. As her newfound status allowed her to expand her range of work, Bassett went on to star in a series of diverse films. In 1995, a foray into futuristic action in Strange Days was complemented by a lead in the successful women's ensemble drama Waiting to Exhale (based on the novel by Terry McMillan), in which Bassett starred alongside Whitney Houston, Lela Rochon, and Loretta Devine. In 1998, she starred as the title character in another McMillan adaptation, How Stella Got Her Groove Back, playing a divorcee whose discontent is ably assuaged by a hunky twenty-year-old (Taye Diggs). The following year, she had a supporting role in Music of the Heart and again tried her hand at action in Supernova, a sci-fi thriller. Starring in former Orson Welles collaborator and blacklisted director John Berry's critically panned swansong Boesman and Lena in 2000, Bassett (along with co-star Danny Glover) earned praise for their sensitive performances as a troubled South African couple striving to seek stability in the face of Apartheid.Her career continued to evolve with a part in The Score in 2001. The next year she executive produced and starred in a biopic about civil rights figure Rosa Parks. She was part of the large ensemble John Sayles brought together for Sunshine State, and co-starred opposite Bernie Mac in the sports comedy Mr. 3000. In 2006 she played the mother in the spelling bee drama Akeelah and the Bee, and she continued to land parts in big-budget blockbusters such as Green Lantern and This Means War.Since 1997, Bassett has been married to actor Courtney B. Vance, whom she had known since their days at Yale.

Photos

View All Photos

Highest Rated Movies

Filmography

Movies

		Credit
95%	The Apollo	Actor	—	2019
26%	Otherhood	Carol Executive Producer	—	2019
92%	Bumblebee	Shatter	—	2018
97%	Mission: Impossible - Fallout	Erika Sloane	—	2018
85%	Avengers: Infinity War	Ramonda	$665M	2018
97%	Black Panther	Ramonda	$501.2M	2018
No Score Yet	The Flood	Narrator	—	2018
No Score Yet	August 28th: A Day in the Life of a People	Actor	—	2018
No Score Yet	African American Museum	Actor	—	2017
27%	London Has Fallen	Lynn Jacobs	—	2016
82%	Chi-Raq	Miss Helen	$2.7M	2015
No Score Yet	Curious George 3: Back to the Jungle	Dr. Kulinda	—	2015
8%	Survivor	Maureen Cranepaul	$0.2M	2015
47%	Whitney	Director	—	2015
No Score Yet	Life's Essentials with Ruby Dee	Actor	—	2015
54%	White Bird in a Blizzard	Dr. Thaler	—	2014
No Score Yet	We The People: From Crispus Attucks To Barack Obama	Actor	—	2014
50%	Black Nativity	Aretha Cobbs	$4.9M	2013
49%	Olympus Has Fallen	Secret Service Director Lynn Jacobs	$98.7M	2013
No Score Yet	Betty and Coretta	Coretta Scott King	—	2013
No Score Yet	I Ain't Scared Of You: A Tribute To Bernie Mac	Actor	—	2012
26%	This Means War	Collins	$54.8M	2012
No Score Yet	Daisy Bates: First Lady Of Little Rock	Actor	—	2012
26%	Green Lantern	Dr. Amanda Waller	$116.7M	2011
57%	Jumping the Broom	Mrs. Watson	$37.3M	2011
No Score Yet	VIPs	Actor	—	2010
51%	Notorious	Voletta Wallace	$36.7M	2009
No Score Yet	Why We Laugh: Black Comedians on Black Comedy	Narrator	—	2009
82%	Nothing But the Truth	Bonnie Benjamin	—	2008
33%	Meet The Browns	Brenda Brown	$42M	2008
33%	Gospel Hill	Sarah Malcolm	—	2008
67%	Meet the Robinsons	Mildred	$97.7M	2007
No Score Yet	Of Boys and Men	Rieta Cole	—	2007
85%	Akeelah and the Bee	Tanya	$18.9M	2006
No Score Yet	Time Bomb	Actor	—	2006
No Score Yet	Tyler Perry's Meet The Browns	Brenda	—	2005
55%	Mr. 3000	Mo	$21.8M	2004
No Score Yet	The Lazarus Child	Dr. Elizabeth Chase	—	2004
25%	Masked and Anonymous	Mistress	$0.2M	2003
80%	Sunshine State	Desiree Perry	$2.9M	2002
No Score Yet	The Rosa Parks Story	Rosa Parks Executive Producer	—	2002
No Score Yet	Our America	Executive Producer	—	2002
No Score Yet	Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives	Actor	—	2002
No Score Yet	Ruby's Bucket of Blood	Ruby Delacroix	—	2001
73%	The Score	Diane	$70.4M	2001
No Score Yet	Whispers: An Elephant's Tale	Groove	—	2000
10%	Supernova	Kaela Evers	—	2000
50%	Boesman and Lena	Lena	—	2000
63%	Music of the Heart	Janet	—	1999
No Score Yet	Africans in America	Actor	—	1998
49%	How Stella Got Her Groove Back	Stella Payne	—	1998
No Score Yet	Africans in America	Narrator	—	1998
No Score Yet	Africans in America	Narrator	—	1998
No Score Yet	Off the Menu: The Last Days of Chasen's	Actor	—	1997
63%	Contact	Rachel Constantine	—	1997
56%	Waiting to Exhale	Bernadine	—	1995
10%	Vampire in Brooklyn	Rita	—	1995
62%	Strange Days	Mace Mason	—	1995
27%	Panther	Betty Shabazz	—	1995
96%	What's Love Got To Do With It?	Tina Turner	—	1993
100%	Passion Fish	Dawn/Rhonda	—	1992
88%	Malcolm X	Dr. Betty Shabazz	—	1992
39%	Innocent Blood	US Attorney Sinclair	—	1992
No Score Yet	Locked Up: A Mother's Rage	Willie	—	1991
94%	City of Hope	Reesha	—	1991
96%	Boyz n the Hood	Reva Styles	—	1991
No Score Yet	Critters 4: They're Invading Your Space	Fran	—	1991
No Score Yet	The Heroes of Desert Storm	Lt. Phoebe Jeter	—	1991
No Score Yet	Perry Mason: The Case of the Silenced Singer	Carla Peters	—	1990
No Score Yet	Challenger	Cheryl McNair	—	1990
88%	F/X	TV Reporter	—	1986
No Score Yet	Doubletake	Prostitute	—	1985

TV

		Credit
93%	BoJack Horseman 2014-2019	Voice	2020 2019
No Score Yet	Close to the Enemy 2016	Eva	2019
No Score Yet	The Daily Show With Trevor Noah 2015-2019	Guest	2019
100%	The Imagineering Story 2019	Narrator Narrator	2019
85%	9-1-1 2018	Athena Grant	2019 2018
No Score Yet	The Late Late Show With James Corden 2015-2019	Guest	2019 2018
No Score Yet	The Talk 2010	Guest	2019 2018 2016 2013 2011
No Score Yet	Close Up With the Hollywood Reporter 2015	Guest	2018
No Score Yet	The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon 2014	Guest	2018
No Score Yet	Variety Studio: Actors on Actors 2015	Guest	2018
No Score Yet	Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen 2009-2019	Guest	2018 2014
No Score Yet	Conan 2010	Guest	2016
No Score Yet	Late Night With Seth Meyers 2014	Guest	2016 2015
No Score Yet	The Chew 2011-2018	Guest	2016 2015
76%	American Horror Story 2013	Director Marie Laveau Desiree Dupree	2016 2014 2013 2011
No Score Yet	The Wendy Williams Show 2008	Guest	2015
No Score Yet	American Horror Story: Freak Show 2014	Desiree Dupree	2015 2014 2011
No Score Yet	American Horror Story: Hotel 2015	Ramona Royale	2015 2011
No Score Yet	Finding Your Roots With Henry Louis Gates Jr. 2012	Appearing	2014
No Score Yet	CBS This Morning 2012	Guest	2014 2013
No Score Yet	The View 1997	Guest	2013 2012 2011
85%	The Simpsons 1989	Voice	2010
No Score Yet	ER 1994-2009	Cate Banfield	2009 2008
88%	Alias 2001-2006	Hayden Chase	2005
No Score Yet	Independent Lens 1999	Host Appearing Host (Season 1)	2003
No Score Yet	The Bernie Mac Show 2001-2006	Herself	2003
43%	Alien Nation 1989-1990	Renee Longstreet	1990
No Score Yet	The Cosby Show 1984-1992	Mrs. Mitchell Sara	1988 1985

QUOTES FROM Angela Bassett CHARACTERS

Kaela Evers says: Whoever they are they're s smart as God and a lot less nice.

Secret Service Director Lynn Jacobs says: Is he alive?

Mike Banning says: Ask me a serious question.

Lornette "Mace" Mason says: Memories are meant to fade. They're designed that way for a reason.

Fireman says: Ma'am, were you aware that your car was on fire?

Bernadine Harris says: (Nods her head while smoking a cigarette)

Fireman says: Ma'am, did you start this fire?

Bernadine Harris says: (Puffs smoke and plainly looks at him)

Fireman says: You know, it's against the law to burn anything except trash in your yard.

Bernadine Harris says: (flicks off ashes from her cigarette) It is trash.

Fireman says: Look, this is a nice area. Luckily, a neighbor cared enough. Listen, the next time you wanna burn something...

Bernadine Harris says: It won't happen again.

Bernadine Harris says: (Shuts the door in his face)

Bernadine Harris says: (Arguing about money at John's office) Who do you think started this damn company, huh? And now, you think you can just take the money and run...

John Sr. says: Business hasn't been good for years, but don't you worry, you'll get what's comin' to you.

Bernadine Harris says: Hell, I'm not worried... you, on the other hand, should be.

John Sr. says: I am prepared to offer you $300,000 cash, *today*

Bernadine Harris says: Your children aren't for sale. (walks away)

John Sr. says: Oh, by the way, I'm comin' to pick up my kids on Saturday.

Bernadine Harris says: Yeah? (Walks back toward John)

Bernadine Harris says: And if I hear you had 'em anywhere near that tramp *bitch*, you're gonna regret it for the rest of your life!

Bernadine Harris says: I give you eleven fucking years of my life and you're telling me that you're leaving for a white woman?

John Sr. says: Would it help if she was black?

Bernadine Harris says: No. It would help if you were black.

Secret Service Director Lynn Jacobs says: Sparkplug received!!

Secret Service Director Lynn Jacobs says: Sparkplug received!

Mike Banning says: 40 commandos breached the gate, 28 are left.

Secret Service Director Lynn Jacobs says: How do we know we can trust the information?

Mike Banning says: I just asked nicely.

Mike Banning says: Hashtag? What the fuck is that?

Secret Service Director Lynn Jacobs says: Shift 3! Shift 3!

Bernadine Harris says: It won't happen again!.

Bernadine Harris says: It won't happen again.