![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/towncryyers.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/cynthia.jpg?resize=618%2C410\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nIn the wake of notable snubs for the likes of Jennifer Lopez (\u201cHustlers\u201d), Jamie Foxx (\u201cJust Mercy\u201d) and Lupita Nyong\u2019o (\u201cUs\u201d), Erivo was the only person of color nominated for an acting Oscar this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHarriet,\u201d distributed by Focus Features, exceeded box office forecasts when it opened in November, debuting to $12 million on its way to $43 million to date in global ticket sales. It marks the first feature leading role for Erivo, who stole scenes in 2018\u2019s \u201cWidows\u201d and \u201cBad Times at the El Royale.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI think in doing [\u2018The Color Purple\u2019] I realized that that\u2019s really what I want to do \u2014 keep telling stories about women of color who were full and rounded,\u201d Erivo told the Times in November.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Erivo is just the 11th black actress to be nominated for a leading role at the Oscars in the ceremony\u2019s 92-year history. Should she win, she would be just the second black woman in history to take home a lead acting Oscar, following Halle Berry\u2019s 2001 win for \u201cMonster\u2019s Ball.\u201d This year\u2019s Oscars will broadcast live from Hollywood\u2019s Dolby Theatre on Feb. 9.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By SONAIYA KELLEYSTAFF WRITER British actress Cynthia Erivo was nominated for her first Oscar on Monday morning for her performance as the iconic freedom fighter and abolitionist Harriet Tubman in Kasi Lemmons\u2019 “Harriet.\u201d The stage…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":147,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[6],"tags":[36,37,38],"class_list":["post-146","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment-art-culture","tag-cynthia-erivo","tag-harriet-tubman","tag-oscar"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/towncryyers.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Cynthia-Erivo-2019-Tony-Awards.jpg?resize=819%2C1024\")
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She was first approached about \u201cHarriet\u201d while in the midst of a Tony-winning turn in the Broadway production of \u201cThe Color Purple.\u201d The production is also responsible for her subsequent Grammy (for the cast recording) and Daytime Emmy (for a cast performance on NBC\u2019s \u201cToday\u201d) wins. (For those who don\u2019t want to count Daytime Emmys in EGOT status, Erivo will also headline the upcoming limited series \u201cGenius: Aretha\u201d for National Geographic. And playing music singer Aretha Franklin could put her in Primetime Emmy contention as well.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/towncryyers.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/maxresdefault.jpg?resize=1024%2C576\")
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\nEven if she only wins in the original song category, the 33-year-old would become the youngest EGOT winner, one of just 16 people who have reached the coveted milestone and the fastest, having collected all four trophies in less than four years (current record holder Robert Lopez took 10 years to achieve the feat and completed it at age 39).<\/p>\n\n\n\n