Former beauty queen, Halle Berry has emerged over three decades as a multi-talented and award-winning actress, becoming one of the most famous stars in Hollywood. Born in 1968, she entered several beauty contests as a teenager, finishing first runner-up in the 1986 Miss USA beauty pageant. This success led her to quit her journalism studies in Cleveland and pursue a fashion model career.
In 1989, she moved to New York City to get into showbiz. After a rocky start during which she even lived in a homeless shelter for a short period, she began playing a model in the television series “Living Dolls.” Her film debut occurred with a minor role in 1991 in “Jungle Fever,” and the turning point of her career happened in 2002 with the movie “Monster’s Ball.” She won an Academy Award for Best Actress in this leading role and made history by becoming the first Black woman to win the honor.
"This moment is for Dorothy Dandridge, Lena Horne, Diahann Carroll. It's for the women that stand beside me, Jada Pinkett, Angela Bassett, Vivica Fox. And it's for every nameless, faceless woman of color that now has a chance because this door tonight has been opened. Thank you. I'm so honored. I'm so honored," she said in her award speech.
Her career path has not always been easy in Hollywood, and she had to break racial barriers and confessed to having missed opportunities because of discrimination. But it didn’t stop her. Over the years, her hard work, commitment, and talent helped her reach stardom. She acted in movies like “Catwoman,” “The Call,” “Perfect Stranger,” “The Flintstones,” “X-Men,” “Bruised,” and “Die Another Day.”—a filmography that proves her ability to switch easily from action to drama or comedy.
And now also adding the role of director to her repertoire, she continues to grow on her own terms, with no plan slow down anytime soon. "I try to remind myself that every year, if I don't win an Oscar it doesn't mean I'm not talented. It doesn't mean that I have to put undue pressure on myself to recreate that moment. Some of these moments are once in a lifetime moments, they can't be recreated," she said.