It looks like Oscar winner Rita Moreno is giving newest Oscar nominee Ana de Armas two thumbs up for her portrayal of screen icon Marilyn Monroe in the polarizing Netflix biopic Blonde.
During a recent interview with People en Español, Moreno was asked about de Armas’ first-ever Oscar nomination of her career. “I’m super happy for her,” Moreno said. “A woman winning an Oscar or being nominated [is incredible].”
De Armas’ nod is only the fifth time a Latina has been nominated as Best Actress in the 95-year history of the Academy Awards. The others were Fernanda Montenegro (1988’s Central Station), Salma Hayek (2002’s Frida); Catalina Sandino Moreno (2004’s Maria Full of Grace); and Yalitza Aparicio (2018’s Roma). None won the award.
Moreno was the first Latina to win the Best Supporting Actress award for her role in the 1961 musical West Side Story. Katy Jurado was nominated before her for 1954’s Broken Lance. Since Moreno’s win, six other Latinas have been nominated.
They were Norma Aleandro (1987’s Gaby: A True Story); Adriana Barraza (2006’s Babel); Bérénice Bejo (2011’s The Artist); Lupita Nyong’o (2013’s 12 Years a Slave); Marina de Tavira (2018’s Roma); and Ariana DeBose (2022’s West Side Story). Nyong’o and DeBose took home the award in their respective year.
Besides an Oscar nomination, some of the other accolades de Armas has received for her performance in Blonde include Best Actress nominations at the Golden Globes and Screen Actors Guild.
“[Ana] was amazing in the movie,” Moreno added, before bringing up what we’re all thinking about: the competition. “She has a lot of competition, but she is a beautiful woman. Really beautiful.”
De Armas’ competition at the Oscars this year is four-time Oscar nominee Michelle Williams (The Fabelmans); Andrea Riseborough (To Leslie); and the two nominees most pundits believe are the frontrunners in the race, two-time Oscar winner Cate Blanchett (TÁR) and Michelle Yeoh (Everything Everywhere All at Once).
Here’s hoping Rita Moreno and Ana de Armas meet up when the 95th Academy Awards ceremony happens on March 12, 2023, at 8 p.m. ET.