Awkwafina Becomes First Woman Of Asian Descent To Win Golden Globe For Best Actress For A Film

This morning (Jan 6), Hollywood actress Awkwafina made history when she became the first woman of Asian descent to bag a Golden Globe for Lead Actress in a Musical or Comedy.

The 31-year-old star, who won for her role in The Farewell, is only the sixth Asian actress to be nominated in this category — her Crazy Rich Asians co-star Constance Wu was nominated in 2018, breaking a five-decade long drought for actresses of Asian descent.

In The Farewell, the actress-rapper, whose real name is Nora Lum, plays a Chinese-American immigrant struggling with her cultural identity while trying to protect her grandmother (75-year-old Chinese actress Zhao Shuzhen) from a grim diagnosis.

If anything, if I fall upon hard times I can sell this, she joked in her acceptance speech. I've never been to the Golden Globes, so I'm here now and it's this and it's great.

Awkwafina, who is of Chinese-American and South Korean descent, also dedicated her win to her family.

“I’d like to dedicate this to my dad, Wally. I told you I’d get a job, dad,” Awkwafina said. “To my grandma, my best friend, the woman who raised me. And to my mother, Tia, who I always hope is watching from somewhere above, and I hope that she’s watching now.”

Congratulations!

Pic credits: Awkwafina and Golden Globes' Instagram