The 30th Screen Actors Guild Award took place at the Shrine Auditorium and Expo Hall in Los Angeles. The prestigious award ceremony honoured the best in film and television. Lily Gladstone won the Outstanding Female Actor in a Leading Role in a Motion Picture category award for her role of Mollie Burkhart in ‘Killers of the Flower Moon.’ In her speech, she spoke about the importance of visibility.
Jessica Chastain announced Lily Gladstone as the winner in the Outstanding Female Actor in a Leading Role in a Motion Picture category. As Gladstone took the stage, the crowd cheered for her. The lights shone on her, and she delivered her acceptance speech in her native Blackfoot language. She said, “My friends, fellow actors, I feel the good in what you have done — what you do. This has been a hard year for all of us. Those in this room, those not in this room, I'm so proud that we have gotten here in solidarity with all of our other unions."
She continued her speech and talked about why visibility is important for storytellers. She continued, “It's truly a gift that we get to do this for a living. That's the win. It was getting to be here; it was getting to be on set. It was getting to tell stories. It's so easy to distance ourselves. It's so easy to close off, to stop feeling, and we all bravely keep feeling, and that humanizes people. That brings people out of the shadows; it brings visibility.”
Gladstone urged everyone in the room to continue telling stories and asserted how everyone has a story to share with the world. She added, “Keep telling stories to everybody in this room, to everybody watching abroad. Those of you who are not actors but have a voice, have a story that needs to be heard," she added. "Thank you for all of the compassionate souls in this room and all of the storytellers here tonight. Keep speaking your truths and keep speaking up for each other.”
Lily Gladstone made history as she is the first-ever Indigenous artist to win an award in that category.
