Brazilian-Canadian actress Laysla De Oliveira had plenty to celebrate at the Critics Choice Association’s Celebration of Cinema & Television: Honoring Latino and Hispanic Achievements, where she took home the Breakthrough Artist Award.
© GettyFor the Lioness star, the recognition was meaningful not only because of the work being honored, but because of the people and stories represented in the room.
© Getty“I’m just so honored that the work on the show is recognized, but I’m even more honored to be in this room full of people that I admire and love and share the same culture with,” De Oliveira told us on the red carpet. “It just, like, makes my heart sing.”
During her acceptance speech, the actress got even more personal, reflecting on her parents and the sacrifices they made to give her the opportunity to pursue her dreams.
“My parents came to this country to make a better life for themselves and give me the opportunity to dream,” she said. “And now I get to stand here and proudly say that I’ve worked with my giants, that I’ve grown a lot every step of the way.”
© GettyThat idea of working alongside people she once looked up to has been especially meaningful throughout her career. De Oliveira stars alongside Zoe Saldaña and Morgan Freeman in Lioness, something she said has essentially turned every day on set into a master class.
“Everything. It’s like being a sponge,” she said when asked what she takes away from watching actors like Saldaña and Freeman work. “And you only really realize how much you’ve taken in when you go into another job, and you feel like you’re in X Games mode.”
© Jamie McCarthyShe continued, “You’re just like, wow, that’s because I’ve worked alongside my idols and just have been able to learn everything by osmosis."
De Oliveira also used her acceptance speech to celebrate something particularly significant about Lioness: its Latin representation. “I get to just scream out that I work on a hit show with not one, not two, but three Latin leads,” she said.
De Oliveira went on to say that seeing more opportunities for people of color is something she hopes continues to grow throughout the industry. “I just hope for more opportunities, which I think is happening - more opportunities for creative, talented voices, you know, people of color, because we have so many beautiful stories to tell,” she told us. “And I hope that it continues to grow and we continue to have the platform for that.”
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