The entertainment industry is a world of feast or famine. An actor either has to take odd jobs that many admit they were fired from and share an apartment with several others, or they have jobs lined up for months to years on end and have no time to take a breath and enjoy their success. It is not until there is that one breakthrough role that launches an actor's career that there is finally an opportunity to see that all the hard work was worth it.
This is exactly what happened to Naomi Ackie after she finally earned acclaim for her craft after working professionally as an actor for over a decade.
While mainstream audiences may only be familiar with Ackie's work over the past several years, the Lady Macbeth star has been steadily gaining momentum in her career since she decided to become a professional actor. Now, Naomi Ackie is finally earning recognition for her acting roles.
Naomi Ackie Earned Acclaim For Singing In The Whitney Houston Biopic
Tackling the role of The Voice is one that is intimidating, to say the least. This is especially true when fans wanted a movie that was honest but respectful of the late singer's life. While Ackie did not think that she had a shot at playing Whitney Houston in I Wanna Dance With Somebody, she took a shot and sent in an audition tape for the role.
That move would forever sealed her fate as a bonafide star.
When Ackie sent in her audition tape for the Whitney Houston biopic, she was on the set of The Score. The film was a blend of a crime drama and a musical. As such, the Cupid star had already been working on her singing chops when the script for I Wanna Dance With Somebody rolled around.
This, in conjunction with Ackie's ability to bring Houston's persona to life after an arduous four months of auditions, is what finally landed Ackie the role.
"We were very impressed that Whitney’s persona was being captured," Clive Davis said about Ackie's performance.
And while Ackie was not allowed to sing in the biopic, with executives choosing to use Houston's voice to sing some of her greatest hits instead, there are moments when Ackie's voice shines.
"My singing voice was only for moments that needed to be filled, like an emotional beat," Ackie explained.
"So that's why the beginning singing in the gospel choirs was me and then you hear this change so that we know it's Whitney."
The Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker star went on to say, "Because we don't have Whitney with us, there is a kind of request from the audience to suspend their disbelief for the duration of the film."
Acclaim for her work portraying Houston came as a surprise to Ackie when she was nominated for the BAFTA Rising Star Award. And while she ultimately did not win, the recognition was finally tangible for Ackie after all the years of wondering if she had made the right decision to become an actress or not.
Naomi Ackie Has Been In Other Films
While Ackie may be most recognized as of late for her work on I Wanna Dance With Somebody, she has been in several well-received films in the past. And her talent is just as palpable in those films as it is today.
Like most actors, Ackie took jobs to get her foot in the door at the beginning of her career. But it is when she took the role of Anna in Lady Macbeth that critics saw the talent Ackie had.
Critics said that Ackie took the role of Anna and played it with "intelligent subtlety." And given that the character is almost entirely mute throughout the film, it took a lot to bring that type of presence to the screen.
From the period piece, Ackie would go on to be in several shorts and guest star on television shows. One of those shows was the critically acclaimed The End of the F***ing World to which Ackie received stellar reviews again.
Ackie played Bonnie, a character who served as the second protagonist in the series. She played the character with "an excellent, career-making performance" that cemented that Ackie was going places with her career, and fast.
Next came Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker. The film was big, not only because it was part of the Star Wars franchise but because Ackie was one of the few Black women who had ever been cast as an integral character in the Star Wars universe.
Ackie was told there was a lot riding on her shoulders, given that "a lot to a lot of Black—young girls in particular—but Black people" would be looking up to Ackie. And while there was pressure, she took it all in stride, even when fans thought the film itself should have gone in a different direction.
Over the next several years, Ackie would continue to work on films and television shows, receiving rave reviews for her work in Master of None, The Score, and other projects. And then, I Wanna Dance With Somebody was released, and the rest for Ackie is history.
Naomi Ackie Has Been Nominated For Various Awards
Ackie is no novice when it comes to being nominated for awards for her work on both the big and small screen. This a testament to the quality of work that the actor has been putting out well before she was recognized for portraying Houston.
Over the span of her career, Ackie has been nominated for seven awards, two of which she won.
Ackie has had quite a career to date, even if she is only starting to be recognized by the masses for her work as Houston or in Star Wars. Will Ackie's career see her using her beautiful voice in future work? Only time will tell.
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