As the industry grapples with immense fracture, loss and uncertainty, Uzo Aduba had nothing but words of hope and promise when she took the stage to receive The Hollywood Reporter’s Trailblazer Award on Feb. 6 at SCADTVfest.
“We are told that our differences divide us, creating a separation based on idealistic standards,” Aduba said to a packed house of students and local fans inside the 600-plus seat SCADshow Theater in Atlanta. “But I’m here to tell you our differences are not weaknesses but strengths. The richness of our stories, the diversity of our characters, the power of our art — all of it comes from embracing what makes us unique. … You bring your superpower, value, and uniqueness to the table. Don’t let anyone tell you differently. Anything is possible, and the journey is never over. There is no limit or expiration date for dreams.”
Aduba’s remarks followed a career-spanning presentation of the Trailblazer Award given by The Hollywood Reporter and fourth-year SCAD acting student Samaria Williams.
Williams said she was honored to acknowledge “an actress who embodies what it means to be an artist. Uzo is caring, curious … and most of all, empathetic. She has remained committed to the art behind it all. She really sees people and translates that understanding into creating fully realized characters.”
From left: Uzo Aduba and Samaria Falone Williams attend The Hollywood Reporter’s Trailblazer Award presentation.
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After the award, Aduba treated the audience to a preview of her latest project, Shondaland’s eight-episode murder-mystery The Residence, which streams on Netflix starting March 20. (Think: Knives Out set at The White House.)
Following the premiere, series executive producer Betsy Beers and cast members Jason Lee, Bronson Pinchot and Susan Kelechi Watson joined Aduba onstage for a conversation about the “whodunit” series, in which eccentric detective Cordelia Cupp (Aduba) is charged with the solving the murder of the White House’s head usher (Giancarlo Esposito). Lee, Pinchot and Watson play three of the series’ myriad potential suspects: aggrieved brother of the president, moody pastry chef and assistant White House usher, respectively.
“In our hearts, don’t we all want to be detectives?” Beers mused when asked why the ensemble-murder-mystery format has seen such a renewed surge in popularity. “We are all nosy. I’m nosy as hell! We’re all curious about human behavior. And the great thing about [these shows] is that they are the most aggressively interactive formats that exist. There’s something so enticing about trying to figure out whodunnit.”
Panelists also shared highlights from their professional journeys, from Lee’s early days working with director Kevin Smith in 1995’s Mallrats to Aduba’s youthful revelations about pursuing career in the arts.
“I grew up in traditional Nigerian family. I loved art, but we didn’t have the cultural exposure for me [to explore] art school,” she recalled. “My creative writing teacher — who was also the drama club teacher — asked what I planned to do with my life. I said I was going to be a lobbyist and become a lawyer and move to D.C. That was the plan. She asked, ‘Have you given any thought to going to art school? You seem to have a real love for it.’ A light bulb went off and I said, ‘Oh, that’s what I’m supposed to do.’ That’s why I shout-out teachers. … They have such an incredible way of impacting your soul.’”
From left: Stacey Wilson Hunt, Uzo Aduba, Susan Kelechi Watson, Bronson Pinchot, Jason Lee and Betsy Beers speak onstage for The Residence Q&A..
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Aduba and her Residence collaborators joined dozens of other artists and series talent at the 13th installment of SCADTVfest, the signature event of Savannah College of Art and Design celebrating television. Other panels and events showcased talent from FX’s Shogun, Netflix’s Cobra Kai and Stranger Things, CBS’ The Amazing Race and Amazon’s Clean Slate, among many others.
THR’s Trailblazer Award series launched in 2023 with a mission to acknowledge artists whose work shows a commitment to amplifying characters, stories and communities that previously existed in the margins of storytelling. Recent winners have included Niecy Nash, Matt Bomer, Jean Smart, David Oyelowo and America Ferrera.
Aduba’s career post-Orange Is the New Black — for which she won three Emmys — has included a slew of groundbreaking work, including her Emmy-winning turn as Shirley Chisholm in FX’s Mrs. America and playing Brooke Taylor, the complex therapist at the center of HBO’s 2021 reboot of In Treatment. In 2024, she released the best-selling memoir The Road Is Good: How a Mother’s Strength Became a Daughter’s Purpose and also is a busy philanthropist, serving as Heifer International’s first-ever celebrity ambassador to Africa.
