One of the most egregious snubs of this year's already-controversial and diversity-free Academy Awards was Idris Elba being left out of the Best Supporting Actor category. The Beasts of No Nation star earned raves and accolades for his work in the harrowing war drama, yet was shut out of the Oscar race entirely.
Thankfully, the Screen Actors Guild righted that wrong by rewarding the talented actor for his performance in the Netflix drama during the 2016 SAG Awards on Saturday night. (In fact, in addition to Elba, the SAGs have already proven themselves to be more diverse than the Oscars tonight alone by giving deserving awards to the likes of Queen Latifah, Uzo Adubo, and the cast of Orange Is the New Black.)
The always-dashing Elba gave a charming and gracious speech for his Actor in a Supporting Role award, in which he thanked his Beasts of No Nation director Cary Joji Fukunaga (who he delightfully referred to as "a g") and the Screen Actors Guild for rewarding a film "about real people and real lives." He added, "Thank you for giving this film some light." Elba concluded his first speech with two simple but succinct words: "Respect. Love."
That's right, first speech. Elba was not only a worthy recipient in a film category, but a television category as well. The star won another SAG mere moments later for Male Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries for his work on the wildly popular Luther. Elba, who called winning two awards in one night "incredible," thanked his supportive family.
The Academy Awards not only missed one helluva opportunity to have an exciting Best Supporting Actor race, but also one that could have concluded with another lovely speech from Elba.
Watch his SAG win for Beasts of No Nation here: