Octavia Lenora Spencer is one of the most celebrated American actresses with countless awards and honors to her name.
Gatekeepers News reports that her achievements include an Oscar, a Golden Globe, and three Screen Actors Guild Awards.
Early Life
Octavia Lenora Spencer was born in Montgomery, Alabama, and has six siblings, including sisters Rosa and Areka Spencer. Her mother, Dellsena Spencer (1945–1988), worked as a maid.[8] Her father died when she was thirteen. Spencer graduated from Jefferson Davis High School in 1988. She studied at Auburn University at Montgomery, and graduated from Auburn University, where she majored in English with a double minor in journalism and theater. Spencer has dyslexia.
Career
Spencer actually began her journey in the entertainment world as an intern, working behind the scenes as a production assistant on the set of the 1990 film “A Long Walk Home.” Inspired by the film’s leading star Whoopi Goldberg, Octavia relocated to Los Angeles in 1997 to pursue her own acting career. During these early years, she befriended filmmaker and actor Tate Taylor, with whom she would later collaborate on “The Help.” Her film debut came in 1996 with “A Time to Kill.” Again, Octavia was originally hired to work behind the camera as a casting assistant, but she was given the opportunity to audition for a part.
Over the next few years, Octavia Spencer became a regular addition to a number of films, although in fairly minor roles. These included “Never Been Kissed,” “Big Momma’s House,” “Bad Santa,” “Spider-Man,” “Coach Carter,” “Win a Date with Tad Hamilton!,” and “Pretty Ugly People.” She also established herself as a television actress during this period with roles in series like “Raising the Bar,” “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,” “The Big Bang Theory,” “Wizards of Waverly lace,” “Titus,” “30 Rock,” “Dharma & Greg,” “Becker,” “ER,” and “Grounded for Life.”
Octavia began to make more substantial progress with starring roles in series like “Halfway Home,” and “Ugly Betty.” She also made her stage debut in 2003 with “The Trials and Tribulations of a Trailer Trash Housewife.” This would prove to be the only stage work of her entire career, as she later admitted that she suffers from intense stage fight. Although her role in the film “Seven Pounds” was fairly brief, critics highlighted her performance and she was ranked as one of the funniest actresses in Hollywood.
After another few roles in films like “Halloween II” and “Love at First Hiccup,” Spencer cemented her place among Hollywood’s A-listers with 2010’s “The Help.” Octavia starred alongside Viola Davis, Emma Stone, and Bryce Dallas Howard, and the film was met with widespread praise from critics. Octavia was singled out for praise, and she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 2012. In addition, Octavia won a Golden Globe and a BAFTA.
Over the next period, Octavia starred in films like “Fruitvale Station” and “Get On Up.” She also starred in Steven Spielberg’s series “Red Band Society.” She then followed up with oles in films like “Black or White,” “The Divergent Series: Insurgent,” and “The Divergent Series: Allegiant” before booking a notable voice acting role in “Zootopia.” In 2016, she returned to more period work with “Hidden Figures.” Once again, she won a number of awards and was nominated for another Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.
In 2017, she starred in another critically-acclaimed film, “The Shape of Water.” For a third time, Octavia was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, and she also won a number of other awards and honors for her performance in Guillermo del Toro’s film. In 2018, Spencer joined the cast of films like “A Kid Like Jake,” “Instant Family,” and “Green Book.” In 2019, Octavia followed up with roles in films like “Luce” and “Ma” before booking the lead role in “Truth Be Told.” It was also announced that she would be executive producing the Apple TV+ series.
What is Octavia Spencer’s Net Worth?
Octavia Spencer has a net worth of $14 million.
