Meet Ariana Debose: Hollywood’s new power player

IF THIS YEAR’S awards season belonged to one person, it’s Ariana Debose. To top off her run of wins at the Golden Globes, SAGS and BAFTAS, the 31-year-old took home the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Anita in the remake of West Side Story, becoming the first openly queer woman of colour to win an Academy Award.

A trained singer and dancer, Ariana made her TV debut on America’s So You Think You Can Dance, before moving on to Broadway, starring in Hamilton and Motown: The Musical. It was while she was playing Donna Summer – in Summer: The Donna Summer Musical – that she met her girlfriend, costume designer Sue Makkoo.

But it was her dazzling performance in Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story reboot that catapulted her to worldwide fame. Things, however, could have been very different: Ariana actually refused to audition for the film four times, as she doubted Spielberg would cast her.

‘I was hesitant because Anita doesn’t normally look like me,’ Ariana told Grazia. ‘I’m Afro Latina and the Latinos who are prevalent in the industry are predominantly white-presenting or light-skinned brown women, and I am a darker-skinned Black woman. Then I realised it’s not my job to make [Spielberg’s] decision for him.’

Ariana admits she’s found the pressure of awards season intimidating. ‘How do you work through your normal life while you’re highly visible to the world? There’s no real good answer for that.’

But, despite the pressure, Ariana has set out to be unapologetically her. She said in her acceptance speech, ‘To anybody who has ever questioned your identity ever, ever, ever, or you find yourself living in the grey spaces, I promise you this: there is indeed a place for us.’ Ariana also told The Hollywood Reporter she wanted her outfit – a Valentino tuxedo/gown hybrid – to be authentically her. ‘It’s bold and it’s a choice that maybe you don’t typically see at the Oscars,’ she said. ‘It celebrates femininity and masculinity in the same breath.’

So what’s next? She’ll soon be on the big screen again, in sci-fi thriller ISS and Matthew Vaughn’s spy film Argylle, alongside Bryce Dallas Howard, Samuel L Jackson and Henry Cavill.

As for her long-term plan, while she might still be processing her win, a Hollywood source reveals Ariana is looking to accelerate her career in the way Jennifer Hudson did in the wake of her 2007 Oscar win. ‘Ariana has quietly worked herself to Hollywood’s top table, there’s a huge respect and admiration for her talent as well as her work ethic,’ the insider says. ‘She’s now in that enviable position where she can choose pretty much whatever she wants.’