The 'I Wanna Dance With Somebody' actress, along with four other contenders, is vying for the coveted best newcomer title at the upcoming BAFTA Film Awards.
- Jan 17, 2023
AceShowbiz - Naomi Ackie, Daryl McCormack, and Sheila Atim are announced as nominees for the BAFTA Rising Star Award 2023. The other names on the shortlist are "Living" star Aimee Lou Wood and "Emily" actress Emma Mackey.
Recognising young on-screen talent, the award is the only prize at the BAFTA Film Awards to be chosen by the public. Previous winners of the accolade include Lashana Lynch, Tom Holland, and James McAvoy.
Daryl - who starred in the film "Good Luck to You, Leo Grande" opposite Dame Emma Thompson - revealed that the nomination had taken a while to sink in.
Speaking to BANG Showbiz and other media at London's Savoy Hotel to mark the nominations announcement on Tuesday, January 17, 2023, the 29-year-old Irish star said, "I'm slow to let things sink in. When I moved to London I looked at this category and the actors who have come through. To be part of it is amazing and it has finally sunk in."
Sheila worked with 2022 winner Lashana Lynch on "The Woman King" and is honoured to be up for the same award as her co-star - and she couldn't resist telling her about the nomination. She said, "I wasn't supposed to."
"I waited until it was very, very, very close. Looking through the previous winners and nominees, it was something wonderful for us to share. I think so highly of her as well as being a friend and a colleague, I am a huge admirer of her work."
The nominees confessed that they had trouble keeping their recognition under wraps after telling their loved ones. Daryl said, "I did tell my mum. I didn't tell the rest of the family but I went home for Christmas and my uncles can't lie at all. I was like, 'Guys, I've been nominated' and they were like, 'No way'. My uncle said, 'If you ever want to keep a secret don't tell your mother.' "
Naomi, who plays music icon Whitney Houston in the biopic "Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody", added, "I prefaced it with, 'Don't tell nobody.' I did tell people who are very close to me. I hate tension, I'm the kind of person who skips to the end of a book before reading it."
The winner of the 2023 Rising Star Award will be revealed at the BAFTA Film Awards which will be held at London's Royal Festival Hall on February 19.
