The part-time receptionist used her own life experience as inspiration and her studies of psychology to portray the obese teen mother who enrolls in a special education project.
Gabourey Sidibe as Precious
Gabourey Sidibe focused her knowledge on how a victim usually behaves, and sure enough delivered an incredibly powerful performance. Director Lee Daniels knew he had found his star for the role as Precious.
“She’s way smarter than me, way, way smarter than me, and most of the actors I’ve worked with,” Daniels told the New York Times. “I love her with all my soul.”
Daniels – also the producer of Monster’s Ball and director of Shadowboxer – said that he and “Gabby” spoke for hours during the audition. She cried real tears, and he refused to make her repeat it.
”I have to be really protective of her because she’s baring me her soul,” Daniels said. ”A lot of her truth is in her”.
With absolutely no acting experience to draw on for the audition, Gabourey Sidibe simply took inspiration from her own life experiences.
She used her psychology training to portray Precious – an obese illiterate teen mom – and gave a truly unique performance.
Academy Award nomination
More than 300 women auditioned for the role of Precious. Gabourey Sidibe got it, and before long, the 37 year-old was a Hollywood star.
The movie Precious – starring several other stars such as Sidibe’s childhood role model Mo’Nique, singer Mariah Carey and Lenny Kravitz – was praised and loved by both the public and critics. It won the grand jury prize at the Sundance Film Festival. By the time the Academy Awards came around, Sidibe was in the spotlight.
She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Performance by an Actress and, in addition, nominated for a Golden Globe in the same category.
Sidibe won several other awards such as ‘New Hollywood’ at the Hollywood Film Awards and the ‘Virtuosos Award’ at the Santa Barbara Film Festival, an honor created to recognize a select group whose noteworthy performances in film have elevated them into the national cinematic dialogue.
Precious would go on to win two Academy Awards and receive an additional four nominations.
