Jennifer Lopez may have gotten a ton of awards season buzz for her work in the 2019 drama “Hustlers,” but she didn’t walk home with any major honors.
In fact, she reflected on not receiving any top prizes in the entertainment world at Monday’s Elle Women in Hollywood event. “I don’t have an Oscar. And I don’t have a Golden Globe. And I don’t have a Grammy or a SAG Award or a BAFTA or a Critics Choice or a Hollywood Film Award,” the multi-hyphenate said after being presented with this year’s Icon Award by Universal Pictures boss Donna Langley.
“But this is my fifth Icon Award,” Lopez said. “Of all the things that I thought I would grow up to be when I was a little girl, the last thing you know I was gonna have on my list was icon.”
Not that Lopez is complaining about the recognition.
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“This award is all about being a representative symbol, in this case, what it is to be a woman in Hollywood,” she said. “But when I think about that, and about the things that I spent my life doing and working at, you know, I started off as dancer. And then I started making movies and then records and then creating my own brand somehow and companies that each step of the way. And each transition, there seemed to be tremendous opposition, both literal like physical and emotional, to the idea that you could do many different things and be taken seriously.”
Earlier in the evening, Lopez’s husband joked with Variety that he had “PTSD” when he saw his wife’s metal breastplate ensemble because it gave him “flashbacks” to his Batman suit.
Elle’s honorees also included Lily Gladstone, Greta Lee, America Ferrera, Jodie Foster and Eva Longoria. Oprah Winfrey was on hand to honor “The Color Purple” stars Fantasia Barrino Taylor, Danielle Brooks and Taraji P. Henson.
“I want to thank my grandmother who gave me the name Fantasia, which I hated when I was a kid because they never had the name at the gas stations,” the “American Idol” star said, referring to personalized novelty license plates. “I told her when I get grown, I’m changing my name. Now I want to thank her now. She’s in heaven now. I want to thank her for my name. It’s a great name.”
Taylor reflected on her troubled past. “I was a young lady who went through a lot of things and lost a lot,” she said. “I lost everything twice. I never thought I’d be back here in front of y’all.”
Henson talked about “The Color Purple’s” theme of redemption. “That’s why I hate cancel culture,” she said. “How can you throw a rock when we all living in glass houses? Cut it out. We don’t have to walk our paths alone.”
“Past Lives” star Lee’s parents attended the event. “My dad has been asking me for the last two decades, ‘Are you medium-famous yet?’” the “Past Lives” star said. “I had to bring them here just to prove that this is real. I’m finally medium-famous. It has been a wild ride to get here — to medium-famous.”
The guest list at Elle Women in Hollywood, which took place at Nya West studios, included Ben Affleck, Kerry Washington, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Sofia Carson. Alicia Silverstone, Colman Domingo, Lauren Sanchez, Jurnee Smollett, Zooey Deschanel, Bebe Rexha, Jameela Jamil, Kate Beckinsale, Lake Bell, Bella Ramsey, Normani and Madison Beer.
