![]() "It's because of them that we can have that as America. "These are our true American heroes," she told CNN. Grammy-nominated singer Janelle Monáe, who portrayed Jackson in the film, said she was proud to be a part of a story so many people didn't know about. She influenced the hiring and promoting of women in science, engineering and mathematics careers at NASA. Mary Jackson was a mathematician and NASA's first black female engineer in 1958. Mary Jackson, portrayed by Janelle Monáe.“What I learned from playing Dorothy Vaughan is that I have a voice and that I have to use it for people who don't have a voice or whose voice is somehow subdued by whatever's happening in society,” she told THR. Spencer said the cast wanted to present these women “in a truthful way” and “in the best light possible.” Since Vaughan died in 2008, the first audience she wanted to impress was the family, and she was proud to learn she did. “It's a small group of people, and my hat is off to them. “I understood her work to an extent, but she's a rocket scientist and there are very few people in the world who get that type of physics and can work interchangeably in the math disciplines,” Spencer said. Oscar winner Octavia Spencer, who plays Vaughan, told THR she knew math and science prior to the role but not to the level of a rocket scientist. ![]() She was the head of the West Area Computers, leading a group of African-American mathematicians through crucial space projects. Dorothy Vaughan, portrayed by Octavia SpencerĪ mathematician, Dorothy Vaughan was the first African-American woman to be promoted as a head of personnel at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, later known as NASA."Not calculus, pre-calc! The class that preps you for all the math you have to do.” It’s ironic Henson is playing a math whiz, as she told THR she was never good at math. ![]() What I did find that was parallel in our lives was math, which I hated.” “I got to sit with her and started studying her mannerisms, and I asked her a lot of questions. “And I owe her the truth and all of me,” Henson told The Hollywood Reporter. Henson, who portrays Johnson, said she felt pressure playing someone who is still alive and wanted to make sure she got it right. The three leading ladies did an excellent job portraying us," she said, according to The Los Angeles Times. Still alive at age 98, Johnson lives in Virginia, where the movie takes place. During her time at NASA, she worked under segregated conditions as a "computer." In 1953, she was hired by NASA and struggled to receive equal recognition for her work. Her background includes such projects as Project Mercury (the first man to fly into space), 1969's Apollo 11 (first flight to the Moon) and the Space Shuttle program (plans for a mission to Mars).Īt the time of her work, African-Americans and women were not respected in the workplace. Johnson worked with NASA in calculating trajectories, launch windows and the return paths for many famous space flights. Image Credit: Courtesy of NASA Twentieth Century Fox Film CorporationĪ physicist and mathematician, Katherine G. Below, read more about the cast, who they played and how the actors prepared for their role. The film focuses several real-life people in addition to including some fictional characters to help drive the storytelling. Hidden Figures is up for three Oscars - best picture, best supporting actress for Spencer and best adapted screenplay for Allison Schroeder and Theodore Melfi - in addition to earning other accolades including best ensemble at the SAG Awards. Set during a time of racial and gender inequality, the film tells the untold story of the three females' achievements, which restored the nation's confidence during the 1960s. Henson, Octavia Spencer and Janelle Monae) teamed up to solve mathematical equations for NASA. history, a group of African-American women (played by Taraji P. and Russian race to put the first man in orbit.īehind the scenes of one of the greatest operations in U.S. Based on a true story, Hidden Figures follows the events of the U.S.
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