Ava DuVernay’s riveting Netflix project When They See Us earned four wins from the African American Film Critics Association Tuesday as part of the upcoming AAFCA TV Honors. The highly popular limited series about the infamous Central Park rape case that resulted in the arrest and false imprisonment of five black youths, received the group’s Best Limited Series, Best Ensemble, Best Writing and Breakout Performance for Jharrel Jerome who plays Korey Wise in the series.
Other big wins went to the popular Starz drama Power, which begins its sixth and final season August 25th, and the CBS freshman comedy, The Neighborhood, starring Cedric the Entertainer and Tichina Arnold. Angela Bassett and Sterling K. Brown earned Best Acting Honors for their respective performances in the series 9-1-1 on Fox and This Is Us on NBC.
In all, the sixteen-year-old association will give out ten awards, including honoring mega-producer Ryan Murphy with the AAFCATV Icon Award and big three network, CBS, with the AAFCA Inclusion Award for its diverse programming and talent.
“It is impossible to ignore TV’s popularity and remarkable influence on America’s pop culture landscape today,” says AAFCA president Gil Robertson IV. “As the stature of the small screen continues to expand, it has become increasingly more diverse and inclusive, a movement that we at AAFCA wholeheartedly embrace and champion. The honorees for our first AAFCA TV Honors represent the very best of television programming. They all successfully put a mirror up to our world to tell stories that are refreshingly diverse and authentic. We feel that this new wave of innovative, thought-provoking storytelling is inspiring and deserving of celebration.”
The honorees will be feted at AAFCA TV Honors during a private brunch on Sunday, August 11, 2019 at the California Yacht Club in Marina Del Rey, CA.
See all of the winners below:
Best Drama – “Power” (Starz)
Best Comedy – “The Neighborhood” (CBS)
Best Limited Series – “When They See Us” (Netflix)
Best Performance Female – Angela Bassett (9-1-1) FOX
Best Performance Male – Sterling K. Brown (“This Is Us”) NBC
Best Ensemble – “When They See Us” (Netflix)
Best Writing – “When They See Us” (Netflix)
Breakthrough Performance – Jharrel Jerome, “When They See Us” (Netflix)
AAFCA TV Honors Inclusion Award – CBS
AAFCA TV Honors ICON Award – Ryan Murphy