CODA recently received a significant accolade like none before it. The AppleTV+ film earned an outstanding performance by the cast in a motion picture at the 28th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards on Sunday night. Belfast, Don't Look Up, House of Gucci, and King Richard were among the other nominees.
CODA is a coming-of-age drama about a high school student who dreams of becoming a singer and is the only hearing member of her deaf family. Emilia Jones, Marlee Matlin, Troy Kotsur, Daniel Durant, and Eugenio Derbez star in it.
Who are the cast members of CODA?
1) Emilia Jones
Emilia is best known for her portrayal as Ruby Rossi in CODA, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2021. The film went on to win more accolades than any other film in the festival's history.
Emilia has appeared in three critically acclaimed West End stage performances, in addition to her television and film work.
She appeared as Flora in Lindsay Posner's Turn of the Screw at The Almeida, Joan in Far Away at the Young Vic, and Young Fiona at The Theater Royal, Drury Lane's initial production of Shrek the Musical.
2) Marlee Matlin
Marlee's hearing was severely impaired when she was eighteen months old. At the age of seven, she joined a children's theater company and played Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz.
Marlee gained fame for her performance in a production of the Tony Award-winning play Children of a Lesser God, and was cast in the film adaptation of the play (1986). Despite the fact that this was her first film, she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress.
Marlee was also nominated for an Emmy Award in 1994 for her role as Laurie Bey in the TV show Picket Fences (1992). She is now the national spokeswoman for the world's leading provider of closed captioning for television.
3) Troy Kotsur
For almost 20 years, Troy Kotsur, who has been deaf since birth, has been acting and directing. He has had widely acclaimed performances in major films. He played a leading role in a Tony Award-winning play on Broadway and countless notable roles on television during his career.
Troy's major role in the 2021 film CODA has received a lot of praise. Troy had previously appeared in a supporting role in Jim Carrey's film The Number 23. In the years since, he has been known for his outstanding performances in indie films.
Troy made waves in 2019 for his acting part in Disney+'s The Mandalorian. In addition to acting, he choreographed an adapted form of sign language in the show.
4) Eugenio Derbez
Eugenio Derbez is an actor, writer, director, and producer with a Film Directing degree from the Mexican Institute of Cinematography and Theater and a degree in Acting from Televisa's Acting School.
Eugenio has starred in, written, directed, and produced a number of notable television shows, including Al Derecho y al Derbez, XHDRBZ, and La Familia P.Luche, which was one of Univision's longest-running and most successful sitcoms.
Eugenio also made an impression on the English-speaking audience as the star of the CBS sitcom ROB! and the Broadway show Latinologues, which he performed at the Helen Hayes Theater.
The internet applauds CODA's historic win
After joking that she didn't need the microphone onstage, Marlee Matlin signed her acceptance speech, which was spoken by her interpreter. She said:
"We need to thank SAG-AFTRA, you guys, you voted for us. We wanna thank AppleTV+ for trusting us, for believing in us [and] our movie."
She proceeded, addressing the film's writer and director, Sian Heder:
"Thank you for including deaf culture, we love you. We deaf actors have come a long way.This validates the fact that we deaf actors can work just like anyone else. We look forward to more opportunities for deaf actors.”
The internet has been gushing with love for the CODA family. Several fans have been congratulating the movie's ensemble.
While it was the biggest night of the movie so far, Twitter was ecstatic to see them campaigning hard for the Oscars ahead of the show. The cast looked visibly happy beyond their belief as they made history.
CODA's major win makes the Oscar race even more confusing and exciting. With a deeply resonating story that has comforted fans all over the world who have hearing issues, CODA's historic win is every bit worth celebrating.