What Happened When We Asked Women to Pick the Awards-Season Winners

February 27, 2018

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We all know the depressing stats surrounding women in awards shows: This year just one woman, Greta Gerwig, is nominated for best director at the Oscars, and we consider that progress—really? Not to mention the fact that she's the first woman nominated in this category since 2010. And don't even get us started on this year's Grammy awards, where only 17 out of 86 honors actually went to women. So, we decided to ask some of our favorite female talents to curate a fiercely competitive, impressively imagined awards show program all their own. And the trophies go to…

Merie Wallace/Courtesy of A24
1/7
...Nominated by Saoirse Ronan and Beanie Feldstein, Actresses, Lady Bird
“I think, honestly, if it’s OK to mention my own film, every relationship in Lady Bird is honored and understood. It’s not very often that we get to see two girlfriends onscreen getting a kick out of each other, making each other laugh, and talking shit.” —Ronan, right
“Julie and Lady Bird have this dream world they enter when they’re together. I love how much of a grand gesture it is when Lady Bird makes Julie go to the prom. It feels so, so romantic, even though it’s two best friends who are girls.” —Feldstein
Everett Collection. Clapboard: Shutterstock
2/7
...Nominated by Alex Saks, Producer, The Florida Project
“Gal Gadot’s Diana can do it all: save the world, end war, and bring peace to mankind. She can live passionately and fight for those around her. She can be earnest and vulnerable without being ‘weak.’ Her performance challenges how we look at the women around us. It reminds us that we are capable of everything we truly believe in, because, well, we are."

Paramount Pictures
3/7
...Nominated by Greta Lee, Actress, Broad City
“My favorite actors are the ones who can make you laugh and cry in one swipe. Hong is so unbelievably brilliant as Vietnamese activist Ngoc Lan Tran. There’s a scene where she is taking care of a woman who is dying from cancer. It’s hilarious. Really. I was crying-laughing. That makes me sound insane, but if you see it, you’ll understand.”
Everett Collection. Clapboard: Shutterstock
4/7
...Nominated by Janicza Bravo, Writer-Director, Lemon
“Gabriel plays Georgina, a housekeeper. Her performance is a testament to the delicate balance black people often experience while navigating white spaces. ‘Sometimes, if there are too many white people, I get nervous, you know,’ offers Chris [Daniel Kaluuya], the film’s protagonist. Georgina opens her mouth to speak, but only her breath is heard. She smiles hard, showing teeth. ‘No, no, no, no,’ she says unconvincingly, a single tear streaming down her face. ‘That’s not my experience. Not at all.’ Her voicelessness, and how her body no longer belongs to her, will be burrowed inside me forever.”
5/7
...Nominated by Cazzie David, Writer
"As an undercover agent during the Cold War, she beats the shit out of someone with her red stiletto. And now I really want to do that—but I doubt I will ever have the opportunity, because I'm not a spy...and I only wear sneakers."

Niko Tavernise/© 2017 Paramount Pictures
6/7
...Nominated by Allison Williams, Actress, Get Out
“I was transfixed by all that was Mother!, but I was particularly unable to take my eyes off Michelle Pfeiffer as the mysterious houseguest, Woman. I was torn between wishing she would leave and hoping that she would stay just a bit longer. Woman she was—in all the most complicated and tormenting ways.”
Everett Collection. Clapboard: Shutterstock
7/7
...Nominated by Samira Wiley, Actress, The Handmaid’s Tale
“There’s a scene where Willem Dafoe, who plays a manager at a crummy motel, sees a pedophile come onto a playground. It’s one of the most amazing scenes I’ve ever watched: He’s just so passionate about protecting these children and taking care of people who are less fortunate than he is. To see a man in the role of the protector—juxtaposed with everything we’re going through right now in the world—was delightful and refreshing.”