Niecy Nash-Betts' hard work has paid off!
At the 2023 Critics Choice Awards on Sunday, Nash-Betts won the award for best supporting actress in a limited series or movie made for television for her work in Netflix's Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story.
She beat out Claire Danes (Fleishman Is in Trouble), Dominique Fishback (The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey), Betty Gilpin (Gaslit), Melanie Lynskey (Candy) and Juno Temple (The Offer) for the prize.
Taking the stage at the Fairmont Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles to accept the award, Nash-Betts joked about how her own mother didn't believe in her dramatic acting abilities.
"When I decided to become an actor, I saw myself doing drama. And the industry was kind, but they said, 'Stay in your comedy lane,'" she explained. "Sometimes people want to leave you where they meet you. And I did what I normally do: I cry."
"And I told my mother and I said, 'Momma, don't you think I'm a good dramatic actress?'" she recalled. "And she said, 'Girl, I don't.'"
Nash-Betts continued, "She said, 'But you can be! You find the best class in this town and I will work overtime to pay for it.' Thank you, momma. All you need is one!"
From there, Nash-Betts continued to thank others who have supported her along the way, including her wife Jessica Betts. She also gave a special shout-out to her Dahmer colleagues.
"Thank you, Jessica. Thank you, Netflix. Baby, you picked me up when I was gutted from this work," she continued. "Ryan Murphy, Evan Peters. And I share this award with Glenda Cleveland. On this night, we are fully seen."
The actress added, "And finally, to everybody who doubted this Black woman and told me what I couldn't do, I want to lovely and humbly say, 'In your face!'"
Nash-Betts played Glenda Cleveland on the Netflix limited series, which premiered in September 2022. Cleveland was the real-life neighbor of serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer, who she repeatedly called the police about, regarding his suspicious behavior.
To date, Dahmer has broken several Netflix viewership records, including surpassing 1 billion viewing hours on the streaming service in just 60 days.
The 28th annual Critics Choice Awards are airing live on The CW.
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