Hollywood is fixated on “firsts” of a kind. The press almost writes itself: the first Black woman to win Best Actress, the first Asian American woman to star in a movie, the first Latina to host this or that awards event. Nevertheless, with each dazzling milestone, there is an untold story in the shadows, one of barriers, forgotten pioneers, and intricately detailed truths regarding representation. So instead of just cheering the headlines, go on and examine more. Here are 10 of the most significant and often overlooked achievements accomplished by women of color in Hollywood, along with their worthy context and nuance.
10. The Forgotten Trailblazers
Far before the hashtags #OscarsSoWhite, women of color had been making their marks in Hollywood. The Japanese American actress Tsuru Aoki was already performing in The Wrath of the Gods in 1914. Lilian St. Cyra Native American actress, was acting in movies in 1908. And Esther Eneusteak, an Inuit woman, was showing up in Edison Studios shorts in 1901. These women tore down the walls of segregation, yet their names are rarely mentioned in textbooks. The truth is, the hunt for “firsts” often results in the overlooking of those who preceded without proper acknowledgment.
9. Anna May Wong – Star Power and Challenges
People say that Anna May Wong was the first Asian American star in Hollywood, which is debatable even at that time. During the 1920s, she achieved great success with The Toll of the Sea and The Thief of Bagdad, yet she was always subjected to racist stereotyping and the limitations that Hollywood imposed on her. Also, it is being debated if she was indeed “the first”; Tsuru Aoki, to mention just one, was already there. The story of Wong is inspiring, though it still keeps reminding us that representation can be historically significant and, at the same time, incredibly frustrating.
8. Dorothy Dandridge & Lena Horne – Glamour and Grit
Dorothy Dandridge became the first Black woman to be nominated for a Best Actress Oscar (Carmen Jones, 1954). Lena Horne, on the other hand, excelled in musicals such as Stormy Weather and Cabin in the Sky. Both women were gorgeous with talent, but constrained by Hollywood’s racism and limitations. Yet their mere presence caused audiences and studios to look beyond Black women as stereotypes, and they became icons for future generations.
7. The Colorism Conundrum
Hollywood still prefers lighter-skinned ladies today. Halle Berry, Zendaya, and Zoë Saldaña are frequently given more leading roles than their darker sisters. It’s a trend among communities—Black, Asian, Latinx—where casting tends to favor “palatable” beauty over others. It’s advancements on the surface, but the underlying disparities reveal just how much farther the industry needs to go.
6. Halle Berry’s Historic Oscar Win
When Halle Berry won Best Actress in 2002 for Monster’s Ball, she was the first—and so far, only—Black woman to ever get that award. At that time, it seemed like the new era was starting. But even Berry has admitted that the aftermath was disappointingly low, with no substantial opportunities coming up for others. Her achievement undoubtedly reflects her outstanding talents, but also the pace of change that is still very slow.
5. The Fetishization of “Ambiguous” Beauty
The Kardashian era has made racial ambiguity fashionable. Characteristics that were once stereotyped or mocked in women of color—prominent lips, sun-kissed skin, curled hair—are now what people look for when white women borrow them by means of “blackfishing” or using the culture. It is infuriatingly inconsistent: the society wants the look of Blacks or browns, but not the people who have those looks.
4. The New Generation
Social stars like Zendaya, Letitia Wright, and Lana Condor are changing things. They don’t only get roles in white character-written movies the way they want—they’re also establishing plots, providing insight, and attracting attention in big movies. The newcomers are neither just tearing down the walls nor only remaking the house.
3. Queer Women of Color Take the Spotlight
Offscreen characters do not only depend on the color of skin already—Representation means intersections. Janelle Monáe, Tessa Thompson, and Keke Palmer just can’t be anything else but queer, women of color, and also completely visible. They are doing a great job in Hollywood, making the heroes look different and enabling the audience, mainly young fans, to have a chance to see themselves there, finally.
2. The Erasure of Jewish and Other Ethnic Women
The biases in Hollywood are not only about Black or Asian representation, but also are not limited to these categories. For instance, Jewish women are barely visible in the roles that highlight their identities. Besides that, the likes of Gal Gadot, Mila Kunis, and Scarlett Johansson are hardly ever cast as Jewish characters. Rather, Hollywood portrays Jewish women as “ugly” stereotypes while, at the same time, non-Jewish women are shown as the most romanticized love interests. This is just one example of a more comprehensive problem: The dominance of Eurocentric beauty ideals maintains that ethnic identities keep getting pushed aside.
1. Why “Firsts” Don’t Tell the Whole Story
It is indeed significant to “first” one thing, but that is only half of the story. Along with each groundbreaking Oscar win or barrier-breaking performance, there is a long list of women whose work went unnoticed and underrated. The truth is, representation is multidimensional, complex, and prolonged. Sometimes a red carpet headline may look like progress, but the reality of the matter is that change is a step forward only if it involves every woman who had laid the path, not just the one who finally made it to the history books.
Women of color in Hollywood have always been a complicated story of the past – the difficult times and the good times, and yet the constant change. Milestones are significant, but the real stories are the ones that matter more. Because representation is not just about one person’s success—it is about making sure that the work of no one is hidden.