Gurira head to head with Halle Berry

Bruce Ndlovu
Zimbabwean actress Danai Gurira will go head to head with famed American beauty Halle Berry when they vie for the Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture award at the upcoming NAACP Image Awards.

Gurira was nominated for her role in the blockbuster Tupac biopic, All Eyez on Me, in which she starred as the mother of the slain rap icon, Afeni Shakur.

Gurira received rave reviews for her portrayal of Afeni, a role which she said deepened her understanding and appreciation of the famed rappera��s mother.

a�?Ia��ve always loved the story of Tupac,a�? Gurira said, a�?but the more I got to learn of Afeni, the more I was amazed by her and the relationship with her and her son. How she instilled in him something different than the world around him was saying and made him someone who the world was telling him he wouldna��t be and couldna��t be a�� all that she could, she did. I loved that and I loved Tupac more in learning more about her.a�?

Vying also for the same award alongside Halle Berry and Gurira will be fellow actresses Octavia Spenser, Amandla Stenberg and Natalie Paul.

The NAACP Image Awards celebrates the accomplishments of people of colour in the fields of television, music, literature and film, and also honours individuals or groups who promote social justice through creative endeavours.

NAACP members vote to select NAACP Image Awards winners from nominees in television, music literature, and film.

Anthony Anderson a�� who himself received an Outstanding Actor nod for his work on black-ish a�� will return to host the 49th NAACP Image Awards ceremony in Pasadena on the evening of Monday, 15 January. .