<p>Daniel Kaluuya drew on his respect for Black Panthers leader Fred Hampton's principles to produce an Oscar-winning portrayal of the slain 1960s civil rights leader in<em> Judas and the Black Messiah</em>.</p>.<p>"What a man. What a man. How blessed we are that we live in a lifetime where he existed," Kaluuya said as he accepted his golden statuette for best supporting actor on Sunday.</p>.<p>The 32-year-old Briton said he aimed to become a "vessel" for Hampton's spirit as the United States and other countries still confront the same racial issues the Panthers battled.</p>.<p>"Chairman Fred Hampton was a light, a beacon of a being who would illuminate all he touched with his incredible message," Kaluuya said last month after his Academy Award nomination, the second in his career.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read |</strong> <strong><a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/entertainment/judas-and-the-black-messiah-movie-review-an-engaging-biographical-drama-958414.html" target="_blank">'Judas and the Black Messiah' movie review: An engaging biographical drama</a></strong><br /><br />Read more at: https://www.deccanherald.com/entertainment/judas-and-the-black-messiah-movie-review-an-engaging-biographical-drama-958414.html</p>.<p>"I am humbled to be nominated for portraying a man whose principles I deeply respect and for guiding me to walk in his footsteps," he added.</p>.<p>"I became a vessel for Chairman Fred's spirit at a time when we need his rally cry for equality and justice more than ever."</p>.<p>Kaluuya -- who also won a Golden Globe, a Screen Actors Guild award and a Bafta for the role -- bested stiff competition, including from co-star Lakeith Stanfield, who plays the "Judas" of the movie -- FBI informant William O'Neal.</p>.<p>Kaluuya, seen as a rising star in Hollywood, was last in contention for an Academy Award in 2018 for his gripping lead performance in Jordan Peele's race-based horror film <em>Get Out</em>.</p>.<p>Kaluuya was born in London and brought up by his mother, a Ugandan immigrant, in a public housing estate in the British capital. His father stayed in Uganda.</p>.<p>A live wire, he wrote his first play aged nine and his mother registered him for sessions at a local community drama school to keep him out of trouble.</p>.<p>After five years on the waiting list, the teenager got in.</p>.<p>Kaluuya acted in the edgy youth television drama <em>Skins </em>and was part of the writing team.</p>.<p>Finally landing theatre work, he won rave reviews in 2010 for his lead role in <em>Sucker Punch,</em> slimming down to play a boxer.</p>.<p>But in the same year, he was wrongly arrested on suspicion of being a drug dealer.</p>.<p>Officers dragged him off a London bus and pinned him to the ground. He walked free from court after prosecutors offered no evidence, and sued the police.</p>.<p><em>Sucker Punch</em> led to parts in more British television programmes as well as films including <em>Johnny English Reborn </em>(2011), <em>Kick-Ass 2 </em>(2013), <em>Sicario </em>(2015) and <em>Widows </em>(2018).</p>.<p>His profile rose significantly after appearing in <em>Get Out </em>and then 2018 big-budget Marvel superhero film "Black Panther", the franchise's first with a predominantly Black cast, which was nominated for a best picture Oscar.</p>.<p>Kaluuya has earned critical acclaim for his magnetic portrayal of Hampton in <em>Judas</em>, which was made with the blessing and input of the late civil rights activist's family.</p>.<p>His win is further vindication for Shaka King, the film's writer and director, who defended casting a black Briton in the role of the African-American icon, famed for his inspiring oratory and intense charisma.</p>.<p>King said he wrote the script for his first studio feature, which secured six Oscar nominations, with Kaluuya in mind and never considered anyone else for the part.</p>.<p>Industry legends who have also directed Kaluuya have paid their own tributes to his innate skills in front of the camera.</p>.<p>"You feel what he is feeling, you see what he is seeing," Oscar-winner Steve McQueen told The New York Times after working with him on "Widows".</p>.<p>"He has that gift you don't see often, a presence even in his stillness."</p>
<p>Daniel Kaluuya drew on his respect for Black Panthers leader Fred Hampton's principles to produce an Oscar-winning portrayal of the slain 1960s civil rights leader in<em> Judas and the Black Messiah</em>.</p>.<p>"What a man. What a man. How blessed we are that we live in a lifetime where he existed," Kaluuya said as he accepted his golden statuette for best supporting actor on Sunday.</p>.<p>The 32-year-old Briton said he aimed to become a "vessel" for Hampton's spirit as the United States and other countries still confront the same racial issues the Panthers battled.</p>.<p>"Chairman Fred Hampton was a light, a beacon of a being who would illuminate all he touched with his incredible message," Kaluuya said last month after his Academy Award nomination, the second in his career.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read |</strong> <strong><a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/entertainment/judas-and-the-black-messiah-movie-review-an-engaging-biographical-drama-958414.html" target="_blank">'Judas and the Black Messiah' movie review: An engaging biographical drama</a></strong><br /><br />Read more at: https://www.deccanherald.com/entertainment/judas-and-the-black-messiah-movie-review-an-engaging-biographical-drama-958414.html</p>.<p>"I am humbled to be nominated for portraying a man whose principles I deeply respect and for guiding me to walk in his footsteps," he added.</p>.<p>"I became a vessel for Chairman Fred's spirit at a time when we need his rally cry for equality and justice more than ever."</p>.<p>Kaluuya -- who also won a Golden Globe, a Screen Actors Guild award and a Bafta for the role -- bested stiff competition, including from co-star Lakeith Stanfield, who plays the "Judas" of the movie -- FBI informant William O'Neal.</p>.<p>Kaluuya, seen as a rising star in Hollywood, was last in contention for an Academy Award in 2018 for his gripping lead performance in Jordan Peele's race-based horror film <em>Get Out</em>.</p>.<p>Kaluuya was born in London and brought up by his mother, a Ugandan immigrant, in a public housing estate in the British capital. His father stayed in Uganda.</p>.<p>A live wire, he wrote his first play aged nine and his mother registered him for sessions at a local community drama school to keep him out of trouble.</p>.<p>After five years on the waiting list, the teenager got in.</p>.<p>Kaluuya acted in the edgy youth television drama <em>Skins </em>and was part of the writing team.</p>.<p>Finally landing theatre work, he won rave reviews in 2010 for his lead role in <em>Sucker Punch,</em> slimming down to play a boxer.</p>.<p>But in the same year, he was wrongly arrested on suspicion of being a drug dealer.</p>.<p>Officers dragged him off a London bus and pinned him to the ground. He walked free from court after prosecutors offered no evidence, and sued the police.</p>.<p><em>Sucker Punch</em> led to parts in more British television programmes as well as films including <em>Johnny English Reborn </em>(2011), <em>Kick-Ass 2 </em>(2013), <em>Sicario </em>(2015) and <em>Widows </em>(2018).</p>.<p>His profile rose significantly after appearing in <em>Get Out </em>and then 2018 big-budget Marvel superhero film "Black Panther", the franchise's first with a predominantly Black cast, which was nominated for a best picture Oscar.</p>.<p>Kaluuya has earned critical acclaim for his magnetic portrayal of Hampton in <em>Judas</em>, which was made with the blessing and input of the late civil rights activist's family.</p>.<p>His win is further vindication for Shaka King, the film's writer and director, who defended casting a black Briton in the role of the African-American icon, famed for his inspiring oratory and intense charisma.</p>.<p>King said he wrote the script for his first studio feature, which secured six Oscar nominations, with Kaluuya in mind and never considered anyone else for the part.</p>.<p>Industry legends who have also directed Kaluuya have paid their own tributes to his innate skills in front of the camera.</p>.<p>"You feel what he is feeling, you see what he is seeing," Oscar-winner Steve McQueen told The New York Times after working with him on "Widows".</p>.<p>"He has that gift you don't see often, a presence even in his stillness."</p>