Catherine Zeta-Jones Reflects on Her Oscar Win for Chicago: “It Blew My Mind”
Washington [US], December 8: Actress Catherine Zeta-Jones recently reminisced about winning an Academy Award for her role in the 2002 film Chicago, where she portrayed Velma Kelly, a showgirl-turned-murderess. Zeta-Jones won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in 2003, a victory she describes as “totally unexpected” and “mind-blowing.”
During a discussion at the Red Sea Film Festival in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Zeta-Jones shared her thoughts on both her Oscar and Tony Award wins. “To be acknowledged by the Broadway lights, that was wonderful. But the Academy Award was something that was totally unexpected. It blew my mind,” she said.
In addition to her Oscar, Zeta-Jones won a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her performance in Stephen Sondheim’s A Little Night Music in 2009. At the festival, the Welsh actress also reflected on her early dance and vocal training, which began when she was a child, including learning tap dancing at the age of four.
“I started very young too in the theater. I’m certainly not a young chick. I’ve been in the industry for a very long time and I’ve loved every minute of it,” she added.
Zeta-Jones also spoke about the unique experience of working with other dancers on Chicago, noting the challenges of adapting her stage training for the film. “The whole process of the rehearsals, when you think of the screen, all the different angles we had to do for those routines, that collaboration with dancers who felt I speak their language, it was wonderful,” she said.