Melina Matsoukas | Entertainment News, Photos, and Videos

Kerry Washington, Billy Porter, and Janelle Monae hit the carpet while attending the 2020 Essence Black Women in Hollywood Luncheon on Thursday (February 6) at the Four Seasons’ Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif.

The stars were all at the event to celebrate some of the most successful and inspiring black women in Hollywood!

No Time to Die‘s Lashana Lynch, When They See Us‘ Niecy Nash, Queen & Slim director Melina Matsoukas, and Pose‘s MJ Rodriguez, Angelica Ross, Hailie Sahar, and Janet Mock were all presented with awards during the annual event.

Some more stars who stepped out for the luncheon included Gabrielle Union, Insecure‘s Issa Rae and Yvonne Orji, Aja Naomi King, Alfre Woodard, Eve, Dewanda Wise, Nafessa Williams, Naturi Naughton, Tia Mowry and husband Cory Hardict, Kirby Howell-Baptiste, Logan Browning, Gina Torres, Loretta Devine, Danielle Brooks, Garcelle Beauvais, Loni Love, Aisha Hinds, Tika Sumpter, and Jenifer Lewis.

FYI: Kerry is wearing a Lanvin dress and Harry Kotlar earrings. Janelle is wearing a Marc Jacobs dress. Gabrielle is wearing a Rosie Assoulin dress. Issa is wearing a Solace London dress. Yvonne is wearing Sergio Rossi shoes, and Lulu Dharma jewels. MJ is wearing a Halpern dress. Janet is wearing a Prada dress. Angelica is wearing a Celestino dress. Naturi is wearing a Jovani dress. Aja is wearing a Prabal Gurung outfit. Garcelle is wearing a Tadashi Shoji dress. Ava is wearing Malone Souliers shoes and a Longchamp bag. Logan is wearing Tasaki jewelry. Danielle wore Kurt Geiger shoes. Eve wore Genny.

80+ pictures inside from the Essence Black Women in Hollywood event… More Here! »

Daniel Kaluuya happily strikes a pose alongside his co-star Jodie Turner-Smith while attending the UK premiere of their film Queen & Slim held at the Rich Mix Cinema on Monday (January 28) in London, England.

The 30-year-old actor and the 33-year-old pregnant actress were joined at the event by the film’s writer-director Melina Matsoukas, as well as both Kaya Scodelario and Little Mix‘s Leigh-Anne Pinnock as they stepped out to show their support.

Jodie Turner-Smith and her husband Joshua Jackson recently revealed that they don’t want to raise their kids in the U.S. – Find out the reason here!

Queen & Slim is set to hit theaters in the UK on Friday, January 31st.

Sam Rockwell and Chrissy Metz appear on stage at the 2020 Directors Guild of America Awards on Saturday (January 25) at the Ritz Carlton in Los Angeles.

Sam was at the event to honor his Jojo Rabbit director Taika Waititi, who was nominated for Best Director. Parasite‘s Bong Joon-ho received a tribute from the film’s star Lee Jeong-eun and The Irishman‘s Martin Scorsese (who did not attend) received a tribute from Al Pacino and Joe Pesci.

Leonardo DiCaprio was at the event to honor Once Upon a Time in Hollywood‘s Quentin Tarantino while Sam Mendes won the Best Director award for 1917.

Honey Boy director Alma Har’el went home with the First-Time Feature Film Director award, which was presented by Catherine Hardwicke.

Bill Hader won Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Comedy Series for his work on Barry.

Some more nominated directors in attendance included The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel‘s Amy Sherman-Palladino and Daniel Palladino, Queen & Slim‘s Melina Matsoukas, Atlantics‘ Mati Diop, When They See Us‘ Ava DuVernay, El Camino‘s Vince Gilligan, and Fosse/Verdon‘s Thomas Kail.

More stars in attendance included Anthony Anderson, Constance Zimmer, Terry Crews, Katheryn Winnick, Byron Bowers, Judd Apatow, and Christine Lahti.

FYI: Chrissy is wearing a Coyan dress, Anabela Chan earrings, and a Jared Lehr ring.

60+ pictures inside of celebs at the DGA Awards… More Here! »

Jamie Foxx and Jordan Peele happily hit the stage to speak at The African American Film Critics Association’s 2020 AAFCA Awards held at the Taglyan Cultural Complex on Wednesday (January 22) in Hollywood.

The guys along with Eddie Murphy (not pictured) were among some of the honorees at the 11th annual ceremony in Los Angeles.

“People say so much about the other awards, but it’s special when it comes from your own people,” Jamie said (via USA Today), who won best supporting actor for his role in Just Mercy.

“It’s just special,” Jamie added after receiving the award from the organization, which actively reviews films with an emphasis on projects that include the black experience. The awards mainly highlight films produced, written, directed and starring people from the African diaspora along with other ethnic projects that break new ground.

Also in attendance at the ceremony were Sterling K. Brown, Issa Rae, Lena Waithe, Bong Joon Ho, Melina Matsoukas, Lil Rel Howery, Garcelle Beauvais and Trevor Jackson.

READ MORE: Jamie Foxx Took Pics Your Fave Celebs at SAG Awards 2020!

Renee Zellweger keeps it classic in an off the shoulder black dress while arriving for the 2020 National Board Of Review Gala on Wednesday night (January 8) in New York City.

The 50-year-old actress was honored at the event as Best Actress for her performance in Judy, alongside Kathy Bates, who picked up the Best Supporting Actress award for Richard Jewell.

Director Melina Matsoukas was also honored at the event with the Best Directorial Debut award for Queen & Slim, presented by producer Lena Waithe.

Salma Hayek, Lupita Nyong’o, Jamie Lee Curtis, Whoopi Goldberg, and Uma Thurman were also seen at the event.

FYI: Lupita wore a Celine dress with Cartier jewelry. Salma wore a Jonathan Simkhai dress.

50+ pictures inside of Renee Zellweger, Lupita Nyong’o, Salma Hayek and more at the 2020 NBR Gala…

A new study has been released that reveals female directors made a record amount of movies in 2019!

Out of the 100 highest-grossing movies of the year, 10.6% of them were directed by female directors, according to the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initative (via Variety).

In 2018, only 4.5% of the top films were directed by women.

Some of the popular movies that had female directors included Booksmart (Olivia Wilde), Queen & Slim (Melina Matsoukas), Little Women (Greta Gerwig), Hustlers (Lorene Scafaria), The Farewell (Lulu Wang), Frozen 2 (Jennifer Lee), and Captain Marvel (Anna Boden).

“It illuminates where we’re seeing traction and where there’s room for improvement,” said one of the study’s authors, Stacy L. Smith. “Universal under [studio chief] Donna Langley should be lauded for ensuring that women get opportunities. Paramount needs to do more to give access and opportunity to these filmmakers.”

Melina Matsoukas happily poses for a photograph with Reese Witherspoon while attending a special screening of her film Queen & Slim held at The London on Tuesday (December 17) in West Hollywood, Calif.

The 43-year-old Big Little Lies star hosted the screening for Melina and also moderated a little Q&A for the movie, which stars Oscar nominee Daniel Kaluuya and newcomer Jodie Turner-Smith.

Here’s a plot summary: while on a forgettable first date together in Ohio, a black man (Kaluuya) and a black woman (Turner-Smith), are pulled over for a minor traffic infraction. The situation escalates, with sudden and tragic results, when the man kills the police officer in self-defense. Terrified and in fear for their lives, the man, a retail employee, and the woman, a criminal defense lawyer, are forced to go on the run. But the incident is captured on video and goes viral, and the couple unwittingly become a symbol of trauma, terror, grief and pain for people across the country.

Queen & Slim is playing in select theaters now – Watch the trailer here!

FYI: Melina Matsoukas is wearing Baja East.

READ MORE: ‘Queen & Slim’ Director Slams Golden Globes Voters for Not Attending Screenings of Her Movie