Celebrities from all corners of entertainment, be it television, film, stage, and more, are celebrating the life of icon Diahann Carroll.
After the actress-singer died of lung cancer at age 84, entertainers like Oprah Winfrey, Ava DuVernay, Viola Davis, Kerry Washington, and more have begun sharing clips, photos, and stories about Carroll on social media.
DuVernay was early to the news the world lost Carroll, and elegantly described her legacy by saying “she blazed trails through dense forests and elegantly left diamonds along the path for the rest of us to follow. DuVernay then added a clip from one of Carroll’s major film roles, 1974’s Claudine.
Actress and media mogul Oprah Winfrey was another star to thank Carroll for clearing the path, adding she is a Legend then, now and Forever.”
Oscar and Emmy-winning actress Viola Davis thanked the Oscar and Emmy-nominated Carroll by saying “You left it all on the floor and we were shifted by it.”
While Audra McDonald, who has become the actor with the most performance wins at the Tonys ever, shared a story of meeting Carroll, the first American American actor to ever win a Tony for a lead role.
McDonald describes her as an “amazing force of nature” who was “always willing to share her wisdom with you.”
Scandal star Kerry Washington, only the third black actress to lead a network drama, after Carroll and Teresa Graves of Get Christie Love! remembered the icon by saying “I am because of you.”
Empire actress Taraji P. Henson thanked Carroll while also reposting a tweet showing an Ebony magazine cover she did that paid homage to the Dynasty actress.
Hilarie Burton, Carroll’s costar on White Collar, tweeted that when Carroll winked at her when they first shot a scene together, “I lost my words. She made this world a more glamorous place.”
In a statement sent to EW, and posted on her Twitter account, fellow pioneering black singer Dionne Warwick wrote that the loss of her dear friend and mentor Carroll “comes as a true hurt to my heart!! I know I’ll miss her as I’m certain all that knew her will.”
Read on for more celebrity reactions to Carroll’s death.
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