Jurnee Smollett speech at Jude Law's Hollywood Walk of Fame star unveiling ceremony

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https://www.maximotv.com  Actress Jurnee Smollett speech at Jude Law's Hollywood Walk of Fame star unveiling ceremony on Thursday, December 12, at 6840 Hollywood Boulevard, next to the El Capitan Theatre and across the street from the world-famous Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles, California, USA. This video is available for editorial use in all media and worldwide. To ensure compliance and proper licensing of this video, please contact us. ©MaximoTV  🇺🇸

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00:00Please welcome Jurnee Smollett to the stage.

00:07Okay.

00:08All right.

00:09Yeah.

00:10Wow.

00:11Wow.

00:12What an honor it is to be here today to pay tribute to this illustrious career of my

00:31dear friend, my brother Jude Law.

00:34You know, honestly, this is really surreal for me because so many of Jude's performances

00:38have had quite an impact on my artistry.

00:41I don't think I've ever said that to you.

00:44So it's a real privilege to be asked to speak here today.

00:48You know, when I was younger, I remember having a big crush on Dickie Greenleaf from Talented

00:54Mr. Ripley.

00:56I have so many personal favorites of yours.

01:00I mean, Road to Perdition, The Holiday, Sherlock Holmes, The Nest is unbelievable, Fantastic

01:07Beats, the list is too long.

01:10But I truly feel that Jude is one of the greatest actors of his generation.

01:15And I've always, yes, I've always looked to his performances for inspiration.

01:25And yet he keeps outdoing himself.

01:27And you know, the saying is, you're never supposed to meet your heroes.

01:32So when I got the call to join the cast of The Order, I honestly didn't know what to

01:36expect.

01:37I knew signing on to a heist thriller in which the story is rooted in a dark side of American

01:42history would have its challenges.

01:43You see, the film's themes of domestic terrorism and the insidious group of hate demanded it

01:50be handled with the utmost care.

01:53If I'm being frank, I wondered if this brilliant, charismatic British movie star with this prolific

02:00career would be up for the task of tackling and confronting the painful existence of white

02:06supremacy in America.

02:08I wondered, would I be constantly dealing with a massive ego or microaggressions or

02:14a 10-person posse on set?

02:19Or would I be stuck with the task of explaining our deeply painful side of American history?

02:24Honestly, I didn't feel like being an on-set history teacher.

02:29And in Jude, I found the complete opposite.

02:32I found someone who's not only a generous scene partner, but I found an ally and I found

02:38a friend.

02:40I found someone who has zero tolerance for ego.

02:45He was so hungry to unearth the truth, he approached the story with humility and reverence

02:50and curiosity.

02:51And our conversations, they turned into these bold sessions that stretched into the night

02:55as we dissected the layers and exchanged research materials and bounced ideas off our brilliant

03:01filmmaker, Justin Kurzel.

03:03These conversations were invigorating and inspiring, and Jude's insight and commitment

03:07during those discussions added profound depth to the process.

03:11See, one of his greatest strengths is his ability to turn life's beautiful, twisted,

03:18dark and haunting chaos into art.

03:22And there's an energy about him that's just contagious.

03:25It's exhilarating and intentional, and it's the kind of energy that propels everyone around

03:30him to dig deeper and strive for greatness.

03:32His dedication is palpable, and if you watch this work that he did in inhabiting this conflicted

03:38character of Terry Husk in The Order, you will agree with me that it's nothing short

03:43of extraordinary.

03:44You see, his boundless curiosity of character development, Jude would often ponder the question,

03:51what does this cost my character?

03:54And after a career spanning decades, his passion hasn't wavered, and his willing to be used

03:59as a vessel, giving up his own body, his mind and his soul in order to illuminate the

04:04sacrifice of this broken man was something to behold, truly.

04:10You see, Jude, you have the courage to allow your heart to break on screen, and that's

04:16a rare quality.

04:18And doing so, it helps us, the audience, feel seen, and we feel less alone in watching your

04:25work.

04:26So thank you for that.

04:29There's a word thrown around in this town quite often.

04:32It's a word, integrity.

04:35But truthfully, I think we all could agree that it's rare to find people with real integrity

04:42in this town.

04:43You know, so many folks are willing to sell their integrity to the highest bidder, but

04:47not Jude.

04:48You know, he could have easily taken the safer route in his career.

04:51He could have easily built a career solely on his looks, one filled with safe choices

04:56and minimal risk, but not Jude.

04:58He continuously pushes himself outside of his comfort zone, working with an array of

05:03talented filmmakers, jumping from big franchises to small festival indies, telling stories

05:08that challenge the status quo.

05:11Now, when speaking of the integrity of an artist, the great thinker James Baldwin once

05:17said that it is impersonal.

05:20This force you didn't ask for, this destiny which you must accept, it is also your responsibility.

05:28And if you survive it, if you don't cheat, if you don't lie, it is not only your glory,

05:34your achievement, it is almost our only hope.

05:38Because only an artist can tell and only artists have told, since we have heard of man, woman,

05:45or human, what it is like for anyone who gets to this planet to be able to survive it.

05:52So Jude, I thank you, my brother, my friend.

05:56I thank you for creating an environment in which we all felt safe.

06:02I thank you for creating an environment that felt fair and equitable for us to play in.

06:08And witnessing your dedication to the craft has been an experience of a lifetime for me.

06:14Being in your orbit has made me a better artist, I dare say a better person, and I look forward

06:19with anticipation to our next adventure, my dear brother, whatever form it takes.

06:23So congratulations on your much-deserved star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

06:28Love you, man.

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