America Ferrera from Barbie having mixed feelings over Oscar win

America Ferrera is not so sure what to feel after winning her first Oscar.

After learning on Tuesday, January 23, that she had been nominated for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the Greta Gerwig-directed 2023 movie, the 39-year-old Barbie actress said she was feeling “waves of emotion, disbelief, and overwhelm.”

“It’s so surreal and a dream come true for me,” Ferrera told Entertainment Weekly after the nominations came out earlier on Tuesday.

“It’s a lot to process. It’s exciting to say the least. I think words kind of fail.”

Despite her happiness, Ferrera understands the disappointment of Barbie fans at the film’s exclusion from several important categories. 

Although Gerwig, 40, was not nominated for Best Picture, and lead actress Margot Robbie was not nominated for her performance, the film did receive a nomination for Best Picture.

Ferrera expressed her “sadness and disappointment” to EW about Robbie, 33, and Gerwig’s lack of a name call on Tuesday.

Their work in both of those categories was phenomenal, and in my book, [they] deserve to be acknowledged for the history they made, for the ground they broke, for the beautiful artistry,” Ferrera said.

“They’re my girls, and I want to see them celebrated for their amazingness, so that part of it is definitely bittersweet.”

Barbie received eight nominations for the Oscars, including two for Best Original Song for I’m Just Ken and What Was I Made For? by Billie Eilish, and one for Best Supporting Actor for Ryan Gosling.

Though many fans thought Barbie’s writing should have been considered for the “original” category, Gerwig and her husband Noah Baumbach were nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay. This nomination was also met with controversy.