Damson Idris’s Mom Traveled 17 Hours From Lagos To LA To Be His Plus-One For The NAACP Image Awards

One of our favorite chocolate bars, Damson Idris, won his first NAACP Image award over the weekend and he brought a perfect plus-one along to witness it. The Snowfall actor flew his mom, Philippa, to Los Angeles all the way from Lagos, Nigeria to attend the show with him. Her travels were 17 hours in total, all to spend the monumental moment with the 33-year-old actor.

During his speech, Idris joked about what his mom said to him before flying over. 

“Before she got on the plane, she said, ‘Damson, if I come to Los Angeles, you better win,’” he said with a laugh. “Thank you, NAACP and my Snowfall family. This award has been won by so many heroes of mine, like James Earl Jones, Michael K. Williams and Laurence Fishburne. I’m honored to be standing amongst them. I’m honored to be standing amongst you, people who inspire me every single day.”

He added, “People who make art that we can be proud of: art for the present, the past and the future; peace and love.”

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He also joked, “Hopefully, Denzel knows who I am now. Thank you so much for this honor. Love you all.”

During a backstage interview with theGrio, Idris credited his mom and God for his win.

“I just think it’s all God’s timing,” he said. “I mean, I’m incredibly spiritual. My mom — I think my mom just had to be here with me. I’ve been nominated before; I didn’t bring her. The one year I bring her, I win. So, you know what I mean, she was a good luck charm. I feel blessed. All glory to God.”

Idris won Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series at the 55th Image Awards in Los Angeles on Saturday for his leading role in Snowfall. Although the actor has been nominated twice before for his iconic performance as Franklin Saint in the FX drama, which ran for six seasons, this is his first time securing the award.

Playing Franklin Sant was Idris’s breakout role, but it won’t be the last we see of him in Hollywood. He will be playing the role of Joshua Pearce in a soon-to-be released Formula 1 racing film. The Apple Studios project will also feature Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton and Oscar-winning actors Brad Pitt and Javier Bardem.