When she graduated from university, Spencer was delighted to hear that Whoopi was thinking of her and she was "all excited" about her graduation.
Have you ever been told to finish your education before following your passion? If yes, you are not alone. As per PEOPLE, Octavia Spencer also received this sage wisdom from Whoopi Goldberg early in her career. Last week on WTF with Marc Maron, the Academy Award winner, 52, recalled her experience of interning in the extras casting department on Goldberg's 1990 film The Long Walk Home when she was just 17.
"It was pretty amazing, actually, to have a relationship with Whoopi," she said. Spencer first met the EGOT winner, 67, while working on the movie, which was shot in Montgomery, her hometown. The Snowpiercer actress remembered the essence of the advice Goldberg offered her, "[I] just was ready to move to Hollywood to work on films right after the movie was wrapped," she noted. "And Whoopi said, 'Hollywood will always be there. Get your education.'"
"My mom was really heavily into education," added Spencer. Her mother even hoped that her daughter would eventually become an attorney. When she graduated from Auburn University with a degree in English a few years later, Spencer said that Goldberg's brother, who worked in the production of The Long Walk Home, "made sure to let me know that Whoopi was thinking of me and that she was all excited that I was graduating."
The actress additionally shared that Goldberg even remembered her later, when she appeared on The View for the first time. As per PEOPLE, Sissy Spacek, who was also a part of the 1990s film, also remembered Spencer years later when they starred together in The Help in 2011. Spencer added, "We talked about her (Spacek's) daughter because Schuyler [Fisk] was three when she did The Long Walk Home. It was pretty amazing, actually."
Maron, the podcast host, also noted, "It's interesting to come full circle like that and actually be able to share that story again with Sissy." To this, Spencer added, "With Sissy and with Whoopi when The Help came out." Released in 2011, The Help follows a white Mississippi woman, who interviews Black women about their time serving white families as maids. Spencer won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for playing the rebellious maid Minny Jackson. Spacek, 73, played Mrs. Walters, an older woman who had a soft spot for Minny after she previously worked for Walters in her nursing home.
Indeed, Spencer's life has come full circle!
References:
https://people.com/movies/octavia-spencer-says-whoopi-goldberg-encouraged-education/
https://open.spotify.com/episode/3Fjd2R3Sy3Cv4754UbPlY4?si=3rosGqFNR2-swhk-0cozNg&nd=1
Cover Image Source: (L) Getty Images | Jon Kopaloff; (R) Getty Images | Dia Dipasupil
