Gina Rodriguez is officially a golden girl…
The 30-year-old Puerto Rican actress took home the award for Best Actress, Television Comedy at this year’s Golden Globes.
Rodriguez, who was celebrating her first-ever Golden Globe nomination, won the award for her breakout starring role on the CW’s Jane the Virgin, beating out previous winner Lena Dunham (Girls), as well as seasoned veterans like Nurse Jackie’s Edie Falco and Veep’s Julia Louis-Dreyfus.
“This award is so much more than myself,” Rodriguez said as she tearfully accepted the award. “It represents a culture that wants to see itself as heroes.”
Backstage after picking up her Golden Globe, Rodriguez expanded on her speech.
“First and foremost, the nomination alone was a win for me because it allowed our culture, it allowed Latinos to see themselves in a beautiful light,” Rodriguez said. “For me, the win meant everything.”
“I’m definitely part of the testament that it’s changing. It’s not only something that I see, but something I experience everyday.”
Rodriguez also said her big win “…allowed [Latinos] to see themselves invited to the same party. We want to create the effect that shows Latinos as the investment bankers and the lawyers that exist in my own home.” Rodriguez was referring to her sisters, who she thanked in her speech for being role models. One is an investment banker; the other is a lawyer.
Rodriguez is the first Latina actress to take home the Best Actress in a TV comedy prize since Ugly Betty’s America Ferrera in 2007.
But Rodriguez isn’t the only Latino/a to pick up an award during Sunday night’s show…
Alejandro González Iñárritu took home the award for Best Screenplay for co-penning the script for his dark comedy Birdman, which Michael Keaton called an “unbelievably gutsy, polished look at human nature.”
González Iñárritu shares the prize with his fellow writers Nicolas Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris and Armando Bo.
The seven-time nominee previously won a Golden Globe in 2007 for Babel, picking the prize for Best Picture – Drama.
Here’s a look at the winners at the 72nd annual Golden Globe Awards:
FILM
Drama
Boyhood
Actor, Drama
Eddie Redmayne, The Theory of Everything
Actress, Drama
Julianne Moore, Still Alice
Comedy or Musical
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Actor, Comedy or Musical
Michael Keaton, Birdman
Actress, Comedy or Musical
Amy Adams, Big Eyes
Director
Richard Linklater, Boyhood
Supporting Actress
Patricia Arquette, Boyhood
Supporting Actor
J.K. Simmons, Whiplash
Animated Feature Film
How to Train Your Dragon 2
Screenplay
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Nicolas Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Armando Bo, Birdman
Original Song
John Legend, Common, Glory (Selma)
Original Score
Johann Johannsson, The Theory of Everything
Foreign Film
Leviathan
PRIME-TIME TELEVISION
Drama
The Affair
Actor, Drama Series
Kevin Spacey, House of Cards
Actress, Drama Series
Ruth Wilson, The Affair
Comedy
Transparent
Actor, comedy series
Jeffrey Tambor, Transparent
Actress, comedy series
Gina Rodriguez, Jane the Virgin
Miniseries or TV movie
Fargo
Actor, Miniseries or TV Movie
Billy Bob Thornton, Fargo
Supporting Actor, Series, Miniseries or TV Movie
Matt Bomer, The Normal Heart
Actress, Miniseries or TV Movie
Maggie Gyllenhaal, The Honorable Woman
Supporting Actress, Series, Miniseries or TV Movie
Joanne Froggatt, Downton Abbey