Key Points
- Ernest Harden Jr. won the Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series for his role in The Pitt.
- In 1980, he starred alongside Bette Davis in the telefilm White Mama.
- Harden Jr. acknowledged Davis in his acceptance speech, fulfilling a promise.
Ernest Harden Jr. honored the late Bette Davis during his Emmy acceptance speech, expressing a sense of unfinished business with her spirit present. In a recent interview, he mentioned wanting to pay tribute to her legacy. The pair worked together in White Mama, where Davis portrayed a struggling widow and Harden Jr. played a troubled juvenile delinquent. This film was significant for both, as Davis was nominated for an Emmy but was unable to attend the ceremony due to an actors’ strike.
On September 6, Harden Jr. won the Emmy for his role as Louie Cloverfield in The Pitt. In his speech, he remarked, “In ’79, I did a movie with Bette Davis called White Mama. I just want to say, Bette Davis, we didn’t make it then, but this one is for us.” Their relationship extended off-camera, with Davis even cooking Thanksgiving dinners for him, and Harden Jr. always aiming to match her level of professionalism and talent.
In his acceptance speech, he also expressed gratitude towards his co-star Noah Wyle, acknowledging their shared journey and the narrative arc developed for Louie Cloverfield.
