Kobe Bryant ruled royally on more than one court: The basketball legend was also an Oscar-winning member of Hollywood’s kingdom.
The 41-year-old purple-and-gold icon’s death Sunday in a California helicopter crash that also took the life of his daughter Gianna, 13, has spurred the film community to revisit his acclaimed short film, “Dear Basketball: The Legend of Kobe Bryant.”
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will pay tribute the late Los Angeles Laker’s contribution to film at the Feb. 9 Oscars telecast on ABC, the Hollywood Reporter announced Tuesday.
The tribute was also confirmed by Oscars announcer Randy Thomas during an interview on the “The Sam Alex Show,” a syndicated radio broadcast based out of Nashville.
Bryant wrote, executive produced and narrated the five-minute autobiographical project, which slam-dunked Hollywood’s ultimate gold prize with an Oscar win for Best Animated Short Film in 2018.
The academy paid tribute to Bryant Monday in a moving Instagram post: “They doubted a kid could make it in the NBA and he proved them wrong. They doubted he could win a championship and he proved them wrong. They doubted he could make movies and he won an Oscar. Like all great artists, Kobe Bryant proved the doubters wrong. Rest in peace.”
The “Black Mamba” of hoops was nominated as producer-screenwriter alongside esteemed animator Glen Keane, known for his work on the Disney classics “The Little Mermaid” and “Beauty and the Beast.”
“What?? This is beyond the realm of imagination. It means so much that the @TheAcademy deemed #DearBasketball worthy of contention,” Bryant tweeted at the time. “Thanks to the genius of @GlenKeanePrd & John Williams for taking my poem to this level. It’s an honor to be on this team. #OscarNoms.”
“Stars Wars: The Last Jedi” stars Oscar Isaac, Mark Hamill and Kelly Marie Tran eventually presented Bryant with the Oscar for the film. Based on a poem Bryant penned for the Players’ Tribune in 2015, which also served to announce his retirement, the film is scored by John Williams of “Jaws” and “Star Wars” fame.
If any player could live up to the heady title of “Legend,” it is certainly Bryant. He was an 18-time All-Star, 15-time All-NBA Team member, 12-time All-NBA Defensive Team player, two-time NBA Finals MVP and the 2008 NBA MVP. He also won gold on the US Olympic teams in 2008 and 2012.
The 6-foot-6-inch-tall husband and father of four also helped lead the Lakers to five championships as part of one of the NBA’s most iconic dynasties, working alongside Shaquille O’Neal. Bryant and Shaq scored three consecutive NBA titles, from 1999 to 2002. He then earned two championship rings with Pau Gasol in 2009 and 2010.
Bryant wrapped up his pro-basketball career in 2016 with a final win against the Utah Jazz: He scored a stellar 60 points, four rebounds and four assists.