Award-winning actress and Fordham alumna Regina Hall will address the Class of 2025 at the University’s Commencement on May 17. In recognition of her exceptional career and commitment to using her platform for good, Fordham will present her with an honorary doctorate of fine arts at the ceremony.
“Regina is an inspiring role model who will show our graduates what it looks like to live out our Jesuit values,” said Fordham President Tania Tetlow. “Her remarkable talent, strong work ethic, and unwavering commitment to justice make her the ideal speaker for our commencement ceremony. We’re thrilled to honor her.”
Road to Hollywood
Hall has appeared in numerous hit films, including The Best Man, Love and Basketball, the Scary Movie franchise, Girls Trip, The Hate U Give, Master, and will be in the upcoming Paul Thomas Anderson movie, One Battle After Another.
But a Hollywood career wasn’t always her plan. Born in Washington D.C., Hall graduated from Fordham in 1992 with a degree in English. She was inspired to pursue acting after a personal tragedy—her father died unexpectedly of a stroke while she was in grad school studying journalism.
“When you’re young, you don’t necessarily realize life’s brevity,” Hall told The LA Times. “It wasn’t like I didn’t want to do journalism. It was more like, you live once, life is short.”
Hall started taking acting classes and auditioning, and soon she was landing roles.
Awards and Accolades
Hall has appeared in many popular television series, including Ally McBeal; Law & Order: Los Angeles; Black-ish; Insecure; Nine Perfect Strangers; and Black Monday, which she co-produced. In 2022 she appeared in Peacock’s The Best Man: The Final Chapters, based on the popular Best Man film franchise.
Hall is known for her versatility as an actress, standing out for both her comedic chops and dramatic range. BET called her performance in the megachurch dark comedy Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul a “masterclass in subtle comedy and emotional depth.” She was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award and an NAACP Image Award for the performance.
For her role in the 2018 dramedy Support the Girls, in which Hall plays the manager of a sports bar, she became the first Black woman to win the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress. She has also been honored with the Women’s Image Network Awards for Best Supporting Actress, NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress, and more.
In 2022, Hall hosted the 94th Academy Awards with Amy Schumer and Wanda Sykes. It was the first time in history three women hosted the ceremony.
Hall’s production company, Rh Negative, is currently developing projects on the scripted and unscripted sides of television as well as film.
Faith and Advocacy
Throughout her life, Hall has maintained a strong connection with faith. She attended a Catholic high school before Fordham, and as an adult she’s drawn spiritual inspiration from Christianity along with Buddhism, Hinduism, and other faiths.
“I’ve always had a relationship with God,” Hall told The Cut in 2022. “A deep and sometimes complex relationship with God has carried me through my difficult times.”
One such difficult time came in 2006 when her mother was diagnosed with scleroderma, a rare autoimmune disorder. Hall became an advocate for scleroderma research, and she now serves on the Board of Directors for the Scleroderma Research Foundation.
Hall has also been involved with organizations including the American Red Cross, the Ronald McDonald House, Habitat for Humanity, Smiles for Speech, Solutions Project, and Just Like My Child.
“Regina’s dedication to advocacy embodies the principles we hold dear at Fordham,” said President Tetlow. “We can’t wait to welcome her back to campus.”
