Dec. 9 (UPI) -- Actress Octavia Spencer has received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The Hidden Figures star was honored for her work in film and television becoming the 2742nd artist so honored with a ceremonial plaque.
"It took me a minute to absorb the profundity of this moment," the visibly moved actress said, per the Los Angeles Times. "The culmination of my dreams realized, hard work rewarded after a fair but healthy amount of failure and rejection."
Spencer, 52, won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for the 2011 movie The Help. She brought along her two sisters, Rosa and Arena Spencer, Spirited co-star Will Ferrell and actress Allison Janney, who was also in The Help to join her as she accepted the plaque and watched her star get unveiled.
Janney, Spencer's friend since 1998, said she once overheard the then-struggling actress joke about taking bit parts just to have a chance for success.
"Anyone who could have a sense of humor about the struggles of trying to make it in Hollywood had to be part of my life, and, of course, I wanted to work with her," Janney said at the ceremony.
Spencer thanked her sisters for "never panicking when I called for money to pay the rent."
Ferrell contended with a heckler who emerged as the ceremony was taking place, yelling at the assembled crowd that the ceremony only honored "rich people."
"Not on Octavia's day!" Ferrell shouted back at the unidentified man. "Keep it moving. Keep it moving. The wax museum's down there. That thing is wide open."
Ferrell went on to praise Spencer for her work on television and on the big screen. Aside from The Help and Hidden Figures, Spencer's credits include Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam C.J. Walker, Truth Be Told, Luce, Ma, and The Shape of Water. She starred in 2021's Thunder Force with good friend Melissa McCarthy.
A Montgomery, Ala., native, Spencer was joined by the Auburn Tigers mascot, Aubie, at the ceremony. The Help director Tate Taylor, Viola Davis, Julius Tennon, and Mekhi Phifer also came out in support.
"It's a place where you can actually see that bygone era of stars who are no longer with it. And you can actually reach out and touch their star," Spencer told Variety when the honor was first announced. "It can make it feel attainable to people. It's just a rare and huge honor."
