The D23 Expo 2024 has revealed its legendary names who played a crucial role in bringing the epic stories to life. The event, held at the Honda Center in Anaheim, paid tribute to some of the iconic stars on its closing day.

On Sunday, August 11, at the Disney Legends Awards, the names of those who helped the studios bring their legendary stories to life were announced.

At the event, Angela Basset was called on stage for the award, as she has been sharing her talents with the studios for over three decades. The actress has appeared in Touchstone’s What’s Love Got to Do With It, then National Geographic’s The Flood as a narrator, as well as the Disney+ docuseries The Imagineering Story. In addition, the actress was recognized as a Legend by Disney Studios for her Oscar-nominated portrayal of Queen Ramonda in the MCU film Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.

Ryan Coogler was the one who introduced the actress on stage. Afterwards, Basset said that she was grateful to everyone who supported her on her journey to becoming a great actress.

James Cameron later became one of the Disney Legends Award recipients. He was introduced by Titanic actress Kate Winslet via video message. Winslet addressed the epic director and said she wasn’t sure anyone but him could ever make a film with as much imagination as he had shown over the years.

The actress later introduced Zoe Saldana, who presented the award to James Cameron and thanked him for allowing her to be a part of the epic Avatar series.

In his speech, the True Lies director spoke about the artists who have supported him throughout his film career. Cameron also remembered his producing partner Jon Landau, who passed away last month. He said he is greatly missed by everyone in the Avatar family, while also calling him an unsung Disney legend.

In addition to “Avatar,” Cameron has even worked with Disney on documentaries such as “Secrets of the Whales” and “Secrets of the Elephants” in collaboration with National Geographic.

Later in the evening, Kelly Ripa was presented with the Disney Legend Award by her co-host Ryan Seacrest. Seacrest took the time to introduce Ripa, calling her an unparalleled storyteller who even does a great job of making people feel good.

As she accepted the award, the talk show host thanked her husband, Mark Conseulos, while telling some jokes that were not appropriate for adults. During her acceptance speech, Kelly Ripa explained that she met her husband on the set of All My Children and joked that she and her husband later made “kids right backstage at the Disney labs.”

In addition to Ripa, Cameron and Bassett, the other Disney legends honored that evening included James L. Brooks, Jamie Lee Curtis, Harrison Ford, Frank Oz and John Williams, as well as Miley Cyrus and costume designer Colleen Atwood.

The event also honored the late Marvel comic artist Steve Ditko, as well as illustrator Joe Rohde and animator Mark Henn.

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