Octavia Spencer Said Yes to ‘Hidden Figures’ Role Before She Even Knew It Was a True Story

Octavia Spencer said yes to the role of NASA mathematician Dorothy Vaughan in “Hidden Figures” before she even knew the story was true. “I said ‘yes’ because it was such a compelling story and then I found out it was actually true,” Spencer, who thought the film was historical fiction before reading the script, said. Spencer and costars Aldis Hodge and Glen Powell, as well as writer-director Theodore Melfi, producer and songwriter Pharrell Williams, and producer Jenno Topping stopped by the Variety Screening Series, presented by AARP, on Monday to discuss the hit film.