Fantasia Barrino, Leslie Odom Jr., and More Named TIME's 100 Most Influential People in the World for 2024

TIME has revealed the 2024 TIME100, its annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world. Among this year's honorees in the world of theatre are Fantasia Barrino, Colman Domingo, Alex Edelman, Leslie Odom Jr., Da'Vine Joy Randolph and Jeffrey Wright.

Taraji P. Henson spoke about Fantasia, stating, "Fantasia is a living testimony that we’re all going to go through storms. But at the end of a storm, what happens? The sun comes out. Whatever comes next for her will be so beautiful. She deserves everything. I see such big things for Fantasia—the sky’s the limit. Well, beyond the sky for her. It’s her time."

Kate Hudson provided commentary on Leslie Odom, Jr. Hudson said, "I didn’t know Leslie Odom Jr. the night I watched him take the stage as Aaron Burr in Hamilton, but his performance hit me like a ton of bricks. I was hypnotized. Little did I know that years later I’d get to work with him, and that we’d become friends—family, even."

Check out the full list here and read commentary on the other theatrical honorees, including Lenny Kravitz discussing Colman Domingo, Phoebe Waller-Bridge on Alex Edelman, Uzo Aduba on Da'Vine Joy Randolph, and Octavia Spencer on Jeffrey Wright.

About the TIME100

The TIME100 issue  has 4 worldwide covers, each highlighting a member of the TIME100: singer-songwriter Dua Lipa, football quarterback Patrick Mahomes, actor Taraji P. Henson, and Yulia Navalnaya, a leader of Russia's opposition movement. 

This year’s list features 51 women, including Sofia Coppola, Kylie Minogue, Dua Lipa, Fantasia Barrino, Taraji P. Henson, Yulia Navalnaya, Jenny Holzer, Kelly Sawyer Patricof, Norah Weinstein, Joanne Crevoiserat, Alia Bhatt, Lauren Groff, Kelly Ripa, Rachel Goldberg-Polin and others. 

The list features world leaders and other U.S. political figures including William Burns, Greg Abbott, Ajay Banga, Diana Salazar Méndez, Jack Smith, Elise Stefanik, Donald Tusk, Andriy Yermak, Marina Silva, Mohammed bin Abdul­rahman Al Thani and more. 

Over a dozen entertainers are featured on this year’s list, including Elliot Page, Burna Boy, Dua Lipa, 21 Savage, Jeffrey Wright, Kylie Minogue, Fantasia Barrino, America Ferrera, Taraji P. Henson, Maya Rudolph, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Colman Domingo, Dev Patel, Alex Edelman and more.  

Athletes on this year’s list include: Max Verstappen, Patrick Mahomes, Siya Kolisi, A'ja Wilson, Jenni Hermoso and Sakshi Malik. 

 Fashion, visual and literary arts icons featured include: Jenny Holzer, Tory Burch, Jonathan Anderson, LaToya Ruby Frazier, Thelma Golden, James McBride and more, as well as media figures and journalists including Kelly Ripa, Connie Walker, Motaz Azaiza and E. Jean Carroll. 

 Satya Nadella and Patrick Mahomes are both on the list for the 3rd time, more than any other person on the list this year. Other repeats include: America Ferrera (2), Taraji P. Henson (2), Hayao Miyazaki (2), Michael J. Fox (2), and Jensen Huang (2). 

Motaz Azaiza, 25 years old, is the youngest person on this year’s list. The oldest person on this year’s list is Joel Habener, ​​who is 86 years old.