Academy Award-winning costume designer Ruth E. Carter made history last month, receiving her fifth Oscar nomination for best costume design for "Sinners."
Carter is already the most nominated Black woman in Oscar history and has won more awards than any other Black woman in Oscar history, but it's a distinction she says she didn't aim for when she was younger.
"I didn't set out to be a Black costume designer or anything like that. I set out to be a great costume designer, and I had such good support along the way," Carter told "Good Morning America" on Monday.
Carter likened being a world-class costume designer to being a top-tier athlete, a feat that she said requires as much sacrifice as it does passion.
"There's a lot of training, a lot of preparation, a lot of study, a lot of research, a lot of sacrifice," Carter said, adding that at the same time, "When you love what you do, you never work a day in your life."
Carter won her first two Oscars in costume design for her work on the "Black Panther" series, helmed by filmmaker Ryan Coogler, with whom she teamed up again for his 2025 Oscar-nominated horror film "Sinners."
"He's a maverick," Carter said of working with Coogler. "He is really a genius, and working with him and seeing his writing and hearing him talk about his passion, everything roots out of passion."
"I've been able to see some great filmmakers do their craft, and Ryan Coogler is certainly right up there," she added.
Carter said she feels "so lucky" for her career longevity so far and would "thank" her younger self for staying the course.
"I would thank her, and I would say, 'You listen to your voice,'" said Carter. "That's the advice I give to young people, to keep going and listen to that inner voice inside of you telling you that you want to do this, and you want to be good at it."
Carter said she plans to attend the 98th Academy Awards next month and will wear one of her own designs to the annual awards ceremony.
The 2026 Oscars will air on Sunday, March 15, at 7 p.m. ET on ABC and Hulu.
The Walt Disney Co. is the parent company of ABC, ABC News and Hulu.
