Regardless, she's acclaimed and talented. Her performance was excellent. Her previous performances have been excellent. If all the hypothetical naysayers have to go on is career length, it seems like a very weak motive for selective hatred.
This is a common problem when studios want a seasoned non-white actor: they find out they haven't seasoned any. If you fail to cast minority talent in small roles through the years, you end up with only white actors with the chops for big roles.