In 2016 , Johnson was included in the list of " 100 Women " , BBC 's list of 100 influential women worldwide . NASA stated , " Her calculations proved as critical to the success of the Apollo Moon landing program and the start of the Space Shuttle program , as they did to those first steps on the country 's journey into space . " Johnson has been portrayed in the media . The highly acclaimed film '' Hidden Figures '' , released in December 2016 , was based on the non-fiction book of the same title by Margot Lee Shetterly , which was published earlier that year . It follows Johnson and other female African-American mathematicians ( Mary Jackson and Dorothy Vaughan ) who worked at NASA . Taraji P. Henson plays Johnson in the film . Appearing alongside Henson at the 89th Academy Awards , Johnson received a standing ovation from the audience . In an earlier interview , Johnson offered the following comment about the movie : " It was well-done . The three leading ladies did an excellent job portraying us . " In a 2016 episode of the NBC series '' Timeless , '' titled " Space Race " , the mathematician is portrayed by Nadine Ellis
89th Academy Awards
89th Academy Awards
Katherine Johnson