Lupita Nyong’o, a Kenyan actress and filmmaker director born in Mexico but raised in Kenya, seems to have appeared out of nowhere and has captivated people all over the world.
Lupita won the hearts of many for her role as Patsey in the Academy Award-winning film and historical drama 12 Years a Slave. She’s won several sweet titles in one year, including People ‘s Most Beautiful Woman and Glamor ‘s Woman of the Year . The big question now is: who is this extraordinary woman, known worldwide for her outstanding role in preserving Kenya and African culture?
Lupita Nyong’o is a Mexican-Kenyan actress and film director.
Her father, Peter Anyang ‘Nyong’o, and her mother, Dorothy, packed up their family’s belongings and moved to Mexico City from Kenya when his [Peter’s] brother went missing. His brother’s car was later discovered on a ferry with his shoes left in the vehicle but no sign of him. Her father Peter decided his family would be safer elsewhere as they could not determine what had happened to the brother. He accepted a teaching position at the Colegio de Mexico. There the young woman Lupita was born. Her parents chose to baptize their Lupita, a common Mexican name, due to a long-standing Kenyan tradition that children should be referred to as something significant to the day of their birth.
She enrolled at the Yale School of Drama, where she impressed drama program chair Ron Van Lieu. He clearly remembers her audition and says her Romeo and Juliet monologue is one of the most exciting of his entire career. She appeared a few times before her supervisor asked her to submit an audition video for 12 Years a Slave which was her first attempt at making a feature film. Director Steven McQueen was totally impressed with Lupita’s performance as he wasn’t lucky enough to find someone with the immense talent to play one of the most important and important characters, Patsey. McQueen recalls how shocked he was when he watched her audition tape. In his words:
“We’ve auditioned over 2,000 women around the world, I always compare it to the search for Scarlett O’Hara. I had a Lupita cassette and couldn’t believe it. I thought is this person real? … She is absolutely professional, amazing. “
At the time, Lupita was unknown, but the lasting impression McQueen had of her gave her a cast. And that cast created avenues that saw her win an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her individual role. The film was also nominated for nine awards, winning three. Since then, Lupita has been nominated countless times and taken home countless awards from that debut role. Amazingly, Miss Nyong’o is the first Mexican and first Kenyan actress to win an Oscar.
The stunning actress doesn’t miss an opportunity to preserve African culture, skin color and her true beauty. You are right to say that she likes it the African way. She has inspired several women with her true African beauty. She once gave a speech about the beauty of black women and the insecurities she experienced as a teenager. She reported that her views changed for the better when she saw South Sudanese supermodel Alek Wek find success. She even mentioned receiving the following letter from an unidentified African girl, which in turn had inspired her:
“I was about to buy Dencia’s Whitenicious cream to whiten my skin when you appeared on the world map and saved me.”
Undoubtedly, trailblazing film actress Lupita has much to offer our continent, both morally and otherwise. So keep an eye out for her latest roles in the live adaptation of The Jungle Book , Star Wars: Episode VII , the film adaptation of the best-selling book, Americanah , which tells the story of a young Nigerian woman who emigrated to America, among other places. Of course, she knows we can’t wait to see what she’s going to do next and so she climbs higher not to let us down one bit!
Check out some stunning looks Lupita Nyog’o has brought to the red carpet in recent years.