Lupita Nyong'o

Lupita Amondi Nyong'o, born on March 1, 1983, is an accomplished actress and author with Kenyan and Mexican roots. She initially ventured into Hollywood as a production assistant before making her acting debut in the 2008 short film East River. After this, she returned to her homeland to feature in the popular television series Shuga, which aired from 2009 to 2012. In the same year, she took on the roles of writer, producer, and director for the documentary In My Genes, later advancing her education by earning a master’s degree in acting from the Yale School of Drama.

Nyong'o's breakout role came in the 2013 film 12 Years a Slave, where she portrayed Patsey, a performance that garnered widespread acclaim and numerous accolades, including the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, making her the first actress of both Kenyan and Mexican descent to receive this honor. Her Broadway debut followed in the play Eclipsed in 2015, earning her a Tony Award nomination for Best Actress in a Play. She has also lent her voice to significant roles, such as Maz Kanata in the Star Wars sequel trilogy and Raksha in The Jungle Book. Her contributions to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Nakia in Black Panther and her lead role in Jordan Peele’s Us further solidified her status as a leading actress.

Beyond her artistic pursuits, Nyong'o advocates for historical preservation, speaks against sexual harassment, and champions women's and animal rights. In 2014, she was recognized as People’s Most Beautiful Woman, and her children’s book, Sulwe, published in 2019, became a New York Times Best-Seller. That same year, she narrated the Discovery Channel's docu-series Serengeti, earning an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Narrator. In 2020, Forbes included her in its list of Africa’s "50 Most Powerful Women."