LUPITA NYONG’O is a Kenyan actress, producer, and New York Times Bestselling author. She made her feature debut in Steve McQueen’s Academy Award® winning film 12 Years a Slave. For her portrayal as Patsey, Nyong’o received the Academy Award®, the Screen Actors Guild® Award, the Critics’ Choice Award, the Independent Spirit Award, and the NAACP Image Award.
Upcoming, Nyong'o will star alongside Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Zendaya, Robert Pattinson, Anne Hathaway, Charlize Theron, Jon Bernthal and Benny Safdie in Universal Studios' and Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey, an adaptation of the eponymous epic poem by Homer. The film is set to release in theaters July 17, 2026.
Most recently, Nyong’o starred in DreamWorks Animation’s feature film The Wild Robot, which debuted in September 2024 to critical acclaim and high praise, earning a 2025 Critics Choice Award for "Best Animated Feature," as well as Golden Globe, BAFTA and Academy Award nominations in the same category. Based on Peter Brown’s novel of the same name, it follows robot ROZZUM unit 7134, better known as ROZ, who is voiced by Nyong’o. After being shipwrecked on an uninhabited island, ROZ must learn to adapt to the harsh environments around her with the help of the animals she finds there. Written and directed by Chris Sanders, the cast includes Pedro Pascal, Bill Nighy, Catherine O’Hara, Kit Connor, Stephanie Hsu, and Mark Hamill. The Wild Robot has received overwhelming critical acclaim following its world premiere at The Toronto International Film Festival. Vulture states Nyong'o "does some of her best, most challenging work" in this film.
Last July, Nyong’o shared her journey with Uterine Fibroids via a heartfelt letter on Instagram. The post also served as the announcement of the Foundation of Women’s Health x Lupita Nyong’o Uterine Fibroid Grant which funds research to stimulate the creation of non-invasive or minimally invasive treatments for uterine fibroids. A few months later, Nyong’o participated in the Milken Institute's Future of Health Summit in Washington, D.C. where she spoke on a panel with Former First Lady Jill Biden and CEO and Executive Vice President of the American Medical Association John Wyte to discuss her ongoing advocacy for Women’s Health and closing the research gap.
In September 2024, Nyong’o globally launched her intimate and joyous storytelling debut podcast Mind Your Own, which navigates what it means to belong, from the African perspective. From her roots in Kenya and Mexico to her life in the States, she dives into the stories of Africans around the world – seeking love, family, and new beginnings. The weekly podcast is produced by KQED’s Snap Studios and distributed by Lemonada Media. In April 2025, the podcast won the Webby Award in the "Best Series, Features (Podcasts)" category. The podcast also garnered an Ambie Award nomination in the category of “Best Society and Culture Podcast.”
Nyong’o made her return to the stage as Viola in Shakespeare in the Park‘s summer production of “Twelfth Night” alongside Peter Dinklage, Sandra Oh and Jesse Tyler Ferguson. Directed by Tony®-nominated Saheem Ali, previews began August 7, with the show playing August 21 through September 14. For her Broadway debut in Danai Gurira's play, “Eclipsed," Nyong’o earned a Tony® nomination. She returned to theater in 2021 when she played “Julieta” in The Public Theater’s bilingual (Spanish and English) audio adaptation of “Romeo y Julieta” for Saheem Ali.
In 2024, Nyong’o served as President of the International Jury at the 74th Berlin International Film Festival. She led the group in selecting and awarding the winning films in the two main categories: The Golden and Silver Bears. Also in 2024, Nyong’o received the CinemaCon Star of the Year Award in Las Vegas on behalf of her career.
Nyong’o also recently starred in Paramount’s A Quiet Place” horror franchise spinoff A Quiet Place: Day One, written and directed by Michael Sarnoski. This prequel, and third installment of the film series spearheaded by Producer John Krasinski, also starred Joseph Quinn, Alex Wolff and Djimon Hounsou. The film released in June 2024 to critical acclaim and major box office success, making the film the most successful debut in the blockbuster franchise. The New York Times raved, “And it is at its very best whenever Nyong’o’s face fills the screen, like the postapocalyptic heroine of a silent movie. What she can do with relatively little is simply astonishing, and you absolutely believe in both Samira’s despair and her determination. Nyong’o has created a woman whose life force can never be fully extinguished."
In 2024 she served as an executive producer of Sudanese director Mohamed Kordofani’s feature debut, Goodbye Julia. The film was the first-ever Sudanese feature to screen at the Cannes Film Festival and was selected by the country to be its second-ever Academy Awards submission for Best International Feature Film.
Nyong’o plays “Nakia” in Marvel’s “Black Panther” franchise. The Oscar-nominated Black Panther broke numerous box office records when it premiered in 2018. The cast went on to win the SAG Award for Best Ensemble and her performance earned Nyong’o a nomination for an NAACP Image Award. In 2022, she reprised her role in the sequel Black Panther: Wakanda Forever which garnered her an NAACP Image Award nomination.
In Jordan Peele’s critically acclaimed horror film, Us, Nyong’o appeared as both “Adelaide” and “Red” which garnered her a Screen Actors Guild nomination, the NY Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress, and an NAACP Image Award. Other credits include Little Monsters, Queen of Katwe, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and Universal’s thriller, The 355.
In 2020, Nyong’o narrated her debut children's book, Sulwe, for Netflix’s “Bookmarks: Celebrating Black Voices,” which earned her an Emmy Award. Sulwe, a New York Times #1 Best Seller, released by Simon & Schuster in 2019, explores colorism, the preferential treatment of those with lighter skin, which is an issue across the globe, and impacts children from a young age.
Nyong’o executive produces the family program, Super Sema. The animated series, which returned for a third season in 2023, centers on Sema, Africa’s first kid superhero whose superpower is STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art & Math). Nyong’o can also be heard narrating Discovery’s docu-series, Serengeti, which explores the dramatic day-to-day happenings of animals living in Tanzania's Serengeti National Park. Her narration for this series has earned her two Emmy® award nominations.
