Thuso Mbedu: Here’s what you need to know about SA’s export

The 29-year-old South African actress, Thuso Mbedu, is making a name for herself internationally with appearances in TV series and a film alongside American icons.

Who is Thuso Mbedu?

The talented actress grew up in Pietermaritzburg and went Pietermaritzburg Girls’ High School. She went on to study physical theatre and performing arts management at the University of Witwatersrand from where she graduated with honours.

Thuso further pursued her performance arts career in New York where she attended the Stella Adler Studio of Acting.

A little bit about her background

Before making international strides as an actress, Thuso had a small role in the second season of Mzani Magic’s beloved soapie, Isibaya. She then landed a role on eTV’s Scandal as a journalism student named Kitso.

Thuso was cast in her first starring role on Mzanzi Magic’s teen drama series, Is’thunzi, in which she played the character of Winnie, a teenager who dreams of marrying a rich and famous rugby player, only to have her dreams crushed when she is forced to stay with her strict aunt in Bergville, Kwazulu-Natal.

Thuso won awards for her impressive role as Winnie on Is’thunza such as an international Emmy award for best performance by an actress and the Golden Horn award for best actress in a lead role in a TV drama.

The Underground Railroad

The actress was mentioned in Vogue’s list of “8 sensational rising stars to watch from the biggest releases on Netflix, Amazon Prime and more” for her role in the American historical fiction drama streaming television limited series, The Underground Railroad.

 

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A post shared by Thuso Mbedu (@thuso.mbedu)

Amazon’s synopsis for the long-awaited limited series reads as follows: “The limited series chronicles young Cora’s (Thuso Mbedu) journey as she makes a desperate bid for freedom in the antebellum South. After escaping her Georgia plantation for the rumored Underground Railroad, Cora discovers no mere metaphor, but an actual railroad full of engineers and conductors, and a secret network of tracks and tunnels beneath the southern soil.”

The Woman King

Thuso recently announced to her 1,300,000 Instagram followers that she will be starring in a movie titled The Woman King alongside internationally recognised American actress Viola Davis.

 

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A post shared by Thuso Mbedu (@thuso.mbedu)

Thuso captioned the Instagram post “Those who know, know. Let’s dooooo iiiiiiiiiiiit? What an honor!”

Viola Davis also took to Twitter to announce the movie and that she was “very excited” about the film.

Very excited!! ????????????????????????????????https://t.co/cMQKwcu8kQ

— Viola Davis (@violadavis) April 28, 2021