Latest news with #LetitiaWright
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Letitia Wright on Overcoming Impostor Syndrome for Directorial Debut, Ryan Coogler Prophecy
Actress and producer Letitia Wright (Black Panther, Death on the Nile, Black Mirror, Small Axe) recently premiered her directorial debut, the short Highway to the Moon, which she also wrote, during the South London Film Festival. On Wednesday, she shared that she had to overcome 'impostor syndrome' and 'humble myself' to be ready for the directing reins. And she had to 'team up with people with the experience willing to teach me,' from the directing lingo to technical aspects, she told the inaugural SXSW London on Wednesday. More from The Hollywood Reporter Death of "Grassroots" Live, Electronic Music Venues Gets U.K. Parliament Review: SXSW London 'Thus Spoke the Wind' Trailer Hints at a Vivid, Metaphysical Ride in the Armenian Drama (Exclusive) Animated Werewolf Movie 'Dog of God' Debuts Wild Trailer With Hitler Look-Alike Getting Tortured (Exclusive) In front of an excited crowd, Wright recalled that Black Panther director Ryan Coogler told her one day: 'You will be directing soon.' She said her reaction was: 'You are mad!' But his 'prophecy' was repeated by a famous actor, whom she didn't name, within days, and it ended up coming true. In her SXSW London appearance and a wide-ranging discussion, Wright recalled how she discovered cinema and a shy teenager. 'I became a cinephile at age 13,' she shared. I watched all these films from Limewire. … I was kind of a loner.' What are her career ambitions? 'It's about legacy and purpose,' the star shared about how she approaches 'quote, unquote fame.' And she added: 'I want to leave an impact, and I want you to have a great time.' Speaking of fame, Wright highlighted that 'it takes a very strong person' to handle the tougher parts of fame, given that not all people are always respectful. 'They don't give us the grace to be human,' she said. Does Wright have any favorite movies in her career so far? 'I am grateful for the catalogue I have been able' to create in film, she said. But she mentioned her role in Danai Gurira's stage play The Convert at the Young Vic Theatre in London, where she played the character of Jekesai/Ester, as one of her favorite work experiences so far. Nigerian singer-songwriter Tiwa Savage also spoke on the panel, entitled 'Women in the Room,' at the Truman Brewery in the Shoreditch neighborhood of the British capital that was part of the festival's first-ever European edition. SXSW London runs through June 7. Penske Media, the parent company of The Hollywood Reporter, is the majority stakeholder of SXSW. Best of The Hollywood Reporter 13 of Tom Cruise's Most Jaw-Dropping Stunts Hollywood Stars Who Are One Award Away From an EGOT 'The Goonies' Cast, Then and Now
Daily Mirror
29-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Letitia Wright's directorial debut will show the devastating toll of knife crime
Black Panther actress Letitia Wright's directorial debut is a "love letter" to young Black men in response to the knife crime crisis in London and her personal experiences and loss Emmy-nominated actress Letitia Wright is set to make her directorial debut with Highway to the Moon, a new coming-of-age fantasy drama. Wright was inspired to create the short film in response to the devastating impact of knife crime in London and has called the project a 'love letter to young Black men all over the world '. Wright wrote, directed and produced the short film which was inspired by the killing of her friend's brother and the death of model Harry Uzoka. Actors Kenyah Sandy and Lamar Waves star in the fantasy film, which follows the experiences of young Black men after their lives are tragically cut short. Sandy portrays the character Micah, a young man journeying through the liminal space between life and death, guided by a group of other young men. Together the men confront what it means to be a Black boy in today's society, empowering each other to embrace empathy and self-worth. In a statement, Wright shared that Highway to the Moon veers away from stereotypes in favour of recognising the unique emotional, social and mental health struggles and strengths of young Black men. She said: 'The film is my way of exploring joy, love, and unity, and I want to show these boys in a way that is not connected to a stereotype, but instead explores their emotions, complexities, hopes, dreams, disappointments and fears, and allows them to see themselves as worthy, with lives that have meaning.' The global premiere of the film will be on Saturday, May 31 at the South London Film Festival. Wright said that the setting for the film's premiere was particularly important to her. 'I felt it was crucial to premiere the film at a festival that supports emerging filmmakers in our community," she explained. "The South London Film Festival's target audience aligns with the young people I aimed to reach with this film, and I hope it resonates with them.' In response to those who might criticise her for highlighting knife violence, Wright told The Guardian: 'There is not a single knife that you see in this film. It's just the actions of it. It's just the aftermath.' She also noted that in many stabbing cases, gangs were not involved at all. The short film was commissioned through WeTransfer's arts platform, WePresent. Holly Fraser, VP of content at WeTransfer, is an executive producer on the film, alongside Alex Mattinson and Damian Bradfield at WeTransfer. As reported by Variety, Fraser shared: 'Being able to commission important stories and work with artists that are driven to use creativity as a tool for progress has always been the cornerstone of WePresent's mission as a platform. 'Letitia exemplifies this and through the production of Highway to the Moon we've seen the love, care and dedication that she has poured into the film at every turn. We're excited to see the journey that 'Highway to the Moon' now goes on, and we hope that it starts much needed conversations amongst its audiences moving forward.'
The Guardian
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Letitia Wright describes ‘huge burden' of representation on black artists
The actor Letitia Wright has spoken about the 'huge burden' of representation for black film-makers telling stories about black lives, as she prepares to unveil her directorial debut. The 31-year-old Black Panther star steps behind the camera for Highway to the Moon, a short film inspired by the killing of her friend's brother and the death of the model Harry Uzoka. The short film – written, directed and produced by Wright – will have its world premiere on Saturday at the South London film festival. Kenyah Sandy and Lamar Waves star in the coming-of-age fantasy that explores the lives of young black boys whose futures have been violently cut short. Wright described the film as a spiritual and visual journey rooted in themes of black youth joy, love and unity. It imagines what happens to the souls of young black boys after death, whether through violence or mental health struggles, across three realms: Earth, the 'in-between' and space. 'It came from that place of shock that people that I knew, particularly my friend's brother Junior, weren't here any more and it was over a disagreement,' she said. 'His life is gone and just seeing that pain of my friend and her family and her mum processing it and how nobody would want to come forward to say who did it. Justice hasn't come to that household.' The short film, commissioned through WeTransfer's arts platform, WePresent, is Wright's response to the knife crime crisis in London. But she is clear that it deliberately avoids tired stereotypes, noting that in several stabbing cases, gangs were not involved at all. 'It just made me intrigued about their spirits and wanted to write about it and do it from a different lens, a different angle than what we're used to seeing,' Wright said. Speaking to the Guardian, Wright reflected on the pressure placed on black film-makers to speak for an entire community and to meet everyone's expectations. She said: 'I felt that from just even my acting career, the particular roles I want to take and the particular roles that I do take. I do weigh it up – I know how much representation means and the power of image, the power of what you see and what you hear, and how it can influence. So that has been something that has been a challenge for me. Whether it's writing it, whether it's directing, whether it's producing, whether it's the casting of it all. '[There's] that thing in the back of your mind feeling like, dang, is someone's going to misinterpret my intentions?' Wright added. 'And that has already happened. But I also have to let go of it because it's a huge burden to bear and I cannot control everybody's feelings. That's the one thing that I've been able to look at just in a mature way and just say, I cannot control how everyone's going to take this. All I can do is focus on my intention.' For this film, that intention is to amplify a message of love and unity. Wright said: 'I want this to really hit home with our boys when they watch it. It's like, dang, I'm meant to be here. He's meant to be here. We're meant to have a good quality of life.' To those who may criticise her for highlighting knife violence, she said: 'There is not a single knife that you see in this film. It's just the actions of it. It's just the aftermath of it.' Wright admits she was scared about stepping into directing, describing it as a steep learning curve. 'It had its difficult moments. Some days I wanted to give up, but the boys, honestly, it's the young boys and this story that just kept me going.' To prepare, she enrolled in directing and producing courses, all while continuing her acting work. 'Overall, it was a great experience, but I was definitely in the trenches,' she joked. 'But in the end, I made something that I'm really proud of.'
Express Tribune
29-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Express Tribune
National Theatre taps Paul Mescal, Monica Barbaro, and Nicola Coughlan for new season
Paul Mescal, Letitia Wright, Monica Barbaro, and Nicola Coughlan are set to make their debuts at London's prestigious National Theatre, marking a major moment in their stage careers. The announcement comes as part of new artistic director Indhu Rubasingham's fresh lineup of productions, emphasizing global talent and diverse storytelling. Mescal will lead a repertory company at the Lyttelton Theatre in 2027, starring in A Whistle in the Dark and playing Biff in Death of a Salesman. Rubasingham highlighted that the Gladiator II star was selected not for his celebrity status, but for being "a proper theatre actor." Monica Barbaro will join Lesley Manville and Aidan Turner in Les Liaisons Dangereuses, directed by Marianne Elliott. Meanwhile, Bridgerton star Nicola Coughlan will headline The Playboy of the Western World from December 4. Black Panther actress Letitia Wright will star in The Story, a new play tackling racism and media culture. Other major announcements include James McArdle, Clare Perkins, and Ukweli Roach starring in Bacchae, and Hiran Abeysekera leading a new Hamlet production in 2025. Rubasingham also announced partnerships with The Shed and the Brooklyn Academy of Music, aiming to take productions from London to international stages and schools. The National Theatre's evolving mission, Rubasingham said, is to create "state-of-the-world" plays that resonate across cultures, signaling a shift towards a more global, inclusive future for British theatre.
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘Rule Breakers' Review: True-Life Drama About All-Girls Afghan Robotics Team Hits Its Inspirational Marks
This latest movie from Angel Studios demonstrates that the distributor's interest in releasing films that veer away from proselytizing is paying off artistically. Relating the true-life story of the Afghan Dreamers, a group of young women who groundbreakingly participated in international robotics competitions, Bill Guttentag's Rule Breakers proves inspirational in the best sense of the word. The film's release is perfectly timed for Women's History Month. Scripted by the two-time Oscar-winning filmmaker (for the documentary shorts Twin Towers and You Don't Have to Die), along with Jason Brown and Elaha Mahboob, the film centers on Roya Mahboob (Nikolhl Boosheri), whose interest in computers wasn't exactly encouraged in her native Afghanistan, as demonstrated by an early scene in which she's nearly assassinated. More from The Hollywood Reporter Phoebe Waller-Bridge's Wells Street Films Signs First-Look Deal With 'Fleabag' Stage Show Producer 'Sound of Hope' Director Apologizes to Letitia Wright for Daily Wire Partnership Letitia Wright Says It "Was Not My Decision" to Have Daily Wire Distribute 'Sound of Hope' When she was a young student, she was ordered to leave the classroom along with the other girls when the teacher began instructing the boys as to how to use some newly arrived computers. She's shown forlornly peeking in through the window, desperate to learn a subject that fascinates her but is denied to her gender. Several years later (the film suffers at times from its confusing timeline), she's a star university student who strikes a deal with a friendly café owner (Nassar Memarzia) to teach him how to use the computer he keeps for his male customers if he'll let her practice on it every morning before he opens up. Not much later she's not only become an expert with the technology, but has also started her own successful software company and opened a computer school for girls. Their interest is deeper than she expected; when she decides to create an all-girls robotics team and seeks four members, dozens of girls show up to audition. Needless to say, the team faces numerous hurdles, including the resistance of the girls' families to let them participate. But Roya proves as persuasive as she is determined, as illustrated in one of the film's best scenes, which finds her convincing one skeptical father to let his daughter pursue her dream. The obstacles continue even after the team proves their mettle. Preparing to travel to America to participate in a competition, the girls are denied visas for such reasons as having recently traveled to Iran to visit a relative. After Roya appeals to a sympathetic American journalist to write about their plight, the story becomes an international media sensation. And even then, traveling at the last minute, they're nearly unable to get on a sold-out flight until several people volunteer to give up their seats. The ensuing plot developments as the team travels around the world participating in robotics competitions strike both familiar and fresh beats, the former stemming from the standard tropes endemic to the genre and the latter from the unique circumstances involved. For instance, after one competition, the girls excitedly sign the shirts of competing male players and get theirs signed in return, leading to shaming by their relatives and violent threats from the Taliban. There's even the obligatory competition montage scored to upbeat music, in this case the Black Eyed Peas' 'I Gotta Feeling.' But despite its occasionally stale elements, the film succeeds movingly thanks to the inherent power of its narrative and the terrific performances by Boosher and the four young actresses (Amber Afzali, Nina Hosseinzadeh, Sara Malal Rowe, and Mariam Saraj) as the team members. Ali Fazal (Death on the Nile, Victoria & Abdul) shows up briefly but appealingly as an Indian-American businessman who provides moral and financial support, and Phoebe Waller-Bridge displays a warm, winning presence as a competition judge. Rule Breakers proves scattershot in its storytelling and features one or two too many last-minute crises for its plucky heroines to overcome. But by the time the titular characters enter the climactic competition with their ingenious invention of a landmine-detecting robot that has the potential to save thousands of lives around the world, you'll be thoroughly rooting for them. The end credits provide a satisfying coda informing us about the real-life figures involved, including Roya Mahboob being named one of Time magazine's 100 Most Influential People in the World. Best of The Hollywood Reporter 20 Times the Oscars Got It Wrong The Best Anti-Fascist Films of All Time Dinosaurs, Zombies and More 'Wicked': The Most Anticipated Movies of 2025
