AwardsWatch - ‘Queen of Katwe’ Trailer starring Oscar-winner Lupita Nyong’o

‘Queen of Katwe’ Trailer starring Oscar-winner Lupita Nyong’o

It seems like forever since we’ve seen Lupita Nyong’o since her Oscar-winning debut performance in 12 Years a Slave in 2013 and that’s probably because her only screen appearances since then have been voice work in The Jungle Book and Star Wars: The Force Awakens and a brief and forgettable turn as a flight attendant in the Liam Neeson thriller Non-Stop in 2014. She spent this year starring on Broadway in Eclipsed, which earned her a Tony nomination last week. Queen of Katwe marks her big return to the silver screen, albeit in a supporting role. She detailed her career choices in an essay penned for Lenny.

The film stars another newcomer primed for a breakout performance, Madina Nalwanga as Phiona, a young girl from the Ugandan slums who discovers a masterful skill in the game of chess. The true story, directed by award-winning film maker Mira Nair (Monsoon Wedding, Salaam Bombay!) also stars David Oyelowo (Selma). Nyong’o plays Harriet, Phiona’s mother.

Queen of Katwe will be released by Disney on September 23rd.

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Erik Anderson

Erik Anderson is the founder/owner and Editor-in-Chief of AwardsWatch and has always loved all things Oscar, having watched the Academy Awards since he was in single digits; making lists, rankings and predictions throughout the show. This led him down the path to obsessing about awards. Much later, he found himself in film school and the film forums of GoldDerby, and then migrated over to the former Oscarwatch (now AwardsDaily), before breaking off to create AwardsWatch in 2013.

He is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic, accredited by the Cannes Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and more, is a member of the International Cinephile Society (ICS), The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics (GALECA), Critics Choice Association (CCA), San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle (SFBAFCC) and the International Press Academy. Among his many achieved goals with AwardsWatch, he has given a platform to underrepresented writers and critics and supplied them with access to film festivals and the industry and calls the Bay Area his home where he lives with his husband and son.