The 2013 Academy Awardwinning film marked the actress' bigscreen debut. Lupita Nyong'o explains why she turned down several roles after Oscar win for 12 Years a Slave The 2013 Academy Awardwinning film marked the actress' bigscreen debut. By Shania Russell :maxbytes(150000):stripicc()/ShaniaRussellauthorphoto5934b684845d480caa4485648c39ef2b.jpg) Shania Russell Shania Russell is a news writer at , with five years of experience. Her work has previously appeared in SlashFilm and Paste Magazine. EW's editorial guidelines November 25, 2025 12:16 p.m.

The 2013 Academy Award-winning film marked the actress' big-screen debut.

Lupita Nyong'o explains why she turned down several roles after Oscar win for 12 Years a Slave

The 2013 Academy Award-winning film marked the actress' big-screen debut.

By Shania Russell

Shania Russell

Shania Russell is a news writer at *, *with five years of experience. Her work has previously appeared in SlashFilm and Paste Magazine.

EW's editorial guidelines

November 25, 2025 12:16 p.m. ET

Lupita Nyong'o wins Best Supporting Actress a the 2013 Academy Awards. Credit:

Adam Taylor/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty

While Lupita Nyong'o certainly enjoyed the honor of winning an Academy Award, the actress admits that the immediate aftermath wasn't all that she expected.

Over a decade after making her big screen debut and winning an Oscar for her role in *12 Years a Slave*, Nyong'o is shedding some light on the roles that followed her breakthrough success.

"My winning an Academy Award came at the very start of my career," Nyong'o recently told Angélique Kidjo in a Nov. 22 CNN *Inside Africa* interview. "It was for the first film I had ever done. So, it really did set the paces for everything I've done since."

She continued, "But, you know what's interesting is that after I won the Academy Award, you'd think like, 'Oh, I'm going to get the lead roles here and there.' But it's 'Oh, Lupita. We'd like you to do another movie where you're a slave but this time you're on a slave ship.' Those are the kinds of offers [I was getting] in the months after winning my Academy Award."

Lupita Nyong'o and Alfre Woodard in '12 Years a Slave'.

Jaap Buitendijk/Fox Searchlight/Courtesy Everett Collection

The Kenyan-Mexican actress declined such offers and instead used the exposure and acclaim of her breakthrough role to make the leap to blockbusters. But she now points out that these were not easy decisions to make after being so suddenly thrust into the public eye.

"It was a very tender time," Nyong'o explained. "There is an expectation for you and your career. There were think pieces about 'Is this the beginning or the end of this African woman's career?' I had to deafen myself to all those pontificators because at the end of the day I am not a theory. I am an actual person."

She added, "I like to be a joyful warrior for changing the paradigms of what it means to be African. If that means I work one less job a year to ensure that I am not perpetuating these stereotypes that are expected of people from my continent, then let me do that."

Inside the complicated legacy of Hattie McDaniel, the first Black Oscar winner

Halle Berry hopes a Black woman wins Best Actress Oscar this year

Following her Oscar win, Nyong'o turned to theater, snagging the lead role in then-future* Black Panther *costar Danai Gurira's play *Eclipsed* on Broadway. Nyong'o earned a Tony Award nomination for her performance.

She next signed on to play the motion-capture role of former smuggler Maz Kanata in *Star Wars: The Force Awakens* and eventually reprised the role across two more films and a series of shorts. The actress also lent her voice to Disney's live-action remake of* The Jungle Book* and starred in* The Queen of Katwe*, a biopic about Ugandan chess champ Phiona Mutesi. She then entered the Marvel Cinematic Universe with 2018's *Black Panther,* starring as Nakia, a skilled spy and the love interest of Wakanda's Prince T'Challa (the late Chadwick Boseman).

Nyong'o has continued her success by delving deeper into genre filmmaking, with lead roles in the zombie-comedy *Little Monsters*, Jordan Peele's sophomore horror entry *Us*, the apocalyptic prequel* A Quiet Place: Day One*, and the Oscar-nominated animated feature *The Wild Robot*. She is next set to appear in Christopher Nolan's Greek epic,* The Odyssey*.

Lupita Nyong'o attends the 2025 Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit.

Taylor Hill/WireImage

This isn't the first time Nyong'o has unpacked the struggles that followed her Academy Award win. In 2022, she revealed that * *Emma Thompson gave her a key piece of advice that helped guide her post-Oscar choices. While others encouraged her to "strike now," Thompson advised that she take her time.

"She invited me over, and I went to dinner with her, and she totally demystified all of that," Nyong'o told *The Hollywood Reporter*. "She did save my life. I had won this huge award, and my imposter syndrome was at an all-time high. I was so intimidated by this new platform that I seemed to have. I mean, I acted in one film. I didn't even know what the 'martini shot' was, for crying out loud."

***Get your daily dose of entertainment news, celebrity updates, and what to watch with our EW Dispatch newsletter.***

Thompson also opened up about her own experience quitting acting for over eight years and coming back when the time felt right. "She encouraged me to do what I thought was best for my instrument," Nyong'o recalled.

Watch Nyong'o look back on the aftermath of her Oscar win above.**

- Celebrities & Creators

- Entertainment Industry Roles

Original Article on Source

Source: "EW Actors"

Read More

---

Source: Actors

Published: November 29, 2025 at 04:38PM on Source: MARIO MAG

#ShowBiz#Sports#Celebrities#Lifestyle