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Home · Entertainment

First Look: See Lupita Nyong'o in Her Next Project, 'The Queen of Katwe'

The biographical film centers on a Ugandan chess prodigy, 18-year-old Phiona Mutesi.  
First Look: See Lupita Nyong’o in Her Next Project, ‘The Queen of Katwe’
Disney Productions
By Lauren Porter · Updated October 27, 2020

Disney has released the first of images from Lupita Nyong’o’s upcoming project, The Queen of Katwe.

The Mira Nair (Monsoon Wedding) film centers on Phiona Mutesi, a young girl from the slums of Kampala, Uganda who is a chess prodigy. Nyong’o plays Phiona’s mother and David Oyelowo (Selma) plays a missionary who teaches children in the Katwe neighborhood the game of chess. Newcomer Madina Nalwanga plays Mutesi.

Lupita Nyong’o Starts the New Year Right With First ESSENCE Cover

Now a chess champion who competes internationally, Mutesi, 18, began playing chess when she was nine after taking free lessons at a local church. “I didn’t go there for chess, I went just to get a meal,” she told The Guardian.

“I like chess because it involves planning. If you don’t plan, you will end up with a bad life.”

The film is based on a book by sports writer Tim Crothers.

The Queen of Katwe will open in theaters this fall.

TOPICS:  Lupita Nyong’o
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