South African-born actress Thuso Mbedu walked away with one of the biggest award categories of the evening at the Film Independent 2022 Spirit Awards, on Sunday.
Watch: Thuso Mbedu acceptance speech at 2022 Spirit Awards
Life in Hollywood has been nothing short of incredible for the 30-year-old whose career has flourished under the stewardship of veteran actress Viola Davis.
On Sunday, the Underground Railroad lead actress scored her second international award win when she notched the award for the Best Female Performance category, beating the likes of Anjana Vasan (We Are Lady Parts), Jana Schmieding (New Growth) and (Honest Thief).
Mbedu, visibly shaken in awe since, in her own words, she did not expect to win, thanked her team, Amazon, and her sister in South Africa who would’ve killed her if she “didn’t say anything about her.”
“I appreciate all the support. And every single person who was involved in ’The Underground Railroad’,” she added.
The Underground Railroad has also been nominated at the Critics’ Choice Awards, Directors Guild of America Awards, NAACP Image Awards, and others.
Here is Mbedu’s full acceptance speech:
Mbedu is also due to appear as lead actress alongside Davis in The Woman King, a film shot in Africa and slated for release in April 2022.
Here is how social media reacted to the 30-year-old’s award victory:
Glad to see Thuso Mbedu win at the Independent Spirit Awards. Will forever side eye anyone thinking her performance on THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD wasn’t among the best of the year (it was the very best). pic.twitter.com/luEj7Fp3JK
— Robert Daniels (@812filmreviews) March 7, 2022
Thuso Mbedu's achievements will forever remind us of how the state wasted 1 Millionaire funding someone to master the art of doing Steers Adverts and Tik-Tok…
— ChrisExcel (@ChrisExcel102) March 7, 2022
Country Girl Thuso Mbedu has made South Africa PROUD once again recognized for Global Awards for her Outstanding performances.#SouthAfrica #NATASHA #BBMzansi pic.twitter.com/nRaHMx03xs
— Viral Magazine Dot.com (@viral2nd) March 7, 2022
One day Thuso Mbedu will win an Oscar🤌🏾
— Mbaliyezwe Ndlela (@mbali_ndlela) March 7, 2022
Congratulations on your Best Female Performance Award at the Spirit Awards😍 pic.twitter.com/SNo0YCqPUA