I missed these photos yesterday, so I’m sorry about that. Lupita Nyong’o attended the BFI London Film Festival premiere of Queen of Katwe and her head-wrap game continues unabated. Lupita looked… amazing. Striking. Fantastic. Her ensemble, from head wrap to pants, is by Rosie Assoulin. Lupita was recently asked why she’s been wearing so many head wraps over the past several months, and her response was classic:
If you’ve seen a photo of Lupita Nyong’o on the red carpet recently, you would have noticed she has introduced a new element to her elaborate ensembles: A head wrap. The actress, 33, has worn them all throughout her press tour for her Uganda-set film Queen of Katwe, and it’s a look that means a lot to her, the star tells PEOPLE in this week’s issue.
“Going with the theme of the movie, they are my crowns,” says the star. “It’s the quintessential African accessory,” she says of the look, noting that she loves to research different styles on Pinterest.
“They are my crowns” – I love that. QUEEN! Incidentally, Lupita also covers Elle Magazine’s Women in Hollywood issue (there are multiple covers, which you can see here). She told the magazine:
On her success, despite an agent telling her that her skin was “too dark for African television”:
“I grew up with a very limited mirror of myself. I watched a lot of TV, but the people on it were always light skinned. And now I have a platform that takes me into people’s houses and onto the pages of their magazines.”
That’s what I love about Lupita and what she represents for women. It’s not just that she’s a dark-skinned woman actively hoping to inspire women of color. It’s that she owns who she is so completely, inside and out, and you can feel her self-love radiate. Why not wear a crown? Why not be a queen? Why not declare yourself empress of the world?
Photos courtesy of WENN.
She looks FANTASTIC. Majestic like an African queen. Amazing.
(minus the pants)
Agreed! I even like the pants, but not the cuffs, they look overdone and silly to me.
Yes, the trousers have to go, but my god, from mid-torso up she looks exquisite. Love the head wraps she’s been wearing! What a beauty.
Those dreadful pants have a life of their own.
Agreed. Those pants are a disappointment, but the rest? Absolutely gorgeous!
She can never go wrong from the waist up. She really takes fashion risks (pants) and I applaud her for that. She’s gorgeous through and through.
Agreed, she does look like an African Queen!
Those pants though, great colour, but the whole concept is Yuk!
Pants: no.
Headwrap: hell yeah.
Love it, I wear mine but not has high,don’t think I’d pull it off but she’s so ethereal, she is one of my fave actors.
yep, I can’t with the pants.
She’s obviously stunning, and head-wise she looks amazing, but she also has this magic power of making you believe whatever she’s wearing is as equally good as her face. Those blue trousers? Nooooo…
I feel this woulld be better on a more mature woman-Erykah Badu in the 90s? This young woman reads more “sweet”. So for me the outfit wears her though she is extremely beautiful.
Those pants are eating her alive, but I still love her.
I also love her answer to the head wrap question. I really only wrap my hair when I go to bed or to run errands on the weekend. I am now strongly considering wearing them to work on a daily basis. Not as large as hers, though. My head is too big to pull that size off without looking like I belong in a parade.
The pants are no bueno. Maybe without the horrible cuffs.
I read a little bit about headwraps because QQ was talking about their awesomeness, and doooo iiittttttt.
It’s so regal and interesting and badass. Lupita’s look like they take hours to do too, so I’m not sure if it’s work ready, but damn. I may be speaking from a little bit of style jealousy though, Lupita’s always look excellent.
I’m having head wrap envy! Lupita does look like a queen, and I bet you will too.
She’s pretty but what turned me off was her trying to downplay her privilege in Kenya. Sure, as a woman of color in Hollywood, she faces many barriers. In Kenya, her family is very well off. She would not have been able to go to Yale otherwise. Forgot the details, but I believe some of her family members are in politics and quite a few are corrupt. During her Oscars campaign she tried to come off as someone from a middle class background. I think she was born into much more privileged than she lets on. I suppose she is middle class the same way the Middletons are middle class which really means wealthy but just not of the aristocracy.
The headwrap is lovely, but the outfit is awful. And the accessories are too much. I know she can wear a lot of colour, but sometimes she should calm down. You don’t have to wear all colours at once. The pants make her look like a mechanic.
I just can’t warm up to her. I’ve seen her in 12YAS and she was amazing, she’s stunning, she’s smart but there is just something about her that I don’t like and I can’t pinpoint what it is.
She seems conceited to me. And it’s not surprising. Growing up that pretty and that privileged, and now being this successfull, it would be more surprising if she wasn’t.
Hmmm not so sure. It’s pretty clear from her comments that she did not grow up thinking she was beautiful. Being the opposite of what the standard of beauty is can really work a number on your self esteem and most black women don’t grow up thinking they’re beautiful, especially if they’re dark skinned. I do believe that she’s confident and isn’t afraid to stand out and like that about her.
QQ and I were just recently talking about how it takes year for many black women to come into their own an appreciate our skin, hair and features. And then once we finally do, we’re accused of being conceited or stuck up.
What you see as maybe conceited, I see as self-confidence and pride.
I think that a conceited person comes in all races, ethnicities and shades. Lupita could be just as stuck up as a Gwen Paltrow and it could have nothing to do with her skin tone. For a minute I think Lupita was believing her own hype. I also think she is a bit stuck on herself.
It is good to see her finally getting roles but she seems to be getting typed-cast. She is either used as voice work where you don’t see her face or she is put in roles where they downplay her looks. In 12 Years A Slave (where I don’t think her few moments of film time was that great and worthy of an Oscar) they made her look her worse. And in Queen of Katwe they aimed for making her look unattractive. I’m hoping in the Black Panther movie she can just look like her normal self, the way she looked in Non-Stop. Florence Kasumba looked absolutely stunning and bad ass in her cameo appearance in CA:Civil War. Women straight out of Africa don’t have to always look so rough and beaten down. BTW Florence is playing a small part in WW as Senator Acantha. I wonder if that means we will not see her in The Black Panther movie.
V4Real: You said it all and said it well.
Almondjoy This is “Tina Taught Me” all over again, She Loves herself which surely came at a prime to her, as we said Years in the making and Now she is “Conceited” much like Solange is “stuck Up” and whatever else we ascribe to brown women of COnfidence…. This is a Not today for me
@ Locke Lamora
I see your point and I can’t quite pinpoint my dislike either. I think I find her too be too much of a genius at self-promotion. She reminds me of those very stylish but fake-empathic “ladies who lunch”. I somehow think when I see her that she doesn’t really care about others.
Oh, and trying to hard via the ethnic-route.
+1
Some women pull off the wraps beautifully. Gorgeous woman, terrible pants.
LOVE IT!!
The pants remind me of Rose Nylund’s “vacuum slacks”. Maybe she should have put them on suck?
The earrings. I want the earrings.
She is so beautiful!
trouser length needs to lose 1/2″.
and maybe wrap is slightly too large in scale?
The pants totally swallow her up. The high waist to me is a no-no. I love the head wrap, but for the life of me don’t know how she keeps her head straight with that big of a wrap.
out here slaying these hoes!
get it mama!
I rarely comment， but this time I can`t help myself. She is breathtakingly beautiful. Even the weird pants. I love her style and her answer: perfection. I haven`t seen her in anything， don`t know if she is a good actress， but as a mentor and style icon she has all of my love and support.
the weird pants are supposed to be Marlene pants. But badly tailored and too long that is why she rolled up the hems.
I.LOVE.HER!
I don’t have anything to say other than I love her and all her outfits and her flawless skin and her fearless style.
Her face is a work of art
Perfectly agree. Incredibly beautiful and talented woman.
Ridic
The lesser the movie parts the bigger the head gear?
She is a genius at self-promotion, one has to giver her that.
And she is beautiful.
no one mentioned that cover. it is just perfect. which is rare these days
Milla agreed! One of the most gorgeous striking covers I have ever seen! She is amazing and happy for her success.
Yes it is. That cover photo is everything!
That cover photo is really beautiful.
I think she’s too short for the pants but still looks very beautiful. Especially that Elle cover! Wow!
Someone up thread said she was conceited for being pretty and privileged, I think her words describe that she probably had to grow into liking herself, especially as one rarely, if ever, sees a leading deep dark skinned lady. Even on African TV, apparently! I don’t agree that she should be dismissed as conceited and I never got the sense she thought she was better than other. Just that she has as much right to be there and be happy as anyone else. I prefer her like this rather than a shrinking wallflower. Good for her for representing African beauty with grace and self love.
Yes, she owns who she is and I love it. As a black woman who has had trouble with self-esteem in the past, I love to see this. And I hope young girls will take note.
I Just so Very Very much Radically Love this woman Whooooooom (It doesn’t help Im Listening to Ultralight Beam which if nothing else evokes such Love and Pride for the Black Experience and talents) She Stays getting me in my FEELINGS
A coincidence as I’m listening to Chance The Rapper omw to work. He gets me all pumped up!
YES he makes me so Happy, every time I see that Kit Kat Commercial I Love him all over again
Dislike the pants immensely but the top and gele are great.
Agreed!
I don’t like the bottom of the pants but I’m loving everything else.
She is simply magnificent! I don’t see a conceited person. I see a very confident woman who is comfortable in her own skin. As a Kenyan, I feel so proud of all her accomplishments.
I love it; she’s gorgeous.
I saw Queen of Katwe on the weekend. It was an excellent film and life affirming. It’s great for those of us looking for something pleasant to focus on amidst all the crap this election is churning out.
I’d only seen Lupita in 12yrs a slave. I thought she deserved the oscar for that role and seeing her in this role confirms that she is a talented actress with range. I hope she gets more opportunities.
All the actors are excellent and it’s well directed by Mira Nair who actually lives in the community that is depicted in the film. It is an all African cast with nary a white saviour in sight.
I love Mira Nair’s films, even with the topic of abject poverty, she depicts these characters and the community with agency. This film does so much to counter those images of ‘starving africans’ we’ve all grown up seeing here in the west.
I saw it as well. I took about 12 at risk youth to see the movie. I was so glad they enjoyed the film. Lupita was pretty good in it.
Unfortunately it was a bomb financially grossing only about $5,393,949 domestically as of October 9th. I am wondering how many of Lupita fans on this site went to see the movie and support one of their favorites. I’ve said this many times about Black actresses. We all want Black actresses to get the roles and be just as popular as their white counterparts but yet we don’t go out and support the Black actresses when they are given a chance and put in lead roles or strong supporting roles. The theater where I saw this film was not crowded but a majority of the audience was Black. The kids actually counted the number of Caucasians that were at out showing and it was between 7 to 10 (with two being in my group) at a 7pm showing on a Saturday. At least The Magnificent 7 which I also saw faired much better.
I would also like to give props to Antoine Fuqua for being racially appropriate. The Mexican cowboy was played by a Mexican actor, The Chinese cowboy was played by a Chinese actor and the Native American was played by a Native America actor and he is beautiful.
I was wondering why nobody is talking about this. Lupita failed to open a movie despite the movie having everything – good reviews, good script, good cast. It will have a big impact on her future.
Instead people are admiring how nice she looks, which I think is a bit of a downer for me.
I talk about clothes when there is nothing else to say of more substance. At least she looks nice, sure. But that is actually very patronizing towards women. Women internalized so much of their inequality, they don’t even notice it.
The theater I saw it in had 4 other people who were white and my daughter and I who are Indian origin. This was on a saturday. I hope more people will see it because as you say, we need to support these films with our money and attendance.
I’m like the kids you know, I was counting how many and who was at the movie!
@Sasha
“Lupita failed to open a movie despite the movie having everything – good reviews, good script, good cast. It will have a big impact on her future.”.
It won’t have a negative one. It’s one movie. It’s a small movie, relatively speaking. Also, if you’re going to attribute blame, it doesn’t go to her; it’s lack of interest in the subject to a wide audience… which isn’t indicative of quality. It didn’t have a lot of promotion, relative to bigger films. I believe it will benefit from awards season.
“Instead people are admiring how nice she looks..that is actually very patronizing towards women. Women internalized so much of their inequality, they don’t even notice it.”
I see your point. But, people are commenting on Daniel Craig’s looks. They comment left and right on Hiddleston. I see comments on men’s looks all the time, here. I think it just depends on the subject matter and tenor of the story.
RE: the clothes. They’re a costume. That wrap is dramatic and effective. The pants are wrong. The top looks like a 1940s bathing suit with those pants, to me. The colors are beautiful. She’s gorgeous. The “Elle” cover is beautiful.
LP can carry off a whole lot of different looks.
Regarding the comments elsewhere about her personality, I haven’t heard many first-hand accounts (nor, have I had any) to have an opinion.
I like her trousers, I like her headwrap and I strongly dislike the top. Probably its cut more than the colours. It just doesn’t suit.
She’s a clothes horse; she can wear anything and look good!
Not. I usually like her choices, but this time the ensemble is wearing her.
I love the wrap and the top, but the pants are really terrible. The cuff throws off the proportions. Also, I don’t like the blue eye shadow. It hides, rather than enhances, her natural beauty.
The Elle cover is soooooo gorgeous. It really shows off her amazing face. So beautiful!
Everything about her is glorious. Those damn pants tho! No, darling Queen.
Love the headwrap! Also loved Queen of Katwe, although a couple of scenes were too sad/intense for my nine year old.
Not a fan of her fashion sense then or now, and unawed by her.
Nope. Never seen her as conceited but this seesms to be the new word bandied at successful WoC, or CoC (children of color) seems there’s always got to be something.
I kind of get what she was going for with the pants. They don’t entirely work but I like the whole look anyway. Maybe if the pants were wide leg but cut differently, and there was a jacket? But that might throw the headdress off balance. lol, I don’t even care: she looks lovely!
For me, Lupita is outshining every celeb out there. Her style makes us see what we have been missing by restricting clothing culture to unmoored, capitalist luxury fantasies. I like her interviews too. In a representative sense, she is a flower in the desert.
Perfect. Bold daring feminine radiant, she challenges mainstream beauty and slays. Go Lupita!