Letitia Wright is a rising star in the entertainment industry. She’s doing it by navigating her way through the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Netflix television spaces all within the past few years. At only 29 years old, Wright has amassed an impressive filmography that’s taken the world by storm. She’s also gotten into some controversial situations, which has proven problematic for the high-profile projects she’s involved in, as others try to cancel her.
Letitia Wright comes from humble beginnings but has worked with some impressive performers and directors. She has worked with several well-known filmmakers in a short time, chief among them being Steven Spielberg, Ryan Coogler, Kenneth Branagh, and the Russo brothers. She’s now becoming a household name that audiences respect as she leads her first franchise on the big screen.
LETITIA WRIGHT IS FROM BRITAIN BUT HAS ROOTS IN GUYANA
Letitia Wright was born in Georgetown, Guyana in 1993 to parents of Guyanese descent. When she was still in grade school, the family picked up and moved to London, England, where Wright spent most of her formative years. Though she now considers England home, Guyana always remembered one of their most famous locals.
The country recently gave the actor an Honorary Doctorate in Arts and Letters from the University of Guyana.
One of her earlier influences was Akeelah and the Bee. Letitia Wright told The Hollywood Reporter that Keke Palmer’s work in the film resonated with her in her teenage years. After seeing the film, Wright knew she wanted to follow in Palmer’s footsteps and subsequently enrolled in drama school at the Identity School of Acting in London. Two years later, she would see herself onscreen for the first time.
SHE GOT STARTED IN BRITISH TELEVISION
Letitia Wright in Top Boy
Letitia Wright’s first acting role came in 2011 when she played the character of Ellie Maynard in the British television series Holby City. That same year, she also played the character of Nyla in the British film Victim. However, her role in the British drama series Top Boy brought her to the attention of a wider audience.
In Top Boy, Letitia Wright played the character of Chantelle in the show’s first season in 2011, a troubled teenager from the inner city. The role was such a success for the young actor that she parlayed that achievement into other parts on television shows like Coming Up and Chasing Shadows. She became a recurring cast member on Banana and Cucumber as the character Vivienne Scott.
But it was only a short time before Netflix came calling with a role that would change her life.
BLACK MIRROR LED LETITIA WRIGHT DIRECTLY INTO THE SPOTLIGHT
Letitia Wright in Black Mirror’s “Black Museum”
The Netflix television series Black Mirror first started as a British show before it found a global audience on the streamer. It has featured a variety of performances from actors such as Jesse Plemons and Bryce Dallas Howard. Both actors saw their stars rise due to their involvement in the anthology show. When it was her turn, Letitia Wright blew everyone’s minds by appearing in the 2017 episode entitled “Black Museum.”
Playing the character Nish on Black Mirror, Letitia Wright took the Season 4 finale to new heights as it explored the concept of experimental technologies in a remote Black Museum. Filmed in Spain and Nevada, the episode dealt with race and technology in fresh ways. Wright was praised for her performance and earned a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie.
LETITIA WRIGHT BECAME A STAR IN MARVEL’S BLACK PANTHER
As a television actor in Britain and the United States who dabbled in movie roles, Letitia Wright was suddenly thrust into worldwide fame with a pair of back-to-back performances in extraordinary films released in 2018. The first was Ryan Coogler’s Black Panther, a solo movie for actor Chadwick Boseman who used the Marvel Cinematic Universe flick to introduce other actors like Wright to the fold.
With Black Panther, Letitia Wright took on the part of Shuri, the younger sister of T’Challa and a princess of Wakanda. Shuri is intelligent and is depended upon for her engineering skills. She would later take on a more central role in the MCU in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.
The next big role for her was Steven Spielberg’s Ready Player One, a film adaptation of Ernest Cline’s novel that first premiered at the South by Southwest film festival in Austin, Texas. Letitia Wright portrayed a rebel in the science fiction movie opposite other young actors like Tye Sheridan, Olivia Cooke, and Lena Waithe. The future was starting to look bright, with 2018 being a massive year in blockbusters for Wright.
SPEAKING OUT GOT HER IN BIG TROUBLE AND HER CAREER WAS NEARLY DESTROYED
There was some concern, following the original Black Panther and the filming of Wakanda Forever, that Letitia Wright’s future in the franchise was in jeopardy. That’s because during the pandemic the actress shared an (at the time) controversial video that seemed to have an anti-vaccine leaning.
The backlash from the posting led to Letitia Wright deleting both her Twitter and Instagram accounts. At a time when tensions around this debate were rampant, Wright made the mistake of running afoul of groups who thought her tweets were problematic. Wright did eventually apologize for the post.
Wrapped up in this was the worry that her career and future in the Marvel Cinematic Universe might be in jeopardy. There were rumors she would be recast. There was speculation that cancel culture was going to remove her from the franchise. It didn’t, but things very much seemed touch-and-go for a while.
LETITIA WRIGHT IS IN THERAPY TO DEAL WITH THE TRAUMA OF A SEVERE ON-SET ACCIDENT
Letitia Wright on a motorcycle in Wakanda Forever
After surviving controversy, injury was her next obstacle. In August 2021, Wright suffered an injury on the set of Black Panther 2. At first, her injury was minor, but it caused an ongoing health issue. The problem was bad enough that Black Panther 2‘s production had to be put temporarily on hold while she recovered.
We now know the incident was a motorcycle accident while filming Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. She suffered a fractured shoulder, a concussion, and numerous other injuries. She was hospitalized briefly.
Damage from the accident wasn’t limited to physical injuries. In 2022, Letitia Wright revealed the accident was so bad, she’s been forced to attend therapy to deal with the trauma she experienced. She told Variety, “I’m still working through it in therapy. It was really traumatic.”
LETITIA WRIGHT IS THE NEW BLACK PANTHER NOW
After starring in a few major movies for big-time directors, Letitia Wright has seemingly left television and appears to be all in when it comes to making movies. In recent years, she has costarred in Death on the Nile, produced and starred in The Silent Twins for director Agnieszka Smoczyńska, lent her voice talents to the animated movie Sing 2, and costarred alongside Josh O’Connor in the 2022 project Aisha.
But Letitia Wright has a significant stake in continuing to play Shuri in the MCU, a role she reprised in 2022 for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. After the death of Chadwick Boseman in 2020, the Black Panther franchise had to be retooled, eventually elevating Wright to be the star and new Black Panther of the long-awaited sequel.
The movie was praised by critics and audiences alike, with Rotten Tomatoes ranking the movie as Certified Fresh with a Tomatometer score of 84 percent.
It isn’t clear what the future holds for the Black Panther franchise but it is expected there will be a third movie at some point. With the events of Wakanda Forever, it is clear that Letitia Wright will lead the franchise if it continues. At this point, there probably isn’t a Black Panther franchise without her.
SHE IS STARRING IN SURROUNDED NEXT
Having produced her first feature in 2022 with The Silent Twins, it seems that Letitia Wright might be scratching the itch to play a part behind the camera as well as in front. 2023 will see a bit of change for the actor, as she will be releasing a new movie called Surrounded, which she produced and stars in alongside Jamie Bell, Jeffrey Donovan, and Brett Gelman. Surrounded will also feature the late Michael K. Williams in what is rumored to be his final performance on screen.
While Marvel and Disney have not confirmed whether or not there will be a Black Panther 3 in the works, audiences have most likely not seen the last of Letitia Wright as Shuri in the MCU. The ending of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever suggests that Namor, played by Tenoch Huerta, will return. Shuri will likely be part of Namor’s future stories, as she is now the new Black Panther.
LETITIA WRIGHT NEARLY QUIT MARVEL OVER HER MEDICAL BELIEFS
During the early production of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, our trusted and proven inside source alleged that Letitia Wright didn’t want to be in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever anymore because she was unwilling to follow Marvel’s medical requirements.
While the actress herself never publicly disclosed her vaccination status, both The Hollywood Reporter and Newsweek have heard from their sources that she is unvaccinated.
During the summer of 2021, Disney issued a mandate for COVID-19 vaccinations on their sets. That mandate reportedly didn’t apply to Black Panther 2, as it was already underway, but it will for future Marvel Cinematic Universe productions.
She wouldn’t have been the first actress to leave a production in 2021 due to the rise in mandates. While this wasn’t a major issue for the Marvel Cinematic Universe yet, it happened all across Hollywood.
Now that things have calmed down, it’s unlikely that Letitia Wright will still be driven away from Marvel due to her medical decisions. But at the time, it was a near thing and Black Panther 2 almost ended up not being made because of it.
source: giantfreakinrobot.com
