March 14, 2023
  Posted by Mouza
  Feature, Gallery Update, Photoshoot

‘Being told you should conform to one type of beauty is so outdated,’ declares Gugu Mbatha-Raw down the phone to ELLE UK. ‘But, I think we’re getting better at celebrating individuality,’ the actor concludes. It’s Sunday morning and we’re catching up with the Loki star, UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador, and presenter of one of tonight’s BAFTA 2023 awards to talk all things beauty. Despite spending what could have been a well-earned weekend lie in being interviewed by us, Mbatha-Raw is what can only be described as a delight. Gracious, chatty and hyper intelligent, with a sprightly laugh that bubbles over every other sentence, we’d happily call her every Sunday morning. If she’d let us.

The British actor’s pre-11am optimism is infectious; whether she’s speaking on limited beauty standards or championing a wider pool of talent in the film industry, her enthusiasm never wavers. ‘I’m so excited to see my friend Gina Prince-Bythewood nominated for Best Director – as a woman, as a woman of colour, and as someone I’ve worked with, it’s been amazing to see her go from strength to strength. Heroing female directors is definitely an area of the industry that has a way to go.’

Ahead of the evening’s festivities,
we chatted joyful beauty, lipstick stashes and why Audrey Hepburn is her forever beauty icon…

What does beauty mean to you?
‘I try to think about beauty being something you can express that comes from a place of joy and lets you be your best self. I definitely feel more comfortable with beauty now than when I was younger, maybe because I feel more confident in myself and more established in my career. As an actor I think beauty can be a bit of a double edged sword; I want to be able to play characters that are flawed and messy and human, you have to be unafraid to be not beautiful, you have to be bold enough to be real as well, and I think there’s beauty in that authenticity. But, I also work in an industry that celebrates beauty and is, by its nature, a visual medium.’ [More at Source]

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