The British actor Gugu Mbatha-Raw has worked with Reece Witherspoon and Oprah Winfrey, been awarded an MBE and told stories that have challenged perceptions around race.
When someone sets down a plate of fresh-baked brownies on the table in front of us, she actually says “Holy moly!” I tell her she has head girl energy.
Early on in Gugu Mbatha-Raw’s career, an older, white actor advised she change her name to something easier to pronounce.
“If people have too many ideas about your world, it dilutes the work,” she says.
“I’d seen other amnesia stories, but always featuring a male protagonist, from a male point of view,” she says.
