Lashana Lynch stars in "Matilda: The Musical," playing the gentle and kind Miss Honey. The actor has been a star for quite a while — she was even crowned 2022's rising star at the 75th annual BAFTA Film Awards [1] on March 13. Despite the fact that the actor's been in the industry for a number of years, it appears that Lynch has only just begun getting her flowers, and it's about time.
While accepting her award at the BAFTAs, Lynch shared a heartfelt speech with a tribute to her Jamaican heritage. "Thank you to everyone involved in my career. I have very supportive parents, whose parents came from Jamaica in the Windrush generation, and I have them to thank for my existence," Lynch began. "I'm grateful for a working-class foundation that has taught me everything I needed to know about failure, about no's and about what no's mean, and about your yesses. And now, I get to celebrate a yes I never expected." She added that "I'd like to thank the women of this country who taught me what it is to be in this industry as a dark-skin woman [2]. I thank you for laying the foundation for people like me."
Known for her role as Rosaline Capulet in ABC's "Still Star-Crossed" in 2017, the actor went on to play fighter pilot Maria Rambeau in "Captain Marvel" the following year. Lynch also starred as MI6 agent Nomi in James Bond's "No Time to Die" [4] and is due to return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe for "The Marvels [5]," set for release in 2023. Meanwhile, "Matilda: The Musical" premieres on Netflix on Dec. 25. Until then, read on to find out everything there is to know about Lynch.