Thuso Mbedu to star in Hollywood film alongside Viola Davis

The 29-year-old Mbedu will be starring alongside the celebrated Davis in Gina Prince-Bythewood’s upcoming film ‘The Woman King’.

Deadline reports that ‘The Woman King’ is a historical epic inspired by true events that took place in The Kingdom of Dahomey, one of the most powerful states of Africa in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Mbedu made history by becoming the first South African actress to play a leading role in a US series ‘The Underground Railway’  based on Barry Jenkin's adaptation of Colson Whitehead's winning novel.

The story follows the life of a young slave who escapes from a plantation.

Mbedu has been nominated twice for an International Emmy Award for Best Performance by an Actress for her work on the South African series Is’Thunzi.

Davis took to social media to speak of her excitement.