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Cape Town – Disney has released the first image of Lupita Nyong’o in The Queen of Katwe.
The actress took to Instagram to share the image and commented that working on the film was a "deep labour of love."
Parts of the film were shot in South Africa and tells the true story of Phiona Mutesi, a Ugandan chess prodigy who becomes a Woman Candidate Master after her performances at the World Chess Olympiads.
It is based on a magazine article and book The Queen of Katwe: A Story of Life, Chess, and One Extraordinary Girl’s Dream of Becoming a Grandmaster, by Tim Crothers.
Lupita will play Phiona’s mother, Harriet Mutesi.
Other cast members include: David Oyelowo as Robert Katende, Phiona’s mentor and Charity Rose Pimer will play Phiona Mutesi.
The film was directed by Mira Nair and is set to be released later in the year.
Watch a short documentary of Phiona here:
