KATCHING MY I: Lupita Nyong'o is a golden goddess on her second Vogue cover... and recalls how as a teen she was told her skin was 'too dark to be on TV'

Thursday 17 September 2015

Lupita Nyong'o is a golden goddess on her second Vogue cover... and recalls how as a teen she was told her skin was 'too dark to be on TV'

PUBLISHED: 20:11, 17 September 2015 | UPDATED: 21:37, 17 September 2015

Lupita Nyong'o resembled a golden goddess clad in Valentino on her second Vogue cover, which hits newsstands next Tuesday.

'What an honor, joy and THRILL it was to work on this October issue!' the 32-year-old Oscar winner wrote to her 1.7M Instagram followers.

Photographers Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott shot the Non-Stop actress - styled by Tonne Goodman - in Paris at the Schiaparelli House and the Picasso Museum.

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'What an honor, joy and THRILL it was to work on this October issue!' Lupita Nyong'o resembled a golden goddess clad in Valentino on her second Vogue cover, which hits newsstands next Tuesday

Lupita's radiant complexion gleamed as she posed in a breathtaking ornate blue-petaled gown from Givenchy, but her exotic beauty wasn't always embraced.

During her teen years auditioning in Nairobi, Nyong'o was told her skin was 'too dark' for her to be on TV, and she scoffed.

'No. It didn't ring true. I just thought, I need to find another way,' said the Brooklyn-based beauty, who's a member of one of the darkest-skinned African tribes - Luo.

Work of art: Photographers Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott shot the 32-year-old Oscar winner - styled by Tonne Goodman - in Paris at the Schiaparelli House and the Picasso Museum

Luminous: The Non-Stop star's radiant complexion gleamed as she posed in a breathtaking ornate blue-petaled gown from Givenchy, but her exotic beauty wasn't always embraced

The discrimination continued while the 12 Years a Slave star attended Massachusetts' Hampshire College at age 20.

'I realized that my skin color was making some people see me differently,' the Mexican-born, Kenyan-raised actress recalled.

'As Africans, we don't grow up with a racial identity. We grow up with cultural and ethnic identity before racial identity. I never used the word black as a child. It was never a thing. When was I ever discussing black? Why?'

Now an undisputed fashion icon, Lupita fronts Lancôme and relies on her stylist Micaela Erlanger for vibrant red carpet ensembles.

'It didn’t ring true. I just thought, I need to find another way': During her teen years auditioning in Nairobi, Nyong'o was told her skin was 'too dark' for her to be on TV, and she scoffed (pictured Wednesday)

'My rule is that I have to recognize myself': Now an undisputed fashion icon, Lupita fronts Lancôme and relies on her stylist Micaela Erlanger for vibrant red carpet ensembles

'I only wear a look if both of us agree on it,' the Miu Miu model said of the 30-year-old tastemaker, who also happens to dress Jared Leto. 'My rule is that I have to recognize myself. I have to feel like I've chosen it.'

Nyong'o has been single since splitting with rapper K'naan late last year, but her mother Dorothy is already pressuring her to have children.

'When I was back in Kenya this past week, I would be driving along with my mother and she would say, 'That's a nice school for children' and look at me like...,' the WildAid ambassador said, raising her eyebrows.

'But I think that will all be determined when I have that moment. When I have that man...I live alone [in Brooklyn]. I lie quite low. I take the subway. I do yoga. I meditate.'

Expectations: The 12 Years a Slave actress has been single since splitting with rapper K'naan late last year, but her mother Dorothy is already pressuring her to have children (pictured October 11)

The Mexican-born, Kenyan-raised star said: 'When I was back in Kenya this past week, I would be driving along with my mother and she would say, "That’s a nice school for children" and look at me like...' (eyebrows raised)

Nyong'o continued: 'But I think that will all be determined when I have that moment. When I have that man...I live alone [in Brooklyn]. I lie quite low. I take the subway. I do yoga. I meditate'

The Yale School of Drama grad will next head up two major films for Disney, Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens and The Jungle Book.

In J. J. Abrams' sci-fi flick, Lupita was motion-captured with over '168 dots' for four months to create the CGI character, Pirate Maz Kanata.

'[It was] really bizarre and lots of fun. I really enjoyed the fact that you're not governed by your physical presence in that kind of work. You can be a dragon. You can be anything,' she said.

And in Jon Favreau's live-action/CG hybrid remake, Nyong'o provided the voice of the wolf Rakcha that adopts Mowgli (Neel Sethi).

Double duty: The Yale School of Drama grad will next head up two major films for Disney, Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens and The Jungle Book

Hitting US/UK theaters December 18! In J. J. Abrams' sci-fi flick, Lupita was motion-captured with over '168 dots' for four months to create the CGI character, Pirate Maz Kanata

Hitting US/UK theaters April 15! And in Jon Favreau's live-action/CG hybrid remake, Nyong'o provided the voice of the wolf Rakcha that adopts Mowgli (Neel Sethi)

'Acting a wolf mother is, first and foremost, acting a mother, and then you gotta work on your howl!' she laughed.

But first, Lupita will play the fourth wife of a Liberian warlord in the off-Broadway drama Eclipsed, which begins previews September 29 at the Public Theater's LuEsther Theater.

It was penned by Zimbabwean-American playwright Danai Gurira, who's best known as the katana-wielding warrior Michonne on AMC's The Walking Dead.

'One of the things Emma Thompson encouraged me to do was get back to the stage, and this is advice I have taken very seriously,' said Nyong'o.

Back on stage! But first, Lupita will play the fourth wife of a Liberian warlord in the off-Broadway drama Eclipsed, which begins previews September 29 at the Public Theater's LuEsther Theater

Artist and muse: It was penned by Zimbabwean-American playwright Danai Gurira, who's best known as the katana-wielding warrior Michonne on AMC's The Walking Dead (pictured in 2014)