South African actress Thuso Mbedu rose to fame thanks to her performance in the South African teen drama series Is’Thunzi in 2016. However, it wasn’t long before she made history after landing a role in the Amazon Video limited series The Underground Railroad, becoming the first South African actress to lead an American television show. Thuso reached another milestone in 2022 after making her film debut alongside the recently announced EGOT winner Viola Davis in The Woman King.

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Lashana Lynch should be on everyone’s radar. The British actress has appeared in several successful films, including Marvel’s Captain Marvel and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Before transforming into a veteran Agojie warrior, Lashana starred as MI6 agent Nomi in the spy film No Time to Die, starring Daniel Craig in his fifth and final portrayal of the fictional British James Bond.

Sheila Atim made her professional acting debut in 2013 at Shakespeare's Globe in The Lightning Child. Since then, the Ugandan-British actress has appeared in several plays and has even composed music for other productions. She also starred in Barry Jenkins’ The Underground Railroad before landing a role in Netflix’s sports drama Bruised before landing the role of Amenza in The Woman King.

Watch the NAACP Image Awards live on Saturday, February 25, 2023, at 8:00 pm ET/PT on BET.