THANDIE NEWTON
Name: Thandiwe Adjewa Newton
Born: 6 November 1972 Zambia
Thandiwe Adjewa "Thandie" Newton (born November 6, 1972) is a BAFTA Award-winning
English actress.
Newton was born in Zambia, the daughter of Nyasha, a Zimbabwean health-care
worker/nurse, and Nick Newton, a white English laboratory technician and artist.
The name "Thandiwe" means "beloved" in Ndebele and the name "Thandie" is
pronounced TAN-dee. Newton played a character named "Beloved" in the film
adaptation of the Toni Morrison novel Beloved in 1998. According to Newton, her
mother is a Zimbabwean Shona Princess. She was raised in Zambia and at
Penzance, Cornwall, and educated at Downing College, University of Cambridge.
Newton made her film debut in Flirting (1991). This Australian movie was also a
launch pad for a young Nicole Kidman, with whom she has remained friends. She
gained international recognition opposite Nick Nolte in the Merchant-Ivory
production of Jefferson in Paris as Sally Hemmings, which led to her being cast
in Jonathan Demme's Beloved (1998), in which she played the title character and
costarred with Danny Glover, Kimberly Elise, and Oprah Winfrey. She played the
female lead Nyah Hall in the film Mission: Impossible II. When this film went
over schedule, she had to pull out of the film Charlie's Angels, and her
character ultimately went to Lucy Liu.
Between 2003 and 2005, Newton played Makemba "Kem" Likasu, the love interest of
Dr. John Carter on the American television series ER, and in 2004 also appeared
in The Chronicles of Riddick. She appeared in Crash as a wealthy black woman who,
along with her husband, finds herself the target of a racist policeman (played
by Matt Dillon). The policeman molests her before ultimately saving her life.
Newton was honoured with a BAFTA award for Best Supporting Actress in 2006.
Crash also won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 2005. In 2007, she starred
alongside Eddie Murphy in the comedy Norbit as his love interest.
Newton was an introducer at Wembley Stadium on July 7, 2007 for the UK leg of
Live Earth. She was due to introduce Al Gore to the concert, but he was delayed,
leaving Newton to tell jokes to try and entertain the audience.
Name: Thandiwe Adjewa Newton
Born: 6 November 1972 Zambia
Thandiwe Adjewa "Thandie" Newton (born November 6, 1972) is a BAFTA Award-winning
English actress.
Newton was born in Zambia, the daughter of Nyasha, a Zimbabwean health-care
worker/nurse, and Nick Newton, a white English laboratory technician and artist.
The name "Thandiwe" means "beloved" in Ndebele and the name "Thandie" is
pronounced TAN-dee. Newton played a character named "Beloved" in the film
adaptation of the Toni Morrison novel Beloved in 1998. According to Newton, her
mother is a Zimbabwean Shona Princess. She was raised in Zambia and at
Penzance, Cornwall, and educated at Downing College, University of Cambridge.
Newton made her film debut in Flirting (1991). This Australian movie was also a
launch pad for a young Nicole Kidman, with whom she has remained friends. She
gained international recognition opposite Nick Nolte in the Merchant-Ivory
production of Jefferson in Paris as Sally Hemmings, which led to her being cast
in Jonathan Demme's Beloved (1998), in which she played the title character and
costarred with Danny Glover, Kimberly Elise, and Oprah Winfrey. She played the
female lead Nyah Hall in the film Mission: Impossible II. When this film went
over schedule, she had to pull out of the film Charlie's Angels, and her
character ultimately went to Lucy Liu.
Between 2003 and 2005, Newton played Makemba "Kem" Likasu, the love interest of
Dr. John Carter on the American television series ER, and in 2004 also appeared
in The Chronicles of Riddick. She appeared in Crash as a wealthy black woman who,
along with her husband, finds herself the target of a racist policeman (played
by Matt Dillon). The policeman molests her before ultimately saving her life.
Newton was honoured with a BAFTA award for Best Supporting Actress in 2006.
Crash also won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 2005. In 2007, she starred
alongside Eddie Murphy in the comedy Norbit as his love interest.
Newton was an introducer at Wembley Stadium on July 7, 2007 for the UK leg of
Live Earth. She was due to introduce Al Gore to the concert, but he was delayed,
leaving Newton to tell jokes to try and entertain the audience.