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By Bonginkosi Tiwane

Digital Journalist


Thuso Mbedu reminisces on friendship with Robot-Boii during SA visit

Thuso Mbedu has been in the country to judge Miss SA. She has used this time to catch up with some old mates, including Robot-Boii.


Hollywood actress Thuso Mbedu has been in the country for the past few days and in that time she has managed to reconnect with local friends and fans-one of them being Robot Boii.

Mdebu was one of the five judges at the recent Miss SA which was won by Natasha Joubert on Sunday night.

32-year-old Mbedu caught up with her friend, whose real name is Mzwakhe Mbuli (son of South African poet of the same name), at the pageant where he was one of the performers.  

She shared a post reminiscing on the first time they met about five years ago, when the multi-entertainer was working at independent radio station, Massive Metro.

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Mbedu’s rise

The Massive Metro interview happened around the time Mbedu bagged her first Emmy nomination for her role as Winnie on Mzansi Magic‘s tv series, Is’Thunzi.

“With Is’Thunzi, after having done all these other roles, it was my first time saying to myself ‘I wana see if I can actually act’. With the other roles, I thought maybe I was lucky,” said Mbedu in 2017.

She got another Emmy nomination the following year for the same character portrayal and again didn’t win.

But she has seemingly done enough to get recognition from some of the world’s biggest producers.  

In the same interview, Mbedu spoke of not initially having any ambition to become an actress but thought the medical field would be better suited for her, after years of struggle with allergic reactions.

“The intention was to do dermatology in university because I grew up with allergies and stuff. During the holidays, I’d always be the one with a swollen face,” she said. She picked up Drama in high school at grade 10 and hasn’t looked back since.

In 2021 she was the lead in the US tv series The Underground Railroad. A few years later she starred alongside Viola Davis in The Woman King, released last year.

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Viola Davis in Cape Town

Davis, who has built a strong relationship with Mbedu since their collaboration on Woman King, celebrated her 58th birthday in the Mother City.

“Another year. Full of revelations, joy, loss, and triumphs. Another year to wake up and be grateful for it all! Thank you, 58! Thank you all for the birthday love. Enkosi!’ wrote the Oscar and Grammy winner on Instagram.

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