Last summer, Ncuti Gatwa was a familiar face as one of the Kens in Barbie, and you may also recognize him from his roles in Sex Education and Doctor Who. Here are 21 intriguing facts about Ncuti Gatwa:
1. Ncuti Gatwa, born in Kigali, Rwanda, on Oct. 15, 1992, has a full name of Mizero Ncuti Gatwa.
2. He is a Libra sun, Gemini moon, and Scorpio rising.
3. Gatwa's family moved to the UK from Rwanda when he was two years old due to the Rwandan genocide, settling in Scotland.
4. He has one brother and one sister.
5. Gatwa's father, Tharcisse, faced challenges finding work in the UK as a Black professor, leading the family to move to Cameroon.
6. Growing up, Gatwa felt isolated as a Black person in Scotland due to the lack of Black role models.
7. In 2023, Gatwa publicly came out as queer and shared a touching story of meeting another queer Rwandan person.
8. Gatwa expressed interest in playing the Doctor and landed the audition for Doctor Who shortly after.
9. He is the first person of color and openly queer actor to play the main series-leading regeneration of the Doctor.
10. Gatwa's version of the sonic screwdriver on Doctor Who features a Rwandan proverb engraved in Gallifreyan symbols.
11. To understand his characters, Gatwa creates astrological charts for them.
12. Gatwa found solace in astrology after falling out of love with his traditional Rwandan Christian upbringing.
13. In his role as Eric Effiong in Sex Education, Gatwa aimed to break away from stereotypes.
14. Gatwa bonded with his co-star Asa Butterfield on the set of Sex Education.
15. Initially auditioning for an unnamed role in Barbie, Gatwa later read for the role of Ken.
16. While filming Barbie, Gatwa was initially nervous but found the set to be kind and empathetic.
17. Gatwa was starstruck by Ryan Gosling's blue eyes on the Barbie set.
Are you looking forward to Gatwa's portrayal of the Doctor? Share your favorite roles of his in the comments below!
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