Finding Peace

Discover how Marvel actress, Letitia Wright, was rescued from a bout of crippling depression

This winter Marvel fans will finally get the chance to watch the eagerly anticipated Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.

Following several setbacks, including the tragic death of the film’s hero, Chadwick Boseman, Black Panther returns to screens this November, with award-winning actress Letitia Wright reprising her role as tech genius Shuri.

At 29 years old, Letitia has enjoyed the kind of career many could only dream of.

Beginning with guest roles in TV series such as Toy Boy, Chasing Shadows and Doctor Who, she later starred in the dystopian hit, Black Mirror, for which she earned an Emmy nomination.

Her big break came in 2018 when she landed a lead role in the globally successful superhero film, Black Panther.

After winning the hearts of many around the world with her portrayal of the lead character’s younger sister, Shuri, it’s hard to believe that Letitia almost quit acting altogether before joining the Marvel Universe and gaining global recognition.

In her acceptance speech for the Rising Star BAFTA Award in 2019, Letitia revealed: ‘A few years ago I saw myself in a deep state of depression and I literally wanted to quit acting.

‘The only thing that pulled me out of it was God, my belief, my faith and my family, and an email from BAFTA asking me to become part of the BAFTA Breakthrough Brits.’

Finding God

Having grown up in Guyana, South America, where life was very simple and focused on family, Letitia struggled to fit in when she moved to the UK at seven years old and started school.

‘When I started school, I just didn’t fit in. I had a different accent from everyone, so I’d listen to how people say certain words and copy them — that’s where the acting first started to step in,’ Letitia shared in the book Discovering You.

Acting seemed to come naturally to Letitia. When she was 12, she played Rosa Parks in her school’s Black History Month performance. Letitia was so well received that the students were asked to do the show at a local community theatre. From there, she was hooked on acting.

As a teen, she spent hours re-enacting scenes from her favourite films, recording lines on her laptop and filming living room performances to play back and repeat until she felt she had perfected the role.

At just 15 years old, Letitia decided she needed an agent. With no money to pay for headshots, she took a selfie in her bathroom mirror and hand-delivered the photo to top agents in London.

After nagging one agency in particular, the receptionist finally agreed to give her an appointment and she was signed on the spot.

By the age of 18, she had secured parts in three television shows, including long-running BBC hospital drama, Holby City.

Despite early success though, the now globally recognised actress was feeling unfulfilled.

She told W Magazine: ‘I was depressed and full of anxiety.

‘I think it was that pressure to be accepted, to be somebody…I was okay when I was on set, hiding behind my work, but when I wasn’t acting I was full of fear and doubt, trying to fill this void inside of me any way I could: drinking, smoking. It was bad.’

Around this time her friends from drama school started to become Christians.

At first Letitia was adamant faith was not for her, but when she hit rock bottom in 2015, a friend said something to her that made her interest in Christianity click.

‘I found myself going through a very difficult time — one where you feel like you’re in the darkness alone and nobody sees you,’ Letitia recalled in Discovering You. ‘But then a friend called me to tell me that God had revealed to him that I wasn’t happy and that I should try Jesus.

‘“No,” I told him. “Jesus is a blonde-haired, blue-eyed guy who has nothing to do with me!” And he was like, “I’m not talking about how he looks. I’m talking about his spirit and the fact that he will set you free”.’

Letitia came off the phone and prayed, ‘Jesus, it you’re real prove it; I’m giving you a year’.

Not long after that prayer a friend invited her to church.

Surprising herself, Letitia went along, but as the preacher spoke she had made up her mind – she wasn’t coming back.

But then, when the time came to pray, she stood up and started to feel very lightheaded. People gathered around her to pray, and something began to shift in her heart.

After that, Letitia kept going to the church, asking questions and asking God to prove himself until she felt sure she believed in him and wanted to dedicate her life to him.

‘I gave him all of my sin and the things that were painful in my life and made an exchange with him to get free,’ Letitia shared in Discovering You.

After that, the young star went on a journey to find her fulfilment in her faith, rather than her career.

Fame and Faith

Letitia has been very vocal about how her faith rescued her from a ‘bout of crippling depression’.

‘It was very, very bad and I didn’t know a way out,’ she told The Sydney Morning Herald. That is, until her friend invited her to church.

‘Ever since then, everything’s just been really, really positive in my life,’ she shared with the newspaper. ‘I don’t feel those depressive feelings any more. I just feel so free and happy.’

After becoming a Christian, Letitia felt she needed to take a break from acting to pursue her faith and work on her mental health.

During this time, she turned down the opportunity to star in a film alongside Nicole Kidman and Elle Fanning

Agencies in the UK and LA tried offering her more money to take the role, but she remained firm in her decision.

During her acting break, Letitia spent a lot of time praying and reading the Bible.

Discussing this time of her life with film magazine, Filmink, she said: ‘I found what I was looking for, an inner peace that I cannot exchange for silver or gold.’

Letitia states that she was willing to walk away from acting forever, but she felt God tell her to continue.

Once she decided she was ready to act again, Letitia hit the ground running with a lead role in Black Panther.

Letitia’s return to acting has meant learning when to say no. She no longer cares about how big the film might be, instead she looks to play parts she feels are meaningful.

This is something her Black Panther co-star, Daniel Kaluuya, admires about her.

‘Watching her make decisions has taught me so much about life and being a human being,’ Kaluuya told W Magazine. ‘She knows what she’s about, and she knows her worth. That’s rare.’

Knowing the consideration Letitia puts into the parts she plays, it’s little wonder she agreed to do the Black Panther sequel.

Her character Shuri is described as an outspoken force for good and the original movie has been praised for its race and gender-conscious casting and costuming.

Moreover, Black Panther has given Letitia a platform to talk openly about mental health, which she does with the hope that she can help others who are struggling too.

For Letitia, her recovery from depression and her faith come hand in hand. While she is often praised for being honest about her health issues, some people have advised the star to stop talking about her religious beliefs, but this actress won’t stay silent.

‘I’ve had people tell me, “Hey, you should stop talking about Jesus”,’ the actress explained to The Independent. ‘But there will always be pressures to keep things private that the world may not agree with. And I’m not trying to force anything on anyone. I’m sharing my truth because I probably wouldn’t be alive right now if it wasn’t for Jesus, I probably wouldn’t have been able to cope.

‘And if someone saves you and brings light and love to your life, you want to share that. You don’t want to hide it.’