Irish-Ethiopian actress Ruth Negga stars alongside Daniel Levy and Himesh Patel in Netflix's new film "Good Grief."
Negga, 41, plays Sophie in "Good Grief," the directorial debut from "Schitt's Creek" star Daniel Levy.
Here’s a synopsis of “Good Grief” from Netflix: “Marc (Daniel Levy) was content living in the shadow of his larger-than-life husband, Oliver (Luke Evans).
“But when Oliver unexpectedly dies, Marc’s world shatters, sending him and his two best friends, Sophie (Ruth Negga) and Thomas (Himesh Patel), on a soul-searching trip to Paris that reveals some hard truths they each needed to face.
“‘Good Grief’ marks Levy’s debut as a feature-film writer and director. He also produced as part of Not a Real Production Company, alongside Sister Pictures.”
On casting Negga, Levy told Netflix: "I heard that Ruth had read and loved the script, and I remember wanting to meet but I had only seen her in deeply dramatic roles ['Loving,' 'Passing'].
"I knew she was an extraordinary actor, but I didn’t know if she had the lightness the character needed. I foolishly thought she might be a more serious person than she actually is.
"We brought her in for a conversation, and the minute she walked in the room, I knew. She was a ray of sunshine. She is one of the funniest and most charming people I’ve ever met. I think she surprises so many people with her charm and her wit and her energy. And I thought, 'What a privilege to put her in a role that will showcase a completely different side of her skillset.'
"She is so incredible in this movie, particularly her ability to dance between drama and humor and hope and sadness. She goes through a roller coaster of emotions over the course of the film and does it so naturally. There’s never a false note."
(L to R) Daniel Levy, Ruth Negga, and Himesh Patel in "Good Grief." (Chris Baker / Netflix © 2023)
Negga told Netflix: “The film is about three friends in their mid-30s who have come to a point in their life where they’re deciding how to move forward, what they need to leave behind, and what avenues they wish to take in their lives now that they are considered adults.
“There are many layers to this story. It’s actually a quite serious interrogation of friendship and loyalty and what we tolerate within our friendships and how our friendships can inform our other relationships.”
It would appear Negga walked away with some new friendships after "Good Grief" - in December, she shared sweet snaps of her and her costars captioned "pals for life."
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41-year-old Negga, who was born in Ethiopia to an Irish mother and Ethiopian father and raised in Co Limerick, received Oscar and Golden Globe nominations in 2016 for her lead role in "Loving," a Daytime Emmy nomination for "Angela's Christmas," as well as another Golden Globe nomination in 2022 for her lead role in "Passing."
The Irish actress also has several IFTA nominations, including one win in 2012 for her role in the television show "Shirley."
On stage, Negga landed a Best Actress Tony nomination in 2022 for her role in "Macbeth" opposite Daniel Craig.
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