Westworld: Why Thandie Newton is our spirit animal

Thandie Newton is the epitome of grace, beauty, and female empowerment, and her portrayal of Maeve gives us life and inspires us from within.

Who doesn’t love Thandie Newton? She is such a badass in every way, and watching her shine on the screen as Maeve in Westworld is a joy we can’t describe. As the title alludes to, she is in many ways our spirit animal, someone we can aspire to be, and feel inspired to follow.

Thandie Newton doesn’t just bring Maeve to life, but her life outside of Westworld is equally as inspiring–let’s dig into the five reasons why she is so important to us and gives us the drive to be who we are.

Ability to convey multiple aspects of one character

Not only she does play Maeve on Westworld, but Thandie Newton takes this role and presents it in an unbelievable manner. In the first season, she took on the role of mother, the brothel madam, and a slowly awakening host. This is not a simple task but yet she does it so effortlessly and seamlessly that she brings the audience right into the plot and story of Westworld.

What makes her even more loveable and impressive is that the fact that she gives more credit to the crew of the Westworld team rather than her own acting abilities.

"“I would be making it up if I said there was anything special about what I did. It’s really beautiful editing, great music, really clever use of visual references. And yeah, I had to fill in a little gap there with acting. But I was as much in awe of that set piece as anybody when I watched it. Because as you’re doing it, you’re just doing little bits. Trying to piece it all together in your head, but really, it’s the director, the showrunners, that have the whole piece in their minds. So I was really impressed when I saw the finished result.”"

Watching her take on the role of Maeve is so inspiring because there is a specific beauty in how her character unfolds throughout both seasons, and watching her journey through Newton’s performance is something we can’t perfectly describe in words because it doesn’t do it justice. Bravo Thandie Newton for being the prime example of badassery.

She is at top of the game

Not only is she kicking butt on Westworld, but over the last year, Thandie Newton has been a part of multiple projects, including Solo: A Star Wars Story. She was the first dark-skinned woman in a lead role in any Star Wars movie and seeing her accomplish this was another example of how she is #goals. Along with Westworld and Star Wars, Newton is also involved in a BBC One police drama called Line of Duty for which she has been BAFTA-nominated for.

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She is also an advocate for speaking out against rape and sexual abuse in the industry and has been so for over 20 years. Her personal experience with the situation has given her perspective on the challenges that have been presented to many over the years when trying to join the industry.

She is also a big part of Eve Ensler’s V-Day charity which is a global movement that fights to end violence against women and girls. Playing Maeve has given her a unique perspective on her daily fights and how to help others around the world push and resist against those that insist on bringing them down.

She also uses the character of Maeve to broach topics such as nudity on a television show. She is all about empowering females and uses the nudity on the show as a means of doing that. Newton found that when she was dressed as a madam with her boobs popping out, she felt more objectified, but when she was doing a scene completely naked, there was a sense of comfort in that because she was not hiding anything anymore.

"“People treated me with respect like they were grateful for how committed I was to trying to tell the story right. When you truly expose yourself. When you truly show that you have nothing to hide, people are tender towards you. We associate nudity with sex. Not with vulnerability. Not with tenderness.”"

In short, Thandie Newton is the epitome of the type of person we can all aspire to be. She fights for the rights of people while taking on groundbreaking roles that are making history. Essentially her acting job is a means for her to be able to do what she’s most passionate about–her humanitarian work. I mean, don’t we all want to be her, even if for one day?