Thandie Newton reverts to original spelling of first name, Thandiwe

Thandie Newton reverts to original spelling of first name, Thandiwe
The actress will now be credited in films and TV series as Thandiwe Newton. Source: Getty Images
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Daily US Times: Actress Thandie Newton, formally know as Thandie Newton, has said she is reverting to the original Zimbabwean spelling of her first name, Thandiwe, declaring: “I’m taking back what’s mine.”

She has hitherto been known as Thandie (pronounced “tan-DEE-way”) , an anglicised version of her name with the “w” absent.

All of Newton’s films will be credited with the name Thandiwe Newton in future.

“That’s my name. It’s always been my name,” Newton told British Vogue.

The actress said her name was misspelled in the credits to her first film Flirting in 1991, which co-starred Nicole Kidman and Noah Taylor.

As a result, Thandie Newton, whose full name is Melanie Thandiwe Newton, became the widely-used spelling of her name and has stuck with the actress for three decades.

Newton also told the British Vogue that she welcomed how much representation of ethnic minority groups has improved in the entertainment landscape.

She said: “The thing I’m most grateful for in our business right now is being in the company of others who truly see me. And to not be complicit in the objectification of black people as ‘others’, which is what happens when you’re the only one.”

Newton was born in London to a Zimbabwean mother, Nyasha and a white British father, Nick.

Her family settled in Penzance, Cornwall, when she was three years old.

Her role in the sci-fi series Westworld earned her an Emmy in 2018 for best supporting actress in a drama series.

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