By Al Jazeera
Nikita Pearl Waligwa, a Ugandan child actress who starred in a Disney movie on the extraordinary life of a local chess prodigy, has died at the age of 15.
Gayaza High School reported that the teenage star of the movie, ‘Queen of Katwe’ died of brain tumour.
Waligwa, who played the role of Gloria, a younger friend of the main character in the 2016 film, was “a darling to many”, the secondary school wrote on Twitter.
“No words can explain the pain at the moment,” it added.
Nikita Pearl Waligwa
Local media reported that Waligwa had first been diagnosed with a brain tumour in 2016. After making a recovery a year later, another tumour was found.
The news prompted an outpouring of grief on social media, users expressing their condolences and recalling her role in the movie directed by Mira Nair and filmed in Katwe, a slum in Uganda’s capital, Kampala.
“Nikita Pearl Waligwa was not only a star, but she was also an inspiration to every young girl,” read an obituary in the online version of the New Vision, a Ugandan daily newspaper.
Queen of Katwe was based on the true story of Phiona Mutesi, an uneducated girl from the eponymous slum who took up chess in 2005 and overcame overwhelming odds to become the first female winner of Uganda’s junior chess championships.
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Processors
By the age of 17, she was representing the country at international competitions.
The film was received favourably in Uganda, where young people with no acting experience shared the limelight with stars such as Lupita Nyong’o, a Kenyan Oscar-winning actress, and Britain’s David Oyelowo.
One of those Ugandans was Waligwa, who as Gloria explained to Phiona the rules of the game in the film.
Lupita Nyong’o
“The small one can become the big one,” is one of Gloria’s memorable quotes from Queen of Katwe.
In the movie directed by Mira Nair, Phiona’s character was depicted by Lupita Nyong’o.
Adapted from an ESPN magazine article and book by Tim Crothers, the film was produced by Walt Disney Pictures and ESPN Films.
Queen of Katwe was screened at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival and had a limited release in the United States on September 23, 2016, before a general theatrical release on September 30.