From her roles in Bottoms to The Bear, 2023 was an incredibly busy yet successful year for Ayo Edebiri. Being Hollywood’s most in-demand young actress can’t be easy—but the people’s princess does it flawlessly. Her impeccable style and unparalleled work ethic have attracted the attention of audiences and critics alike, but what truly won us over is her magnetic personality. Edibiri’s witty and grounded sense of self has brought a sense of whimsy back to the persona of the young Hollywood celebrity.
Getting her start as a writer on Netflix’s Big Mouth, Edebiri went on to star in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-verse, Bottoms, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Theater Camp in 2023 alone. And that’s not even mentioning her breakout role as anxiety-ridden sous-chef Sydney on FX’s Emmy award-winning TV show, The Bear. Simply put, she’s everywhere.
Endearing herself to a younger audience in a number of ways, Edebiri has connected largely with the online film community through the app Letterboxd. The app allows users to rate and share reviews—through which Edebiri has both demonstrated a clever knack for writing reviews and proven herself to be a true cinephile. Her thoughtful yet funny engagement with the medium allows her fans to really see what influences she draws upon and brings to the big screen. Whether fangirling over Zac Efron or commiserating about the relatability of a tragic love story, her reviews make cultural engagement with movies accessible for a more online audience. However, after a review of Saltburn from Edebiri received heightened attention, the actress started to take down some of her reviews. This has started a discussion around wanting to share content from our favourite celebrities vs respecting their right to connect with the films they watch in a space free of judgment. This concern has risen as the actress’s reviews have circulated from Letterboxd onto platforms for more general audiences, such as Twitter (now X).
In addition to functioning as a social media app, Letterboxd also, somewhat infamously, conducts red carpet interviews asking celebrities to name their four favourite movies—a feature that is available to users on their profile. In an interview with Edebiri at South by Southwest Film Festival, an interviewer from the app joked around with the actress about playing the role of a donkey in The Banshees of Inisherin (a film in which she did not appear). In the video, Edebiri speaks in an Irish accent while jokingly describing the process she went through to prepare for the role. A clip from the interview later went viral online, with people declaring Edebiri as an “honorary Irish princess.” In fact, the joke has spread so far that earlier this month, Film in Dublin, an organization that works to promote Irish films, tweeted at the actress to congratulate her on her BAFTA Rising Star Award nomination.
On that note, a moment of recognition is due for the sheer fact that Edebiri has won nearly every single award she’s been nominated for in the 2023–2024 awards season. From a Golden Globe to a Critics Choice Award and an Emmy, audiences and peers alike can’t seem to get enough of her. Her endless charm and appeal to an online demographic is backed up by heapings of comedic talent. Her undeniable ‘it’ factor doesn’t come from appearing effortlessly cool, but showing how being a real fan of comedy herself sets her apart from others in the industry.
Edebiri’s red carpet outfits capture a sophisticated yet playfully genuine style that resonates with a younger audience. In essence, she dresses really cool. From her office wear rival skirt sets by Thom Browne to her custom Prada gowns, her style feels predictive of rising trends. Her recent awards show collaborations with stylist Danielle Goldberg have also secured her spot on best-dressed lists for the foreseeable future.
With no sign of her star dimming anytime soon, it’s safe to say Ayo Edebiri is cementing herself as a key figure in the future of film and television. Her effortlessly cool yet deeply dorky demeanour makes her an icon to both look up to and fall in love with.
