We have seen worse, for a young star on the rise, than finding herself idle, in Europe, in the heart of summer… In July 2023, when the strike in Hollywood intensifies, the American actors who are working at the same time at the foreigner suddenly find themselves abroad… without work. Ayo Written28, is free overnight from all his obligations and decides to go meet some actor friends in Berlin: Paul Mescal, Fred Hechinger, Jeremy O. Harris et Michael Seater. “We were walking with the guys from Normal People and of White Lotus, but the one who got arrested the most was Ayoremember Jeremy O. Harris. People were saying, ‘Yes, boss!’” Six months later, in Los Angeles, in front of the overpriced omakase at Sushi Park, Hollywood’s favorite canteen, the “Syd” of the series The Bear admits that her trip to Berlin was “eventful”, before telling me what happened next in London, where she still thought she could claim a certain anonymity.
DOG DAY
Ayo Written grew up in Boston. “I didn’t see myself as a funny girl,” she says. Rather very stressed.” She is wearing a sweater, a skirt and shoes, LOEWE, and socks, LE BON SHOPPE.
Ayo Edebiri, the rising star of the entertainment world
“My friends make fun of me, but I thought I could take the bus in peace”. She then replays the little tap on the shoulder, the embarrassed look, the “excuse me, will you allow me?” characteristics of the selfie-seeking fan. The Bear was nominated for a BAFTA, but the series (family drama, comedy, exploration of trauma and healing processes in a struggling Chicago restaurant) left empty-handed. Ayo therefore thought of going incognito. “And there, I arrive at Piccadilly and I come across a giant billboard of Jeremy Allen White”. Translation: Europe is hanging on, no more anonymity. Here, on the other side of Sunset Boulevard, his on-screen partner sprawls across an ad the size of a building, clad in his underwear, as if to confirm his words. This evening, she will fly to New York to host the Saturday Night Live.
Ayo Edebiri did not, however, particularly aspire to change his life. An only child, she grew up in Massachusetts, surrounded by a father and a mother who were immigrants from Barbados and Nigeria respectively. Fervent Pentecostals, strict and undemonstrative, they expect a lot from her. (She describes the attitude of a Nigerian parent like this: “I’ll keep an eye on you, and I’ll never tell you that I approve. You definitely don’t want to hear me say that I disapprove. But as long as I don’t say it, everything is fine between us”). An intelligent and curious child, she is also very anxious. “I didn’t see myself as a funny girlshe says. Rather very anxious”. At college, she realizes that humor can be a valuable ally. “You say to yourself: ‘Wait, that could be my personality. I have to dig”. She does a little improv, is passionate about Buster Keaton et Jim Carrey and starts to act like a clown: “I loved the feeling! I felt like I understood people and what they wanted”. History will prove him right.
BLOW UP
Jacket and shirt, Stella McCartney.
Upon entering New York University, she thought of becoming a teacher, but turned to writing. Very quickly, everything came together: stand-up, a few sketches on the web, then writing for series like What We Do in the Shadows, Dickinson et Big Mouth. With these last two, she takes the big leap from writer’s room on the small screen. She meets Christopher Largerwho is preparing a new series, The Bear, to discuss the role of Sydney, the courageous young chef. “The first time I met him, I was 21, and he said to me: ‘You have everything of a director.’ I said, ‘Mind your own business, brother.’”, she blurted, grabbing a piece of mackerel between her chopsticks. After hanging around on the sets, she let herself be convinced: she will soon take her first steps behind the camera for an episode of season 3. And then? Feet on the ground, Ayo doesn’t like to talk too much about what she’s not “sure it will be done 100%”.
Nothing serious: things get done. In 2023, we saw (or heard) her in General repetition, Ninja Turtles : Teenage Years, Black Mirror, Abbott Elementary, Big Mouthet Bottomsa queer and crazy comedy, alongside his college friend, Rachel Sennott. This year, we expect it in Opusa chic indie horror film from A24, Omni Loopnext to Mary-Louise Parkeret Ella McCaydirected by James L. Brooks.
