Pearl Thusi (Quantico), Alice Krige (Star Trek, Thor: The Dark World); Terry Pheto (BET series Madiba); and Connie Chiume (Black Panther), if there’s something they have in common, it’s the truth that they’re South African women in entertainment pushing boundaries even up to the forefront of Hollywood. Joining the list will be Phumzile Sitole, a South African actress who just got a role in the new season of Netflix series Orange is the New Black. The female jail-themed show is coming back for a sixth season, with an already stellar ensemble in Piper (Taylor Schilling), Suzanne (Uzo Aduba) and Red (Kate Mulgrew). Phumzile will play the role of Antoinette “Akers” Kerson and will appear in nine episodes.
The official trailer for OITNB season 6 dropped on July 9, revealing how the inmates are dealing and adapting with their new surroundings, following the riot in season five. New episodes will official land on Netflix on July 27.
Sitole has acted in stage plays but is known for her TV roles as Rethabile Mothobi in local show Rights of Passage and Sharise on American show The Good Fight. She obtained her BA in Theatre and Performance at the University of Cape Town and went on to get her Master of Fine Arts in Theatre at Columbia University in New York.
As usual, when the news broke on twitter, South African buddies couldn’t help but share their joys and excitement about how the country’s stars are slowly taking over the international stage 🇿🇦
https://twitter.com/blacknemz/status/1016457913953603589?s=21
Phumiiiii !!!! I’m so damn happy for you and so proud dude!!! Wow @phumzilesitole … watching your journey unfold has been so profoundly inspiring !!! KEEP GOING QUEEN! Keep going! 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽 #OITNB #SATalent https://t.co/39NZHXYHIx
— Nomzamo Mbatha (@NomzamoMbatha) July 10, 2018
