The Talent of Ayo Edebiri
Ayo Edebiri's rise this past year reflects her talent and skill as a comedian, actress, and writer. The 28-year-old actress grew up in Boston to her Nigerian father and Barbadian mother. She began seriously pursuing comedy while attending New York University. Her career has brought her into writers' rooms, performed stand-up for Comedy Central, and soon act in leading roles for The Bear and Bottoms, a screenplay written by her friend and co-lead, Rachel Sennott. Fresh off a successful award season, what is it that brought her acclaim in 2023?
FX’s The Bear, directed by Christopher Storer
2023 saw Ayo Edebiri's biggest year yet: her films Bottoms and Theater Camp were released in the height of summer, along with the second season of FX’s culinary comedy-drama The Bear. Edebiri’s endearing awkwardness may make it seem like she’s been typecast in certain roles, yet her skill comes in how she can play the same neuroses but not the same character. She has the coveted ability to disappear into her roles, even when they are similar to herself. Her character, Josie, in Bottoms, is a socially awkward lesbian, duped into starting a fight club with her best friend in order to get girls. Josie appears to share much of Edebiri’s natural personality, allowing her to navigate the character’s insecurities to top comedic effect. Josie’s dorkiness explodes off her body, with erratic hand movements and tight, hunched shoulders, all the way down to stuttering, believable line deliveries. Yet, she is still easily the straight man of this satirical film, with her awkwardness firmly getting in the way of her ever-present morality. Meanwhile, the internal motivations completely flip for her role as Janet in Theater Camp, wherein she plays a completely unqualified camp counselor. Edebiri called the character “internally chaotic” and “disconnected from reality.” The result gives us a character desperately trying to keep her head above water while learning on the job. And while she brings believability to the absurd, Edebiri’s earnest work in The Bear is where she shines. In her award-winning role as Sydney, a sous-chef for a hole-in-the-wall restaurant, Edebiri works with controlled, boxed-in moments, both reflecting the character’s culinary teachings and her insecurity as a woman leading a disorganized kitchen. She knows how to make physicality believable, down to minute facial expressions. The fast-paced environment forces the characters to talk over each other, and in those layered shouting matches, you will find Edebiri’s comedy chops. Her acting style melts artistry with believability and is a testament to how comedy has as much depth as drama.
