Joshua Jackson and Lupita Nyong'o at Concert Amid Splits

Lupita Nyong'o is grateful for the healing that comes from community. 

When the Black Panther star's relationship with Selema Masekela came to an end last fall, Lupita chose to share the news of her breakup publicly. Now she's revealing why she first decided to do so—and why she's so grateful she did. 

"In my mind, when I shared my relationship status with the world, it was because I felt sure about it," Lupita told Net-a-Porter in an interview published Feb. 26. So when her relationship came to an end, she added, "I was living in a lot of pain and heartbreak. I looked at the environment of my social media and thought, I don't want to be a part of this illusion that everything is always coming up roses. Surely there is a lesson for me to learn in this, and I just want to be real about it."

And she felt immediate relief after posting her vulnerable message in October.

"I knew how it could be interpreted; I knew it would have a life of its own," the 40-year-old said. "But then I started to see the comments and people were being so loving and supportive. The ones that moved me the most were other people sharing their pain and their heartbreak."

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But while she noted some of the best advice she's received is, "Our purpose in life is to love. And so you have to get back in it," Lupita also isn't looking to rush into something new—despite sparking romance rumors with Joshua Jackson at the end of 2023.

"I think what I've learned is, I've got to just face this thing that I'm going through," she explained. "I can't run away from it. And so I am not looking for its opposite right now."

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Lupita and Selema were together for about one year before the Us actress wrote in October about "a love suddenly and devastatingly extinguished by deception."

"I am tempted to run into the shadows and hide, only to return to the light when I have regained my strength enough for me to say, 'Whatever, my life is better this way,'" she continued her Instagram statement. "But I am reminded that the magnitude of the pain I am feeling is equal to the measure of my capacity for love. And so, I am choosing to face the pain, cultivating the courage to meet my life exactly as it is, and trusting that this too shall pass."

For more of Lupita from over the years, keep reading. 

photosView More Photos From Lupita Nyong'o's Best Looks