Never Have I Ever's Maitreyi Ramakrishnan lifts lid on huge new Netflix role

Popular Never Have I Ever star Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, who rose to fame as Devi Vishwakumar on the teen comedy, appears in a brand new film for Netflix this week.

Speaking in an exclusive interview, the 23-year-old Canadian actress spoke about her exciting new role in Netflix’s upcoming Roald Dahl adaptation, which has previously never been taken to the screen.

Ramakrishnan stars as brave orphan Beesha in animated movie The Twits, which is based on Dahl’s classic short story of the same name.

Ryan Lopez stars opposite the Netflix actress as her best friend, while British comedian Johnny Vegas and Hollywood legend Margo Martindale plays Mr and Mrs Twit.

Other high-profile cast members include Emilia Clarke, Natalie Portman and Nicole Byer.

Asked about her brand new role, Ramakrishnan started off by crediting director Phil Johnston for his work on the film, explaining: “Phil Johnston our director was the best. Truly, he made the experience oh so fun and I’m really privileged that into my voice acting career, I’ve had some really awesome directors.

“Animation people are the best. If you’re into animation, you’re already just auto-cool, you know?”

Ramakrishnan previously appeared in the 2022 animated film Turning Red, which was directed by Domee Shi.

In the Pixar movie, she played Priya opposite Rosalie Chiang as Mei, Sandra Oh as Ming, Ava Morse as Miriam and Hyein Park as Abby.

The film is about a 13-year-old girl who is cursed to transform into a giant red panda whenever she experiences strong emotion.

Reflecting on her previous role, Ramakrishnan said: “In Turning Red, I’m a nice little fun supporting character.

“Priya is cool, she has a very dead-pan voice, just a baddie, we love her. We stan Priya.

“I guess they would be around the same age, but Beesha of course has a little bit more on her shoulders as being one of the main characters in our film.”

Elsewhere in the interview, the actress emphasised her love for the entirely new character, admitting: “Selfishly, I also love Beesha’s character design; she is so cutie.

“I remember the first time the animation team showed me her character design and I was like, ‘Oh my god. She has a nose like mine. She’s a dark-skinned brown girlie, the texture on her hair is just [chef’s kiss]. Yes, I love it. Beesha, my girl!”

Netflix’s official for The Twits reads: “The Twits tells the story of Mr. and Mrs. Twit, the meanest, smelliest, nastiest people on the face of the earth, and their epic battle against a family of magical Muggle-Wumps and two brave children who refuse to let the Twits’ cruelty win.”

The Twits is coming to Netflix on Friday, October 17.