Lupita Nyong'o Named People's 'Most Beautiful Woman'

"It was exciting and just a major, major compliment," she said.

ByABC News
April 23, 2014, 10:01 AM

April 23, 2014 — -- Oscar winner and all-around Hollywood darling Lupita Nyong'o is People magazine's Most Beautiful Woman.

The honor couldn't have gone to a more deserving woman, who absolutely took Hollywood by storm this year with he performance in "12 Years a Slave."

The 31-year-old actress told the magazine she "never dreamed" she'd be its "Most Beautiful."

Read: Lupita Nyong'o Crowned New 'It' Girl at Oscars 2014

"It was exciting and just a major, major compliment," she said. "I was happy for all the girls who would see me on [it] and feel a little more seen."

She added that her mother Dorothy "always said I was beautiful and I finally believed her at some point."