Chiwetel Umeadi Ejiofor CBE is a British actor and filmmaker and BAFTA Award winner. He has a breadth of critically acclaimed work across stage and screen. After enrolling at the National Youth Theatre in 1995 and attending the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, at age 19 and three months into his course, Ejiofor was cast by Steven Spielberg to play a supporting role in the film Amistad as James Covey.
Last year, Chiwetel appeared in sci-fi thriller Infinite. In the same year, he starred in Locked Down and The Old Guard. The latter became one of Netflix's most watched original films of all time. Chiwetel will return for the sequel.
March 2019 saw Chiwetel's critically acclaimed directorial debut The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, which he adapted from the book of the same name. Chiwetel will soon adapt and direct The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace: A Brilliant Young Man Who Left Newark for the Ivy League, based on the bestselling book by Jeff Hobbs.
Chiwetel voiced the infamous character of ‘Scar' in Disney's The Lion King 2019, He appeared in Maleficent: The Mistress of Evil. In the same year, he narrated the documentary The Elephant Queen. His voiceover work garnered him an Emmy nomination for ‘Outstanding Narrator'. He has most recAfter enrolling at the National Youth Theatre in 1995 and attending the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, at age 19 and three months into his course, Ejiofor was cast by Steven Spielberg to play a supporting role in the film Amistad as James Covey.ently narrated BBC Africa and National Geographic (Latin America)'s Day Zero.
His other impressive film credits include Mary Madgalene, Come Sunday, Sherlock Gnomes, Doctor Strange, Triple 9, The Martian, Z For Zachariah, Secret in Their Eyes, Half of a Yellow Sun, Dirty Pretty Things, Love Actually, Slow Burn, Melinda and Melinda, American Gangster, Talk to Me, Redbelt, Kinky Boots,
Chiwetel has earned many awards as well. His performance in Twelve Years a Slave earned him him Academy Award, Golden Globe and SAG nominations and won him a Best Actor BAFTA. He also received a Golden Globe and Emmy Award nomination for his work in the miniseries Dancing on the Edge. Additionally, his performance in Endgame, a Golden Globe nomination in 2014.
His critically-acclaimed acting extends to the world of theater where he appeared in Michael Frandage's Othello in 2002, Roger Michell's Blue/Orange in 2000, and Time Supple's Romeo and Juliet.
