Top 25 Beautiful Black Actresses
Here it is... This is the best of the best, when it comes to "current" black actresses. Top 100 list coming soon; so many, many, more will be added.
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Halle Maria Berry was born Maria Halle Berry on August 14, 1966 in Cleveland, Ohio and raised in Oakwood, Ohio to Judith Ann Berry (née Hawkins), a psychiatric nurse & Jerome Jesse Berry, a hospital attendant. Her father was African-American and her mother is of mostly English and German descent. Halle first came into the spotlight at seventeen years when she won the Miss Teen All-American Pageant, representing the state of Ohio in 1985 and, a year later in 1986, when she was the first runner-up in the Miss U.S.A. Pageant. After participating in the pageant, Halle became a model. It eventually led to her first weekly TV series, 1989's Living Dolls (1989), where she soon gained a reputation for her on-set tenacity, preferring to "live" her roles and remaining in character even when the cameras stopped rolling. It paid off though when she reportedly refused to bathe for several days before starting work on her role as a crack addict in Spike Lee's Jungle Fever (1991) because the role provided her big screen breakthrough. The following year, she was cast as Eddie Murphy's love interest in Boomerang (1992), one of the few times that Murphy was evenly matched on screen. In 1994, Berry gained a youthful following for her performance as sexy secretary "Sharon Stone" in The Flintstones (1994). She next had a highly publicized starring role with Jessica Lange in the adoption drama Losing Isaiah (1995). Though the movie received mixed reviews, Berry didn't let that slow her down, and continued down her path to super-stardom.
In 1998, she received critical success when she starred as a street smart young woman who takes up with a struggling politician in Warren Beatty's Bulworth (1998). The following year, she won even greater acclaim for her role as actress Dorothy Dandridge in made-for-cable's Introducing Dorothy Dandridge (1999), for which she won a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a TV Movie/Mini-Series. In 2000, she received box office success in X-Men (2000) in which she played "Storm", a mutant who has the ability to control the weather. In 2001, she starred in the thriller Swordfish (2001), and became the first African-American to win Best Actress at the Academy Awards, for her role as a grieving mother in the drama Monster's Ball (2001).- Actress
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Kerry Washington is an African-American actress, television show producer and film director who is known for her roles in Scandal, Ray, the Tim Story Fantastic Four film series, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, Confirmation, Django Unchained, Little Fires Everywhere, Cars 3 and The Last King of Scotland. She had two children from Nnamdi Asomugha.- Actress
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Reagan Gomez-Preston was born on 24 April 1980 in Detroit, Michigan, USA. She is an actress and writer, known for Jerry Maguire (1996), Surviving... (2015) and Almost Home (2013). She has been married to DeWayne Turrentine Jr. since 10 November 1999. They have two children.- Stacey Dash was born in the Bronx, New York. Stacy knew that she wanted to act, and from an early age began to act professionally. She made regular appearances on The Cosby Show (1984), The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990), and also St. Elsewhere (1982). At 21 she made her feature film debut in Enemy Territory (1987), which was quickly followed by Moving (1988), in which she played Richard Pryor's teenage daughter. Four years later she was in Mo' Money (1992), with Damon Wayans. In 1994 she starred with Mark Wahlberg in Renaissance Man (1994). In 1995 she did the provocative erotic thriller Illegal in Blue (1995) and later that year got her big break when was cast as Dionne in the hit comedy Clueless (1995). She went on to star in the UPN sitcom Clueless (1996) that was based on the movie, and which lasted for two years. During that time she completed Oliver Stone's Cold Around the Heart (1997) and also the independent film Personals (1999). After leaving "Clueless" in 1999, Stacey seems to be moving along nicely. She has recently appeared in The Painting (2001) and Paper Soldiers (2002).
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Dr. Leigh-Davis is a creative with an analytical mind, who is an award winning problem solver & producer of tantalizing media content. Specifically, Dr. Leigh-Davis is a law professor, retired attorney, anthropologist and media personality; who frequently works as a TV news legal analyst. Dr. Leigh-Davis has taught at Cal State University and is a native of Beverly Hills, California. Previously, Dr. Leigh-Davis was Editor-in-Chief of Malibu Magazine; an attorney; an actress; a model; host of the Court TV television show "The Court is in Session;" and a winner of many beauty pageants, including two Ms. California titles.
In her spare time, Dr. Leigh-Davis is a classically trained dancer and an accomplished mixed media artist, with an encyclopedic knowledge of all types of music.
Currently, Dr. Leigh-Davis is a full-time law professor, and also, a journalist who has several syndicated columns and syndicated television spots. Additionally, Dr. Leigh-Davis has a regular television show, and also, a regular radio show. Dr. Leigh-Davis also appears as a legal analyst and legal commentator on many top television news programs, and is regularly seen on NBC news, CNN, and Fox news.
Although considered an expert in several areas of the law; in 2010, Dr. Leigh-Davis decided to focus her expertise on tort law, contract law, and legal ethics. However, when lecturing to foreigners, Dr. Leigh-Davis gives a broader perspective of the law.
While continuing to be a full-time law professor and broadcast journalist, recently, Dr. Leigh-Davis took on the additional role of editor-in-chief of Confidence Magazine(TM). In addition, Dr. Leigh-Davis has been named spokesperson for both Rock Star * PR, as well as, Wellness World.
Dr. Leigh-Davis is an American citizen, with a Brazilian mother and an Austrian father.- Kandyse McClure is a Canadian actress born on March 22, 1980 in Durban in South Africa. She graduated from West Vancouver Secondary School in 1998. She is an actress, known for main roles in TV series Battlestar Galactica (2004), Hemlock Grove (2013), and from the movies Carrie (2002) and Seventh Son (2014).
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Bunbury was born in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, to Kristi Novak and Alex Bunbury, a footballer. Her father is Guyanese-Canadian, and her mother is American, of Polish and Swedish descent. She spent her childhood in Europe (England for two years, and seven years on the island of Madeira, Portugal) and Prior Lake, Minnesota, and it is the latter she considers as home. Bunbury originally worked as a model, but then her agency suggested she try acting. She landed her first role as Kathleen in Episode #1.11388 (2010) for one episode. She also had roles in Prom (2011) and The Sitter (2011). .- Actress
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Gabrielle Union was born on October 29, 1972, in Omaha, Nebraska, to Theresa (Glass), who managed a phone company, and Sylvester E. Union, a military sergeant and business executive. When she was eight, her family moved to Pleasanton, California, where she grew up and attended high school. There, Union was an all-star point guard and a year-round athlete participating in soccer, basketball, and track. She graduated from Foothill High School (Class of 1991).
After high school, Gabrielle attended college at University of Nebraska, where she played on the soccer team; and then later transferred to Cuesta College. Eventually, she ended up at UCLA. On her way to law school, just planning on being a working stiff, things started to happen during her senior year. Gabrielle had a college internship at a L.A. modeling agency, she thought it would be an easy way to pick up some extra credits. Little did she know that clients were eyeing the help. Upon the completion of the internship, she was asked to become a client with the agency. Gabby thought of it as a great way to pay off a stack of college loans, and modeled until her agent found that she could actually act. Her first audition/job was landed without any headshots, on Saved by the Bell (1989). Since then, she has gone on to have many small but substantial film roles and has guest-starred on several hit TV shows, all before landing the role of "Dr. Courtney Ellis", on CBS' short-lived medical drama City of Angels (2000).
Although she plays parts that are opinionated and strong, Gabrielle believes that, "Hollywood needs to recognize all shades of African-American beauty." Gabrielle is a 1996 graduate of UCLA with honors in sociology.- Actress
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Logan Browning was born on 9 June 1989 in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. She is an actress and director, known for The Perfection (2018), Bratz (2007) and Powers (2015).- Actress
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Rochelle Aytes was born in New York City. She attended LaGuardia High School and graduated with a Bachelor's of Fine Arts degree in Dance from SUNY Purchase College Conservatory for Dance in 1998. She is best-known for her role in White Chicks (2004) as Denise Porter; her role in Left 4 Dead 2 (2009) as a news producer; and more recently in the TV series The Forgotten (2009) as Detective Grace Russell, who teams up with a volunteer group, including a former Chicago police detective played by Christian Slater, to solve cases of missing or unidentified homicide victims. Rochelle also played Lisa Breaux in Tyler Perry's Madea's Family Reunion (2006), in which she plays a woman who is caught in a relationship because of which which her fiancé (Blair Underwood) beats and threatens her.
In 2006, She played Nicole Jamieson in the pilot episode of Tyler Perry's House of Payne (2006). In 2007 she guest-starred in the hit Fox series Bones (2005) as Felicia Saroyan, the sister of lab supervisor Cam. She also played Leigh Barnthouse in the Fox series Drive (2007). In 2009 she played Tara Kole in the CBS TV show NCIS (2003) and had a role in the independent film Trick 'r Treat (2007). In 2010 she played Eva in the hit TNT series Dark Blue (2009). In 2011 she had a recurring role in the ABC series Detroit 1-8-7 (2010) as prosecutor Alice Williams, until her character was murdered in the 1-11-2011 episode "Key to the City." She also plays the part of Amber James, the former girlfriend of Keith Watson, on ABC's Desperate Housewives (2004).
She is represented by Ryan Daly of Zero Gravity Management.- Actress
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Lauren Keyana "Keke" Palmer was born on August 26, 1993 in Harvey, Illinois and raised in Robbins, Illinois to Sharon and Larry Palmer, both former actors. Palmer showed vocal promise as a five-year-old, when she belted out "Jesus Loves Me" in her church choir. A year later the singer-actress had a solo in her kindergarten play but, to her mom's dismay, the mike had not been adjusted to suit her daughter's height. Without missing a beat, Palmer lowered the mike and moved the crowd with her heavenly voice. At that very moment, her family knew there was something special about Keke (a nickname given to her by her sister).
Although music was still her passion, Palmer's first big break came via her acting skills, making her big-screen debut in Barbershop 2: Back in Business (2004) as Queen Latifah's niece. Immediately recognizing her star potential, the film's producers encouraged her parents to take their daughter to California to explore other acting opportunities. Relocating required that Palmer's parents leave behind the security of their jobs, a newly purchased home and uproot their other three children. However, it didn't diminish the family's support of Palmer's aspirations.
Once settled on the West Coast, Palmer did not waste any time. Within six weeks she had booked an episode of the critically acclaimed CBS series Cold Case (2003), a national K-Mart commercial and was chosen from a nationwide search to play opposite William H. Macy in a TNT movie, The Wool Cap (2004). Her performance was so amazing that it earned her a Screen Actors Guild nomination--to date, she is the youngest actress (then at age ten) ever to receive a nomination in a Lead Actress Category.
In 2006 Palmer appeared as the lead character "Akeelah Anderson" in the critically acclaimed, award-winning film Akeelah and the Bee (2006). The film, about a young South Los Angeles girl who attempts to win a national spelling bee, won the hearts of audiences everywhere. Her breakthrough performance has received praise from many film critics and organizations. Among the list of nominations received, "Akeelah and the Bee" was listed as one of NBR's 2006 Top Independent Films of the Year, as well as four nominations from the NAACP Image Awards. Palmer, alone, won an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Motion Picture, as well as Outstanding Lead Actress in a Motion Picture by the Black Movie Awards. She has also received nominations for Most Promising Newcomer by the Chicago Film Critics, Best Actress by the Black Reel Awards, and Best Young Actress by the Broadcast Film Critics Association. Keke held her own in scenes with veteran co-stars Angela Bassett and Laurence Fishburne.
That very same year, Palmer appeared in Tyler Perry's Madea's Family Reunion (2006), which was #1 at the box office for two consecutive weeks. Palmer went on to win a 2007 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture for her breakout role in "Akeelah and the Bee". She also received a ShoWest Award for Rising Star of the Year. Shortly after, Palmer lit up the small screen starring in the Disney Channel's hit movie, Jump in! (2007). This one-two punch of big-screen success coupled with small screen ratings power made Keke Palmer a household name in Hollywood.
Palmer contributed her first recording, which was featured on the "Akeelah and the Bee" soundtrack, titled "All My Girlz", and followed it up with the ever popular "My Turn Now" on the "Jump In!" soundtrack. As if two soundtracks were not enough, she was also asked to sing "Tonight", an end title song from the smash-hit Ben Stiller movie, Night at the Museum (2006). Her Atlantic Records debut album, "So Uncool", is jammed with up-tempo R&B tracks, inspirational moments, and love songs. In 2008, Palmer starred in the Weinstein Co. feature, The Longshots (2008). The film was based on the true story of a young female quarterback, played by Palmer, that makes Pop Warner history; she starred opposite Ice Cube, for first time director and Limp Bizkit front man, Fred Durst.
Palmer also starred as the title character in the hit Nickelodeon series, True Jackson, VP (2008), for 68 episodes. She played a high-school student who becomes the head of a major fashion label. In the fall of 2008, "True Jackson" bowed with over 4.8 million viewers, setting a record for Nickelodeon's largest audience for a live-action premiere. She has received four NAACP Awards for Best Actress in Children's Television for her role as "True Jackson". In 2011, Keke joined the voice cast of Nickelodeon's Winx Club (2004). She played Aisha, the Fairy of Waves. For her voice work on Winx Club, she received another NAACP Award nomination, this time for Outstanding Performance in a Youth/Children's Series or Special.
Keke starred in the movie, Abducted: The Carlina White Story (2012), for the Lifetime Network. She had a voice role in the 20th Century Fox animated film, Ice Age: Continental Drift (2012), as the character "Peaches". Her co-stars include Ray Romano, John Leguizamo, Denis Leary, Jennifer Lopez and Queen Latifah.
Palmer was seen on the big screen in the Alcon/Warner Bros movie, Joyful Noise (2012), singing alongside legendary Queen Latifah and Dolly Parton, however, it was Palmer who the critics singled out for her "young and inspiring" rendition of the Michael Jackson song, "Man in the Mirror".
Palmer resides in Los Angeles, CA.- Actress
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Jessica Lucas (born September 24th, 1985) is a Canadian actress and singer. She is known for her roles in television, such as Edgemont, Melrose Place (1992) and Cult, and in the films The Covenant (2006), Cloverfield (2008) and 2013's Evil Dead (2013). She also starred in the music video for Coldplay's 2014 single "True Love". Lucas was born and raised in Vancouver, British Columbia. She began acting at seven years old, and trained with the Children's Arts Theatre School in Toronto. She started her career appearing in stage productions, including local productions of Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs, Grease, Cinderella, Mousetrap and Music Medley.- Actress
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Rashida Jones was born in Los Angeles, California, the younger daughter of media mogul, producer, and musician Quincy Jones and actress Peggy Lipton. She has an older sister, Kidada Jones, and five half-siblings by her father's other relationships. Her father is African-American and her mother is Ashkenazi Jewish (a descendant of emigrants from Russia and Latvia). Rashida was raised in Reform Judaism. She grew up in Bel Air, Los Angeles, California. Jones has stated of her mixed race parentage, "It was the 1970s and still not that acceptable for them to be together." Jones made her professional acting debut in The Last Don, a 1997 mini-series based on the novel by Mario Puzo. Also in 1997, Rashida graduated from Harvard University.- Actress
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Sydney Tamiia Poitier (born November 15, 1973) is a Bahamian-American television and film actress.
Born in Los Angeles, Poitier is the daughter of Bahamian actor Sir Sidney Poitier and Canadian actress Joanna Shimkus. Her mother is of Lithuanian Jewish and Irish descent. She has an older sister, Anika. She also has four older half-sisters, Beverly, Pamela, Sherri, and Gina, from her father's first marriage. Poitier's great-uncle has claimed that the Poitier ancestors on her grandfather's side had migrated from Haiti and were probably part of the runaway slaves who had established maroon communities throughout the Bahamas, including Cat Island. He mentions that the surname Poitier is a French name, and there were no white Poitiers from the Bahamas.
Poitier attended NYU's Tisch School of the Arts where she earned a bachelor's degree in acting. She also studied at Stella Adler Studio of Acting.
Poitier began her career of acting in the late 1990s. In 2001, she landed her first role on television in the NBC drama series First Years. The series was canceled after three episodes. In 2003, she starred in the UPN sitcom Abby. That series was also canceled during its first season. Later that same year, she had a recurring role in Joan of Arcadia, where she played Rebecca Askew, the love interest of Joan's older brother, Kevin (Jason Ritter). She was also a regular on the first season of Veronica Mars. However, she left the show after only appearing in four episodes because of budget cuts.
In 2007, Poitier starred in Death Proof, director Quentin Tarantino's segment of the movie Grindhouse, as radio DJ Jungle Julia. The next year, she had a co-starring role in the new Knight Rider series, as FBI Agent Carrie Rivai. In 2011, she guest-starred on two episodes of Private Practice.- Actress
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Sharon Leal is a military brat. She was born in Tucson, Arizona. Sharon then moved with her parents to the Philippines, till she was 6 years old. She went to prayer-school there. Then, her parents packed up to move back to the US and settled in Fresno, California. Her mother, Angelita, who is Filipino, is a homemaker, and her father is African-American. She has a step-father, Elmer Manankil. Elmer and Angelita have a daughter, together. So, Sharon has a younger sister, Kristina Manankil.
How she got started with the desire for performing. At the age of two, Sharon sang into a microphone, and her parents taped her. This later led to acting, which she began doing in community theater productions as a teen. Sharon graduated from "Roosevelt High School of the Arts" in Fresno. In 1993, she won a vocal scholarship at the "Santa Cruz Jazz Festival", which enabled her to study with Seth Riggs (Michael Jackson's voice coach). Sharon has also performed in various rap and R&B music videos. She has sung in cabaret productions at B. Smith's, The Violet, and Steve McGraw's, all in New York City, and played teenager "Dahlia Creed" on the daytime soap opera, Guiding Light (1952), in the mid-90s. At New York Theatre Workshop: "Bright Lights, Big City". Regional credits include "Little Shop of Horrors"-Arizona Theatre Co., "Into the Woods"-Theatre Works CA and other shows like "Ain't Misbehavin", "West Side Story", "Me and My Girl" and "Nunsense", to name a few. Last performed on Broadway as "Mimi" in "Rent".- Actress
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Sanaa Lathan is an actor, director, producer, and activist, well-known for starring in such hit films as LOVE & BASKETBALL, THE BEST MAN and BEST MAN HOLIDAY, BROWN SUGAR, ALIEN VS. PREDATOR, and NAPPILY EVER AFTER.
She recently made her feature directorial debut for Paramount Pictures' ON THE COME UP, based on the New York Times best-selling novel of the same name. Premiering at the Toronto film festival to stellar reviews. Currently streaming on Paramount Plus.
Coming soon: MACRO Films' YOUNG WILD AND FREE which premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival.
She is currently starring in the 3rd season of the Emmy Award-winning HBO series Succession. For which she was nominated for an Emmy award.
Lathan can be seen starring in REPLAY, an episode of the Jordan Peele's remake of The Twilight Zoneon CBS All Access. She also stars in Showtime's The Affair and Fox's Shots Fired created by Gina Prince- Bythewood, and Rashid Johnson's Native Son on HBO.
Lathan is the voice of 'Donna Tubbs' on Fox's animated series Family Guy and The Cleveland Show, as well as the voice of 'Catwoman' in the DC animated series Harley Quinn.
On stage, Lathan was nominated for a Tony Award for her performance on Broadway in A RAISIN IN THE SUN and starred as 'Maggie the Cat' opposite James Earl Jones in the Olivier award winning revival of CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF at the Novello Theatre in London's West end.
Lathan made her directorial debut with the short film LEAP for Maven Pictures, which she shot during lock down, about a Zoom therapist who suffers from OCD and panic disorder. It premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival.
She also stars in Peacock's MAN: FINAL CHAPTERS limited series with the original cast for which she was nominated for an image award.
Later this year she will be starring in the Fox Searchlight film: SUPREMES AT EARL'S ALL YOU CAN EAT based on the book of the same name.
Her lengthy list of credits also includes Steven Soderbergh's CONTAGION, NOW YOU SEE ME 2, AMERICAN ASSASSIN and Focus feature's SOMETHING NEW.- Actress
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Zoe Saldana was born on June 19, 1978 in Passaic, New Jersey, to Asalia Nazario and Aridio Saldaña. Her father was Dominican and her mother is Puerto Rican. She was raised in Queens, New York. When she was 10 years old, she and her family moved to the Dominican Republic, where they would live for the next seven years. While living there, Zoe discovered a keen interest in performance dance and began her training at the prestigious ECOS Espacio de Danza Dance Academy where she learned ballet as well as other dance forms. Not only did her training provide an excellent outlet for the enthusiastic and energetic youngster, it would also prove to be a fortunate precursor for the start of her professional acting career. At age 17, Zoe and her family moved back to the United States where her love for dance followed and an interest in theater performance became stronger.
She began performing with the Faces theater troupe which put on plays geared to provide positive messages for teens with themes dealing with issues such as substance abuse and sex. These performances not only gave her valuable experience but also a source of great pride knowing that she was making a difference in the lives of young people like herself. While performing with the Faces troupe and also the New York Youth Theater, Zoe was recruited for a talent agency and her dance training years before coupled with her acting experience greatly helped her land her first big screen role as Eva Rodriguez, the talented and headstrong ballet dancer in the film Center Stage (2000). Since her professional career began several years ago, Zoe's talent and determination have allowed her to be involved in blockbuster films and act with major actors, actresses and industry insiders at a pace that very few young professionals have experienced.
Zoe has not only held her own in major motion picture productions but gained the respect and praise from industry insiders such as Jerry Bruckheimer and Steven Spielberg and actors/actresses such as Tom Hanks, Bernie Mac, Keira Knightley, Ashton Kutcher, Kirsten Dunst and Orlando Bloom. According to many of her co-stars, producers and directors, the sky is no limit for this young star who has incredible range, intense concentration, and a steely determination to be involved with projects that challenge her professionally with wide-ranging subject matters and characters. Just to ask practically anyone who she has worked for or with about her, glowing comments abound and earned friendships and respect are readily revealed. A star has been born, and growing every day.- Actress
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Marsha Thomason is a British television and film actress who is known for playing Sara Evers in Disney's The Haunted Mansion, Naomi Dorrit on the ABC series Lost, FBI agent Diana Berrigan on the USA Network series White Collar, Francine Bridge on Sky's Cobra and DS Jenn Townsend in ITV crime series The Bay.- Actress
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Gugu Mbatha-Raw was born Gugulethu Sophia Mbatha in the John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, England. Her father, Patrick Mbatha, is a Black South African doctor, and her mother, Anne Raw, is a Caucasian English nurse. Her parents separated when she was a year old, and she was brought up by her mother in the town of Witney, Oxfordshire (she is still close to her father). She joined the local acting group Dramascope and, from the age of eleven, appeared in the pantomime at Oxford Playhouse every year. A talented singer and dancer as well as playing the saxophone, she joined the Oxford Youth Music Theatre in her teens.
In 2001, she won a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) in London. Since graduation in 2004, she has appeared in all media, including as an acclaimed Juliet Capulet in "Romeo and Juliet" at Manchester's Royal Exchange Theatre in 2005, opposite Andrew Garfield as Romeo Montague. Mbatha-Raw was nominated for Best Actress in the Manchester Evening News Theatre Awards for her portrayal of Juliet Capulet. She also appeared as Octavia in "Antony and Cleopatra" at the same theatre in 2005. In 2009, she was cast as Ophelia in "Hamlet" on London's West End and Broadway, opposite Jude Law as the title role.
Mbatha-Raw appeared on such varied television series as Bad Girls (1999), Doctor Who (2005), Marple (2004) and Touch (2012). She had a supporting role in the romantic comedy Larry Crowne (2011), written and directed by Tom Hanks, who also played the title role. She was acclaimed for her performance of Dido Elizabeth Belle in Amma Asante's Belle (2013), which earned her a British Independent Film Award for Best Actress, and a nomination as Most Promising Newcomer. She was also nominated for a Satellite Award for Best Actress.
She starred in the romantic drama Beyond the Lights (2014) and was nominated for a Gotham Award for Best Actress for her performance. In 2015, she was nominated for a BAFTA Rising Star Award. That same year, she had a supporting role in Jupiter Ascending (2015), played Prema Mutiso, the wife of Dr. Bennet Omalu (played by Will Smith) in the biopic Concussion (2015), and the title role in Jessica Swale's play "Nell Gwynn", playing the actress who became the mistress of King Charles II of England. She was nominated for an Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Actress for her performance in the play.
She played Rachel in Newton Knight's biopic Free State of Jones (2016), directed by Gary Ross, playing Knight's common-law wife, a freedwoman he had a family with after the Civil War. She also played Esme Manucharian in Miss Sloane (2016), Sophie on Netflix's series Easy (2016), and played Kelly, one of the leads in "San Junipero", the fourth episode of Season 3 of Black Mirror (2011). Her other films are the live-action remake Beauty and the Beast (2017), playing Plumette, A Wrinkle in Time (2018), directed by Ava DuVernay, and The Cloverfield Paradox (2018).
Gugu Mbatha-Raw was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) by Queen Elizabeth II in the 2017 Birthday Honours for her services to drama.- Actress
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Antonia Thomas is an English actress. She is best known for her work in the TV series Misfits, Lovesick and the The Good Doctor.
She studied for a Bachelor of Arts in acting at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, graduating in 2009, and then joined the National Youth Theatre.
Her acting debut was in the TV movie Stanley Park (2010).- Actress
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Thandiwe Newton was born in London. She is the daughter of Zimbabwean mother Nyasha, a health-care worker from the Shona tribe, and British father Nick Newton, who worked as a lab technician. She lived in Zambia until political unrest caused her family to move back to the UK, where she lived in Cornwall (in southwest Britain) until she was 11 and enrolled in London's Art Educational School to study modern dance until a back injury forced her to quit dancing. This led to her auditioning for films. Her first role was in John Duigan's Flirting (1991). She then moved to Los Angeles, California to pursue acting. When her British accent limited the amount of work she was getting, she returned to Britain, studied at Cambridge University, and earned a degree in anthropology. Between semesters she continued acting and became noticed in in- demand for future film roles.- Actress
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Monica Raymund is best know for starring as Gabriela Dawson in NBC's drama "Chicago Fire."
A graduate of The Juilliard School, she is the recipient of the John Houseman Award for her commitment and dedication. Immediately following her graduation, she went on to star opposite Tim Roth for three seasons in "Lie to Me." During this time, she also became a founding member of The Mechanical Theatre Group, has been on faculty and co-head of the Communications Department at The Heifetz Institute and served as faculty for The Broadway Theatre Project. Raymund currently serves on the board and faculty of the Performing Arts Project, is a board member for The Hollywood Arts Organization in Los Angeles, is executive producing the independent feature "Submarine Kid", and is the Founder/President of the theatrical production company, SISU Theatrical Productions, LLC. She was a producer also on the Broadway production of "The Velocity of Autumn".
Other credits include, a lead role in director Stephen Elliott's latest feature "Happy Baby", a supporting role in the feature "Arbitrage" opposite Richard Gere, a starring role in the Sundance Lab musical production of "Like Water for Chocolate," and a recurring role on "The Good Wife." She also guest starred on the 200th episode of "Law & Order: SVU" opposite Robin Williams.
Monica won The Imagen Award this past year for leading actress in a drama.
Monica separated from her husband early 2013 and they completed their divorce in 2014.
Raymund resides in New York City.- Actress
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Paula Patton was born in Los Angeles, California, to Joyce (Vanraden) and Charles Patton. Her father is African-American and her mother, who is caucasian, has German, English, and Dutch ancestry. Her family lived across the street from the 20th Century Fox lot when she was growing up and she was a fan of films from her earliest years. Her mother, who also appreciated good films, was a schoolteacher, and her father was a lawyer. Paula claims that as a girl she would escape by "pretending to be someone else" so it was not a surprise that she acted in high school plays at Hamilton Magnet Arts High School. Her favorite role was that of "Abigail" in "The Crucible". However, she went on to study film at the University of Southern California in a summer program, and won a 3-month assignment making documentaries for PBS. This led to her working as a production assistant for TV documentaries, and also for Howie Mandel's talk show. She progressed to actually producing documentary segments for Medical Diaries (2000) airing on Discovery Health Channel. Paula now professes that she liked what she was doing, but her dream remained the same as when she was small so she took acting lessons and shifted gears to become a performer. She was almost immediately successful and, within three years, had played parts in major features, Hitch (2005) and Idlewild (2006) and the female lead in Deja Vu (2006) opposite Denzel Washington.- Actress
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- Director
In one word, Persia White is prolific. An actress, musician, producer and animal rights activist, she is best known for her lead in the popular CW series "Girlfriends." Driven by her passion to change the world, Persia co-produced the award winning documentary film "Earthlings" narrated by Joaquin Phoenix, and is involved in the series "Whale Wars" on Animal Planet. Persia is a Board Member of the Humane Society of the United States as well as the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. She is the co-founder of Echoed Images, a new production company whose mission is to create conscious, world-changing media.
Puerto Rican, African-American and Irish, Persia was born in south Florida. As begins the biography of many an artist, Persia spent he first two months of her life in a musical instrument case; in this instance: an upright bass case. Her mother was a compassionate schoolteacher, writer and civil-rights activist and moved the family to the Bahamas for work. Persia's early life was enmeshed with lush tropical landscapes, multi-cultural exposure and Reggae. When Persia was eight the family moved back to the United States and settled in Miami, FL. It's here that Persia began her acting career. Already an accomplished ballet dancer, Persia knew she wanted to try theater. While walking down the street with her mother, Persia was spotted by a talent scout for the now world-renown Coconut Grove Children's Theater. Upon seeing her, the scout asked, "Are you an actress?" Persia immediately said, "Yes!" She has been a non-stop performer since that day, delving into musical theater, new forms of dance, acting, modeling, singing, playing instruments and even branching out into painting, a passion of her's to this day.
Persia actually intended to be a singer before an actress. When she moved to Los Angeles, she turned down several album deals due to the lack of creative control offered in the contracts. Persia explains, "When I make music I want it to be honest and to be me. I wanted to wait and do it the way I felt it should be in my heart." She focused on building her acting career, and garnered the role she is most known for, Lynn Searcy on The CW's "Girlfriends," Girlfriends was the #1 TV show of in African American homes for over 8 years as well as a leading show all women ages 14-42. She also has a repertoire of guest star credits from some of the most popular shows on television, as well as leads in feature films. In 2010, Persia will star in "Spoken Word," directed by Victor Nunez. Through this, Persia still developed her music on the backburner. She has worked with great artists such as Gary Wallis of Pink Floyd, Dominique Miller of Sting, Jerome Dillon of Nine Inch Nails, and Big Bio of Outcast, as well as written soundtrack music for three Independent films and three songs for the Girlfriends soundtrack. On October 25, 2009, her birthday, Persia debuted her first solo album MECCA, a sprawling, twelve track journey, combining a number of genres, including electronica and trip-hop and including elements of blues and prog-rock. The album features collaborations with ex-fiancé Saul Williams, Tricky and Ric Alien. The overall album was produced by Persia herself, mixed by the legendary Dave Way and mastered by (BigBass) Brian Gardner.
Persia's success as an artist and public figure are all fueled by the desire to make change in the world. A passionate animal rights activist since she was twelve, Persia has devoted her life to raising the consciousness of the public on issues of animal cruelty. As an artist, as an advocate and as a person, Persia strives to reach further and deeper and bring all that she finds to light.- Daphne Duplaix was born on 18 August 1976 in New York City, New York, USA. She is an actress, known for One Life to Live (1968), Lost & Found (1999) and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2000). She has been married to Grady Heiberg since 28 June 2014. They have one child. She was previously married to Ron Samuel.