Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (/ˌædeɪˈwɑːleɪ ˌækɪˈnuːeɪ ɑːˈbɑːdʒeɪ/; born 22 August 1967) is an English actor, director, and former fashion model known for his roles as Lock-Nah in The Mummy Returns, Nykwana Wombosi in The Bourne Identity, Heavy Duty in G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, Kurse in Thor: The Dark World, Killer Croc in Suicide Squad, Mr. Eko in Lost, Malko in the fifth season of the HBO series Game of Thrones,[1] and Dave Duerson in the NFL biopic drama Concussion.[2]

Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje
Akinnuoye-Agbaje at the Thor: The Dark World premiere in October 2013
Born	(1967-08-22) 22 August 1967 (age 55) Islington, London, England
Nationality	United Kingdom Nigeria
Other names	Adewalé, Triple A
Alma mater	King's College London University of London International Programme
Occupation	Actor, director, fashion model, producer, writer
Years active	1994–present

Akinnuoye-Agbaje's feature directorial debut, Farming,[3] wrapped production in 2017[4] and had its world premiere at the 2018 Toronto International Film Festival.[5]

Early life and education

Akinnuoye-Agbaje was born in Islington, London, to Nigerian parents of Yoruba origin, who were students in the UK. When he was six weeks old, his biological parents gave him up to a white working-class family in Tilbury, Essex.[3][6] His foster parents had at least ten African children, including Akinnuoye-Agbaje's two sisters, living in their house at certain points. His foster father made a living as a lorry driver and struggled to support the family financially.[7]

When he was eight years old, his biological parents brought him back to Nigeria but, as he was unable to speak the Yoruba language and unable to assimilate, he was returned to Tilbury shortly thereafter. The brief exposure to Nigeria left him struggling to reconcile his heritage with the distinctly British culture and environment he was raised in. As a young boy, he was subject to constant racial abuse in the white neighborhood he grew up. After constant physical attacks by local skinheads, he earned their respect by standing up to them and eventually aligned forces with them. At 16 years old, his birth parents sent him to a boarding school in Surrey where he ultimately attempted suicide before coming to terms with his background and turning his life around.[7]

He went on to earn his Bachelor's from the University of London at large and subsequently a Master's in Law from the prestigious King's College London. While a university student, Akinnuoye-Agbaje worked in a clothes shop where he was introduced to the world of modelling. On March 17, 2017, he was awarded an Honorary PhD by Princess Anne, Chancellor of the University of London.

Career

Akinnuoye-Agbaje's modelling career led him to Hollywood, where he began his acting career with a 1995 role in Congo.[7]

His best-known acting roles have been as the imposing convict Simon Adebisi in the 1990s HBO prison series Oz and as Mr. Eko on ABC's survivor drama Lost.[7] Film roles include The Bourne Identity, in which he played a deposed African dictator, Hitu the police officer in Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls, Lock-Nah in The Mummy Returns, and Heavy Duty in G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra.[8] He was also featured in the video for singer-songwriter Grayson Hugh's hit "Talk It Over", which was in heavy rotation in 1989 on MTV and VH-1.

In 2009, Akinnuoye-Agbaje was in talks with Marvel Studios to play the superhero Black Panther in a proposed film of the same name. In an interview, he stated his excitement about the possibility, saying that "the timing is so right" for a black superhero, and "while I'm in my prime, this is the time... I'm going to keep knocking on their door." In 2014 Marvel did announce a Black Panther film, though with Chadwick Boseman in the title role.[9]

He guest starred in the second episode of season 8 of Monk, and played Derek Jameson in the 2011 film The Thing.[10] He portrayed Kurse in the Marvel Studios film Thor: The Dark World.[11] He portrayed the character Malko in the fifth season of Game of Thrones.[1][12] In 2015 it was reported that Akinnuoye-Abaje voices the lead character of Bilal, a film about the life of Bilal Ibn Rabah set to be released in the second half of the year.[13] In 2016, he co-starred in the DC Comics film Suicide Squad, as the Batman villain Killer Croc.[14]

Directing career

In 2012, Akinnuoye-Agbaje stated that he had been developing a film about his life story, which he also planned to direct.[15] The film is called Farming, in reference to the practise of Nigerian parents "farming out" their children to white UK families. In May 2017, he announced that casting on the film had begun with Damson Idris in the lead role as Enitan, Kate Beckinsale playing his abusive, neglectful foster mother and Gugu Mbatha-Raw as his teacher and mentor. The film went on to win the prestigious Michael Powell Award at the Edinburgh Film Festival for Best British Feature and Best Performance in a British Feature for Idris. [6][16]

Personal life

Akinnuoye-Agbaje lives in Los Angeles. He is a Nichiren Buddhist[17] and a member of the Soka Gakkai International Buddhist association.[18]

Akinnuoye-Agbaje asked to be written off Lost, citing a desire to return to London after his foster parents' deaths and to direct a film there.[19] He is a supporter of Arsenal F.C.[20]

Filmography

Film

Television

Music videos

• "Talk It Over" – Grayson Hugh (1989)
• "Jealousy" – Pet Shop Boys (1991)
• "Giving Him Something He Can Feel" – En Vogue (1992)
• "Love No Limit" – Mary J. Blige (1993)
• "I Want It All Night Long" – Heather Hunter (1993)
• "You Don't Love Me (No, No, No)" – Dawn Penn (1994)

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje.

Wikiquote has quotations related to Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje.

Listen to this article (2 minutes)

This audio file was created from a revision of this article dated 25 June 2006 (2006-06-25), and does not reflect subsequent edits.

(Audio help · More spoken articles)

• Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje on Twitter
• Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje at IMDb
• Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje interview on Tavis Smiley

На других языках

[de] Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje

[es] Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje

[ru] Акиннуойе-Агбадже, Адевале