Carmen Ejogo
Ejogo in 2019
Born
Carmen Elizabeth Ejogo

(1973-10-22) 22 October 1973
Kensington, London, England
Occupation(s)Actress, singer
Years active1986–present
Spouses
​
​
(m. 1998; div. 1998)​
    ​
    ​
    (m. 2000; div. 2014)​
    Children2
    RelativesCharles Ejogo (brother)

    Carmen Elizabeth Ejogo (/ɪˈdʒoʊɡoʊ/; born 22 October 1973)[1][2] is a British actress and singer. She is best known for her roles in such films as Metro (1997), Love's Labour's Lost (2000), What's the Worst That Could Happen? (2001), Boycott (2001), Away We Go (2009), Sparkle (2012), Alex Cross (2012), The Purge: Anarchy (2014), Selma (2014), Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016), It Comes at Night (2017), Alien: Covenant (2017), and Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018).

    Ejogo also starred in the NBC crime drama series Kidnapped (2006–2007), the ABC thriller series Zero Hour (2013), the Starz anthology drama series The Girlfriend Experience (2017), the HBO anthology crime series True Detective (2019), the Netflix limited series Self Made (2020), and Showtime series Your Honor (2021) opposite Bryan Cranston.

    She appeared in the Boots Riley show, I'm a Virgo for Amazon.[3]

    Early life

    Ejogo was born on 22 October 1973 in Kensington, London, England. She is the daughter of a Scottish mother, Elizabeth (née Douglas), and a Nigerian father, Charles Ejogo[4].[5][6] Ejogo remembers her mother as having been "a bit of a hippie" during her childhood.[7] She attended the Oratory Roman Catholic Primary School and Glendower Preparatory School, and was then educated at Godolphin and Latymer School.

    Career

    She began her career as host of the Saturday Disney morning show from 1993 to 1995. Her film credits include Love's Labour's Lost (2000), What's the Worst That Could Happen? (2001), Away We Go (2009), Sparkle (2012), Alex Cross (2012), The Purge: Anarchy (2014), It Comes at Night (2017), and Alien: Covenant (2017). She is also known for her role as Seraphina Picquery in the Fantastic Beasts film series. She plays Amelia Reardon in the HBO series True Detective (2019).

    Ejogo has appeared as civil rights activist Coretta Scott King in two films: Boycott (2001) and Selma (2014). While preparing for the role in Boycott, she met with King[8] and was given King's blessing for her portrayal.[9]

    Music career

    Ejogo has been involved in the music industry, having collaborated with several artists since the 1990s. She presented The Carmen Ejogo Video Show, her own video show on BSB's Power Station channel.

    She wrote and sang lead vocals on the song "Candles" by English drum 'n' bass DJ Alex Reece—she appeared in the music video and is listed in the production credits as "Carmen". Ejogo also sang vocals and duets with ex-husband Tricky on a song called "Slowly". She sang vocals for the film Love's Labour's Lost (2000).

    Aside from "Candles", Ejogo appears on four songs of the Sparkle original soundtrack album from the movie of the same name, singing lead on "Yes I Do" (as a solo), and lead vocals with Jordin Sparks and Tika Sumpter singing backup on "Jump", "Hooked on Your Love" and "Something He Can Feel". She also starred as Rose Angelina in Catherine Cookson's Colour Blind.

    Personal life

    Ejogo was briefly married to trip-hop artist Tricky.[10] In 2000, she married American actor Jeffrey Wright, whom she met while making the HBO film Boycott. They have a son, Elijah (born on June 8, 1999), and a daughter, Juno (born on April 14, 2004).[11][12][13] Ejogo and Wright have since divorced.[14]

    Filmography

    Film

    Year Title Role Notes
    1986 Absolute Beginners Carmen
    1997 Metro Ronnie Tate
    1998 I Want You Amber
    The Avengers Brenda
    2000 Love's Labour's Lost Maria
    2001 Perfume Chloe
    What's the Worst That Could Happen? Amber Belhaven
    Boycott Coretta Scott King
    2004 Noel Dr. Matthew Batiste
    2007 The Brave One Jackie
    2008 Pride and Glory Tasha
    2009 Away We Go Grace De Tessant
    2012 Sparkle Tammy "Sister" Anderson
    Alex Cross Maria Cross
    2014 The Purge: Anarchy Eva
    Selma Coretta Scott King
    2015 Born to Be Blue Jane / Elaine
    2016 Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them President Seraphina Picquery
    2017 It Comes at Night Sarah
    Alien: Covenant Karine Oram
    Roman J. Israel, Esq. Maya
    2018 Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald President Seraphina Picquery
    2019 Rattlesnake Katrina Ridgeway
    2022 Forty Winks Nina Sherman
    2024 Goodrich Post-production
    TBA Harvest Moon TBA Post-production

    Television

    Year Title Role Notes
    1996 Cold Lazarus Blinda 4 episodes
    1998 Catherine Cookson's Colour Blind Rose Angela 2 episodes
    Tube Tales Girl 1 episode
    2000 Sally Hemings: An American Scandal Sally Hemings Television film
    2001 Boycott Coretta Scott King Television film
    2005 Lackawanna Blues Alean Hudson Television film
    2006–2007 Kidnapped Turner Main role, 13 episodes
    2008 Law & Order April Lannen 1 episode
    2011 CHAOS Fay Carson Main role, 13 episodes
    2013 Zero Hour Rebecca "Beck" Riley Main role, 13 episodes
    2017 The Girlfriend Experience Bria Jones Recurring role, 7 episodes
    2019 True Detective Amelia Reardon Main role, 8 episodes
    2020 Self Made Addie Miniseries, 4 episodes
    2020–2021 Your Honor Lee Delamere Main role, 9 episodes
    2023 The Crowded Room Patricia Richards Miniseries, 3 episodes
    2023 I'm a Virgo Lafrancine Main role, 7 episodes
    TBA The Penguin TBA Upcoming miniseries

    Video games

    Year Title Voice role
    2016 Lego Dimensions Seraphina Picquery

    Awards and nominations

    Association Year Category Nominated work Result
    Black Reel Awards 2001 Best Actress, Network/Cable Sally Hemings: An American Scandal Nominated
    2006 Best Supporting Actress, Television Lackawanna Blues Won
    2015 Best Supporting Actress, Motion Picture Selma Won
    2018 It Comes at Night Nominated
    Best Supporting Actress, TV Movie/Limited Series The Girlfriend Experience Nominated
    2019 True Detective Nominated
    2020 Self Made Nominated
    Canadian Screen Awards 2016 Best Actress Born to Be Blue Nominated
    Georgia Film Critics Association 2015 Best Acting Ensemble Selma Nominated
    Independent Spirit Awards 2015 Best Supporting Female Selma Nominated
    NAACP Image Awards 2002 Outstanding Actress in a TV Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special Boycott Nominated
    2006 Lackawanna Blues Nominated
    2015 Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture Selma Won
    San Diego Film Critics Society 2014 Best Acting Ensemble Selma Nominated
    Washington DC Area Film Critics Association 2014 Best Acting Ensemble Selma Nominated

    References

    1. ↑ Family Search. Retrieved 11/22/14.
    2. ↑ "Birth Registration Details", Ancestry.co.uk (retrieved 19 July 2009).
    3. ↑ Andreeva, Nellie (22 February 2022). "I'm a Virgo: Brett Gray, Kara Young, Allius Barnes, Olivia Washington, Mike Epps & Carmen Ejogo Join Prime Video Series". Deadline. Retrieved 18 June 2022.
    4. ↑ Trybe, City (17 October 2023). "5 Prominent Global Figures with Nigerian Roots". Trybe City. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
    5. ↑ "A Gran Day Out" CumnockChronicle.com, 24 June 2009 (retrieved 19 July 2009).
    6. ↑ "Carmen Ejogo", Global News, 16 March
    7. ↑ Rich, Katey; "Interview: Away We Go's Carmen Ejogo" Archived 9 June 2020 at the Wayback Machine CinemaBlend.com, 2 June 2009 (retrieved 19 July 2009).
    8. ↑ Juliet Izon, accessed 12/5/14 "Carmen Ejogo Talks Playing Coretta Scott King in 'Selma'", Los Angeles Confidential.
    9. ↑ Levy, Emanuel; "Selma: The Women’s Civil Rights Story", EmanuelLevy.com, 24 December 2014 (retrieved 29 December 2014).
    10. ↑ Kitty (10 October 1999). "Tricky biography". Moon-palace.de. Retrieved 11 April 2017.
    11. ↑ "Actor Jeffrey Wright And Family". Bckonline.com. 31 August 2009. Retrieved 11 April 2017.
    12. ↑ "Carmen Ejogo: 'There's some kind of trauma at play'", The Independent, 4 September 2009 (retrieved 2 July 2015).
    13. ↑ "Carmen, Elijah & Juno Wright" alittlemuse.com, 7 September 2011 (retrieved 2 July 2015).
    14. ↑ Zahed, Ramin; "'Selma' allows Carmen Ejogo to play Coretta Scott King a second time", LATimes.com, 18 December 2014 (retrieved 26 December 2014).
    Wikiquote has quotations related to Carmen Ejogo.
    This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.