Actor Chiwetel Ejiofor photo by NASA/Bill Ingalls-Wikimedia

Top 10 Facts about Chiwetel Ejiofor


 

Chiwetel means God’s gift or God sent in the Igbo language. He is a writer, actor, and director who came to the limelight for his role as Solomon Northup in 12 Years a Slave.

He has performed as a major character in known movies such as; Lola in Kinky Boots, Darryl Peabody in Salt, and Try well Kamkwamba in the boy who harnessed the wind.

Apart from winning awards, he is also known for his philanthropic acts. He actively participated in the UNHCR campaign of helping raise awareness of the global refugee crisis. Here are the top 10 facts about Chiwetel Ejiofor.

1. He has a well-rounded family

 Chiwetel was born in Forest Gate, London, United Kingdom on 10 July 1977. He is one of 4 children born to his father, Arinze, a doctor, and his mother, Obiajulu, a pharmacist.

They were both Nigerian immigrants, who moved to London to escape the 1960s Biafran war. He has two sisters, Aisha, a CNN news anchor, Kandibe, a medical doctor, and a brother who works in Fashion.

2. He was involved in a terrible car accident

At the age of 11 years, Chiwetel accompanied his father to Lagos, Nigeria to attend a wedding. Unfortunately, the car they were traveling in was hit by a truck which left him with fractures, scars, a coma at the time, and his father, dead. He carries a visible scar which is evident on his face.

3 .He has discontinued his studies  and pursued acting 

He began his early education at Dulwich College Preparatory School. His passion for acting was evident by this age. 

Chiwetel was known to be very active in school plays and played the gravedigger in Hamlet, by William Shakespeare which affirmed his passion and talent.

He joined Dulwich College, and proceeded to the National Youth Theatre and later the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art on a scholarship. After a year of study, he was selected for his first big screen role in Steven Spielberg’s movie Amistad.

He discontinued his studies and started pursuing his acting career. This gave him a great chance to penetrate the Hollywood scene.

In the movie, Ejiofor acted as James Covey. His performance was so good that he got noticed and applauded for it. He immediately got an opportunity to star in the movie GMT- Greenwich Mean Time.

4. He has acted in several movies and series

Chiwetel Ejiofor speaking at the 2016 San Diego Comic-Con International in San Diego photo by Gage Skidmore-Wikimedia

In 2000 he played his first movie lead role in It was an accident as Nicky Burkett. He proceeded and played Thabo Mbeki in Endgame. In 2002 he played Okwe in Dirty Pretty Things which won him the British Independent Film Award as the best actor for his spectacular performance in his role. 

Ejiofor played Luke in Children of menHe starred as Lola in Kinky boots in 2005. He played Adrian in Roland Emmerich. In 2013 he acted as Solomon Northup in 12 years a slave, a role that became a great turning point for him as he won an academy award nomination for best actor.

In 2015, he acted as Vincent Kapoor in the science fiction movie The Martian. He played Kamkwamba in the boy who harnessed the windChiwetel starred as Victor in Four brothers. He played Darryl in Salt, Karl Mordo in Doctor Strange in 2016and Alex Mpondo in Red Dust in 2004.

He played Ashley Carter in the legal drama series Trust in 2003. He starred as Augustus in The Darker Face of Earth in 2003, and in 2005 he played the operative in the science fiction movie Serenity.  He is the voice behind Scar in Lion King and Dr. Watson in Sherlock Gnomes.

5.He has won several awards

Tilda Swinton, Rachel McAdams, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Mads Mikkelsen photo by Gage Skidmore-Wikimedia

Chiwetel Ejiofor has been recognized internationally for his acting talent. Some of the awards he has won and been acknowledged for include; the British Independent Film Award for best actor in Dirty Pretty Things.

 He acted in the British play, Blue/Orange and won a theatre award for an outstanding newcomer. He won the ‘Jack Tinker Award for Most Promising Newcomer in the play Romeo.

He was applauded for his role in the movies Red Dust and Serenity. He was nominated for a ‘Golden Globe Award as well as the BAFTA Orange Rising Star award for his role in the movie Kinky Boots. Ejiofor received the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor, for Othello. He won an Academy Award for best actor in 12 Years a Slave.

6.He has a net worth of $ 16 million

 Chiwetel’s net worth is approximately $ 16 million. His annual income is approximately $2- $3 million. His primary source of income is from acting, producing, and directing films.

7.His name has been considered hard to pronounce by many

Chiwetel Ejiofor at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival photo by gdcgraphics-Wikimedia

 Chiwetel was nicknamed Duracell in high school because he was considered the guy with a funny hard name to pronounce. Today he has gotten the hang of his name being mispronounced. A guide to pronouncing his name CHEW-weh-tell EDGE-ee-oh-fore.

8.He has an active dating life

Chiwetel’s dating life is not as flourishing as his acting career. He has not married nor does he have a child. He dated Naomie Harris an English actress, from 2000 to 2007.

They both star in the movie The man who fell to earth. She has acted in other prominent movies like Pirates of the Caribbean and Moonlight.

 He later dated Lupita Nyong’o who was a co-actor in 12 Years a Slave. Their dating lasted for a year before he proceeded to date Sari Mercer an actress, model, and musician from Vancouver, Canada famously known for her role in the movies Flora, Timeless, and Forgotten Man. He is currently in a romantic relationship with Frances Aaternir an Australian model.

9.He was appointed officer of the order of the British empire

In 2008, Queen Elizabeth II appointed him an officer of the order of the British Empire for his service and contributions to the arts. Later on, in 2015, he was elevated to the position of commander of the order of the British Empire in the Queen’s Birthday Honors by the Duke of Cambridge at Buckingham.

10.He was a philanthropist

Chiwetel Ejiofor photo by Gage Skidmore-Wikimedia

 Chiwetel is a philanthropist and has participated in several charity projects. He was awarded the Global Promise Award for his social work by Geanco Foundation, a lifesaving program to fight anemia in Nigeria. in 2016, he participated in a campaign run by UNHCR to create awareness about the global refugee crisis.

 

 

 

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