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Mahershala Ali

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Mahershala Ali
Ali at the 2016 Toronto
International Film Festival
Born
Mahershalalhashbaz Gilmore

(1974-02-16) February 16, 1974 (age 50)
Oakland, California, U.S.
Other namesMahershala Karim-Ali
EducationSaint Mary's College, California (BA)
New York University (MFA)
OccupationActor
Years active2001–present
Spouse
Amatus-Sami Karim
​
(m. 2013)​
Children1
AwardsFull list

Mahershalalhashbaz Ali (born February 16, 1974), known professionally as Mahershala Ali /məˈhɜːrʃələ/, is an American actor and rapper. Ali began his career as a regular on television series, such as Crossing Jordan and Threat Matrix, before his breakthrough role as Richard Tyler in the science fiction series The 4400.

His first major film release was in the 2008 David Fincher-directed romantic fantasy drama film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, and his other notable films include Predators, Moonlight, The Place Beyond the Pines, Free State of Jones, Hidden Figures, and as Boggs in The Hunger Games series. Ali is also known for his roles in the Netflix series House of Cards as Remy Danton and as Cornell "Cottonmouth" Stokes in Marvel's Luke Cage.

For his performance as Juan in the drama film Moonlight (2016), Ali received universal acclaim from critics and won the Academy Award, the SAG Award and the Critics' Choice Award for Best Supporting Actor, and also received Golden Globe and BAFTA Award nominations. His win at the 89th Academy Awards made him the first Muslim actor to win an Oscar for acting.[1] He won the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor for portraying Don Shirley in the comedy-drama Green Book (2018).

Early life and education

Ali was born Mahershalalhashbaz Gilmore in 1974, in Oakland, California, the son of Willicia and Phillip Gilmore. He was raised in Hayward, California.[2] His father was an actor who appeared on Broadway.[3] He attended St. Mary's College of California (SMC) in Moraga, where he graduated in 1996 with a degree in mass communication.

Though Ali entered SMC with a basketball scholarship, he became disenchanted with the idea of a sports career because of the treatment given to the team's athletes. Ali developed an interest in acting, particularly after taking part in a staging of Spunk that later landed him an apprenticeship at the California Shakespeare Theater following graduation. Following a sabbatical year where Ali worked for Gavin Report, he enrolled in New York University's graduate acting program, earning his master's degree in 2000.[2]

Ali is an Ahmadi Muslim. He is named after Maher-shalal-hash-baz, a biblical prophetic-name child. Raised Christian by his mother, an ordained minister,[3][4] he later converted to Islam, changing his surname from Gilmore to Ali, and joined the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community - a revivalist movement within Islam.[5][6][7]

Career

Acting

Ali in 2010

Ali was known professionally by his full name, Mahershalalhashbaz Ali, until 2010, when he began to be credited as Mahershala Ali.[2][8] Ali had considered shortening his name for a while, saying that using his full first name was "a crazy thing to do considering that we're in Hollywood", although he had never been pressured by managers or agents to change it.[8] What persuaded him to use a shorter version of his first name was being told that his full name was too long to fit on the poster for The Place Beyond the Pines, and not liking the alternative of "M. Ali" appearing on the poster, Ali changed it.[8] He elaborated in an interview to Vanity Fair in October 2016: "I think if you have any desire to be a leading man or to really carry some of these stories, there's this relationship that has to be cultivated with an audience. People have to be able to say your name. I didn't want a couple of syllables to get in the way of me having the fullest experience as an actor."[8]

He is known for his portrayal of Remy Danton in the Netflix series House of Cards, Cornell Stokes in Marvel's Luke Cage, Colonel Boggs in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2, and Tizzy in the 2008 film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

His first major film release was in the 2008 David Fincher-directed romantic fantasy drama film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, and his other notable films include Predators, The Place Beyond the Pines, Free State of Jones, Hidden Figures, and as Boggs in The Hunger Games series.

For his performance as mentor and drug dealer Juan in the drama film Moonlight (2016), Ali received universal acclaim from critics and won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, the SAG Award and the Critics' Choice Award for Best Supporting Actor, and received a Golden Globe and a BAFTA Award nomination. His win at the 89th Academy Awards made him the first Muslim actor to win an Oscar.[1]

In 2017, it was reported that Ali would star in the third season of the HBO series True Detective as Arkansas State Police detective Wayne Hays.[9] During the year, Ali joined the video game Madden NFL 18's story mode Longshot, in which he played Cutter Wade, the father of protagonist Devin.[10][11]

Rapping

Ali was signed to Bay Area recording label Hieroglyphics Imperium during the late 2000s and recorded music as Prince Ali.[12] He released his album, Curb Side Service, in 2007 but did not tour to promote the album, choosing instead to focus on his acting career.[13]

Personal life

Ali is an Ahmadi Muslim.[5][7] He named his cat Nas, after the musician.[3] He is married to Amatus-Sami Karim,[14] with whom he has a daughter.[15]

Discography

Studio albums

  • Curb Side Service (2007)

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
2003 Making Revolution Mac Laslow
2008 Umi's Heart Ezra Short film
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Tizzy Weathers
2009 Crossing Over Detective Strickland
2010 Predators Mombasa
2012 The Place Beyond the Pines Kofi Kancam
2013 Go for Sisters Dez
2014 Supremacy Deputy Rivers
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 Boggs
2015 The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2
2016 Kicks Marlon
Gubagude Ko Ochoro Short film
Free State of Jones Moses Washington
Moonlight Juan
Hidden Figures Jim Johnson
2017 Roxanne Roxanne Cross
2018 Green Book Don Shirley
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse Aaron Davis / The Prowler Voice
2019 Alita: Battle Angel Vector Post-production

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2001–02 Crossing Jordan Dr. Trey Sanders 19 episodes
2002 Haunted Alex Dalcour Episode: "Abby"
2002 NYPD Blue Rashard Coleman Episode: "Das Boots"
2003 CSI: Crime Scene Investigation Tombs' Security Guard Episode: "Lucky Strike"
2003 The Handler — Episode: "Big Stones"
2003–04 Threat Matrix Jelani Harper 15 episodes
2004–07 The 4400 Richard Tyler 28 episodes
2009 Lie to Me Det. Don Hughes Episode: "Do No Harm"
2009 Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Mark Foster Episode: "Unstable"
2010 The Wronged Man Calvin Willis Television film
2010 All Signs of Death Gabe Unsold TV pilot
2011 Lights Out Death Row Reynolds Episode: "Unaired Pilot"
2011–12 Treme Anthony King 6 episodes
2011–12 Alphas Nathan Clay 12 episodes
2012 Alcatraz Clarence Montgomery Episode: "Clarence Montgomery"
2013–16 House of Cards Remy Danton 33 episodes
2016 Marvel's Luke Cage Cornell "Cottonmouth" Stokes 6 episodes
2017 Comrade Detective Coach Voice; Episode: "Two Films for One Ticket"
2018 Room 104 Franco Episode: "Shark"
2019 True Detective Wayne Hays

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Crum, Maddie (February 26, 2017). "Mahershala Ali Becomes The First Muslim Actor To Win An Oscar". The Huffington Post. Retrieved February 27, 2017.
  2. ^ a b c Ali, Mahershala (October 22, 2011). "Mahershala Ali ('96)". Saint Mary's College of California. Retrieved December 14, 2016.
  3. ^ a b c Viera, Bené. "Mahershala Ali Quit House of Cards and Became Marvel's New Villain". GQ. Archived from the original on January 6, 2017. Retrieved January 6, 2017. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ Mic. "Who is Mahershala Ali's wife? How Amatus-Sami Karim helped him convert to Islam". Retrieved February 27, 2017.
  5. ^ a b "Will Mahershala Ali be the first Muslim actor to win an Oscar?". February 21, 2017. Retrieved February 26, 2017.
  6. ^ "Moonlight's Mahershala Ali: anti-Islam prejudice 'not a shock' if you have grown up black". Guardian. February 21, 2017. Retrieved February 26, 2017.
  7. ^ a b "By the Dawns Early Light: Short Stories by American Converts to Islam" (PDF). alislam.org. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 2, 2013. Retrieved 2010-08-04. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  8. ^ a b c d Desta, Yohana (October 20, 2016). "Mahershala Ali Is Everywhere—and He's Only Getting Started". Vanity Fair. Retrieved December 14, 2016.
  9. ^ Wagmeister, Elizabeth (2017-07-01). "Mahershala Ali in Early Discussions to Join HBO's 'True Detective' Season 3". Variety. Retrieved 2017-07-12.
  10. ^ Carter, Chris (June 10, 2017). "Madden is getting a story mode with Mahershala Ali". Destructoid. Retrieved September 7, 2017.
  11. ^ Smith, Joel (August 22, 2017). "Madden NFL 18's Longshot Proves to Be a Real Touchdown". Operation Sports. Retrieved August 27, 2017.
  12. ^ "'Moonlight' Oscar-Winner Mahershala Ali Used to Be a Rapper".
  13. ^ http://hiphopdx.com, HipHopDX -. "Tajai Of Souls Of Mischief Talks Mahershala Ali's Days As A Rapper Signed To Hiero Imperium". Retrieved March 1, 2017. {{cite web}}: External link in |last= (help)
  14. ^ "Actor Mahershala Ali: Wondering Who is This Actor Married to? Wife, Girlfriend or Gay?". Liverampup. Retrieved October 23, 2016.[unreliable source?]
  15. ^ "Mahershala Ali welcomes first child with wife Amatus Sami-Karim". USA Today. Retrieved March 21, 2017. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
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