Mahershala Ali
Two-time Academy Award-winning American actor celebrated for transformative performances across film and television spanning more than two decades.
What do we know about Mahershala Ali?
Here are the key biographical details about Mahershala Ali:
- Name: Mahershala Ali
- Also Known As: Mahershalalhashbaz Ali, Mahershala Karim-Ali, 마허샬라 알리, Махершала Али, Hershal Gilmore, Mahershalalhashbaz Gilmore, Магершала Алі, マハーシャラルハズバズ・アリ, ماهرشالا علی, مهرشالا علی
- Date of Birth: February 16, 1974
- Place of Birth: Oakland, California, USA
- Gender: Male
- Job Title: Actor
- Crew Jobs: Thanks, Executive Producer, Producer
Who is Mahershala Ali?
Mahershala Ali (/məˈhɜːrʃələ/ mə-HUR-shə-lə; born Mahershalalhashbaz Gilmore on February 16, 1974) is an American actor. He has received multiple accolades, including two Academy Awards, a British Academy Film Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Primetime Emmy Award. Time magazine named him one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2019, and in 2020, The New York Times ranked him among the 25 greatest actors of the 21st century.
After pursuing an MFA degree from New York University, Ali began his career as a regular on television series Crossing Jordan (2001–02) and Threat Matrix (2003–04), before his breakthrough role as Richard Tyler in the science fiction series The 4400 (2004–07). His first major film role was in the David Fincher-directed fantasy The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008). He gained wider attention for supporting roles in the final two films of the original The Hunger Games film series and in House of Cards, for which he received his first Primetime Emmy Award nomination.
Ali won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performances as a drug dealer in the drama Moonlight (2016) and as Don Shirley in the comedy-drama Green Book (2018). He is the first Black actor to win two Academy Awards in the same category and the second Black actor to win multiple acting Oscars. Ali won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Children's Program for executive producing We Are the Dream: The Kids of the Oakland MLK Oratorical Fest (2020).
In 2019, he played a troubled police officer in the third season of the HBO anthology crime series True Detective, and in 2020, he starred in the second season of the Hulu comedy-drama series Ramy. He was nominated for Primetime Emmy Awards for both performances. Ali has also played Cornell "Cottonmouth" Stokes in the first season of the Netflix series Luke Cage (2016) and voiced Aaron Davis in the animated films Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023).
What is Mahershala Ali known for?
With over 69 credits, Mahershala Ali's most celebrated performances include:
- Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018, Movie)
- The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1 (2014, Movie)
- The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008, Movie)
- The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2 (2015, Movie)
- Green Book (2018, Movie)
- Hidden Figures (2016, Movie)
- Alita: Battle Angel (2019, Movie)
- Eternals (2021, Movie)
- Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023, Movie)
- Moonlight (2016, Movie)
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