Carmen Ejogo

 

Birthday: 1974, London, England, UK

Height: Height Not Available

Biography

Carmen Ejogo grew up in London. She began her acting career in the UK working with directors such as Micheal Winterbottom and Kenneth Brannagh. She broke through to international acclaim in 1997, as Eddie Murphy's on screen paramour in the the movie Metro. Later, Ejogo disclosed the full extent of her dramatic range with a skilled portrayal of Sally Hemings - Thomas Jefferson's mistress - in the acclaimed television miniseries Sally Hemings: An American Scandal (2000). She has since worked on numerous movies the US, and has done exemplary supporting work in such pictures as 

Born and raised in London, Ejogo is the daughter of Charles and Elizabeth Ejogo née Douglas.^[3] Her father was Nigerian and her mother was Scottish.^[4] During her childhood, Ejogo remembers her mother as being "a bit of a hippie".^[5] Her younger brother is also named Charles Ejogo.^[6][7] She attended the Oratory Primary Roman Catholic primary school in Chelsea until 1984.

Ejogo's television career began in the UK in the early 1990s, where she presented the children's series Saturday Disney. Subsequently, she has had an acting career in the US. She has appeared in Metro with Eddie Murphy, What's the Worst That Could Happen? with Martin Lawrence, and Love's Labour's Lost with Kenneth Branagh, among other films, and also presented The Carmen Ejogo Video Show — her own video show on BSB's Power Station channel. She starred as Thomas Jefferson's slave mistress in the television drama Sally Hemmings: An American Scandal and also as Sister Anderson in the remake version of the cult classic original film Sparkle. Although the film has received mixed reviews, Ejogo has received significant acclaim for her performance, being cited by many critics as the breakout star of the film. Liz Smith, of the Huffington Post wrote: "As for Carmen Ejogo, as the cynical Sister, she is mind-blowing. "What a performance! Carmen has been around for a while, and has a fanatical fan base. Now I know why. If this turn doesn't cop her an Oscar nomination, there is no justice"; Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle also went as far as to suggest in his review that Ejogo's performance might place her under serious consideration for a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination. LaSalle comments: "...very few people will walk out of Sparkle talking about either Sparks or Houston, at least not at first. Instead they will be saying, "Who was that?" And they'll be referring to Carmen Ejogo...If there is any justice, Ejogo will become very famous very soon. As in, maybe today...It's rare to see someone become a movie star right before your eyes, but that's what happens with Ejogo in Sparkle....For an actress, this was the opportunity of a lifetime, and Ejogo plays it that way. She leaves nothing out, holds nothing back."

Music

Ejogo is also a vocalist, having collaborated with several artists in the 1990s. 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'.

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 co-lead vocals with Jordin Sparks and Tika Sumpter on "Jump", "Hooked On Your Love" and "Something He Can Feel".

Personal life

Ejogo has been married since August 2000 to American actor Jeffrey Wright, whom she met while they were making the HBO film Boycott. They live in Brooklyn, New York,^[5] and have two children.^[8]

Filmography

Film
Year	Film	Role	Notes
1986	Absolute Beginners	Carmen	Director: Julien Temple
1997	Metro	Ronnie Tate	Director: Thomas Carter
1998	I Want You	Amber	Director: Michael Winterbottom
	The Avengers	Brenda	Director: Jeremiah S. Chechik
2000	Love's Labour's Lost	Maria	Director: Kenneth Branagh
2001	Perfume	Chloe	Directors: Michael Rymer & Hunter Carson
	What's the Worst That Could Happen?	Amber Belhaven	Director: Sam Weisman
2004	Noel	Dr. Matthew Batiste	Director: Chazz Palminteri
2007	The Brave One	Jackie	Director: Neil Jordan
2008	Pride and Glory	Tasha	Director: Gavin O'Connor
2009	Away We Go	Grace De Tessant	Director: Sam Mendes
2012	Sparkle	Tammy "Sister" Anderson	Director: Salim Akil
	Alex Cross	Maria Cross	Director: Rob Cohen
Television
Year	Title	Role	Notes
1996	Cold Lazarus	Blinda	Director: Renny Rye
1998	Catherine Cookson's Colour Blind	Rose Angela	Director: Alan Grint
	Tube Tales	Girl in "Steal Away"	Director: Charles McDougall
2000	Sally Hemings: An American Scandal	Sally Hemings	Director: Charles Haid
2001	Boycott	Coretta Scott King	Director: Clark Johnson
2005	Lackawanna Blues	Alean	Director: George C. Wolfe
2006–2007	Kidnapped	Turner	Directors: Various
2007	M.O.N.Y.	Francine Tyson	Director: Spike Lee
2008	Law & Order (Episode: "Burn Card")	April Lannen	Director: Mario Van Peebles
2011	CHAOS	Fay Carson	Directors: Various
2013	Zero Hour	Rebecca 'Beck' Riley	Director: Pierre Morel