Danielle Deadwyler facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Danielle Deadwyler
Deadwyler at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival
Born	(1982-05-03) May 3, 1982 (age 42) Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
Education	Spelman College (BA) Columbia University (MA) Ashland University (MFA)
Occupation	Actress
Years active	2008–present
Children	1

Danielle Deadwyler (born May 3, 1982) is an American actress. She began her career as a theatre actress in Atlanta, Georgia. She then transitioned to film and television roles and made her screen debut in the 2012 drama film A Cross to Bear. Deadwyler appeared in the primetime soap opera The Haves and the Have Nots (2015–2017), the drama series P-Valley (2020), and the miniseries Station Eleven (2021–2022) and From Scratch (2022).

Deadwyler received acclaim for her performances in the western film The Harder They Fall (2021), the biographical drama Till (2022), and the drama The Piano Lesson (2024). Her portrayal of Mamie Till in Till and a troubled mother in The Piano Lesson earned her several accolades, including a nomination for the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role for the former and Screen Actors Guild Awards nominations for both.

Early life

Deadwyler was born in Atlanta, Georgia and raised in Southwest Atlanta. She is the daughter of a legal secretary and a railroad supervisor and has three siblings. Deadwyler graduated from Grady High School (now Midtown High School) and then Spelman College. She received a Master's of Arts in American Studies from Columbia University and another master’s degree in creative writing at Ashland University in 2017.

Career

2009–2020

Deadwyler began her career appearing on stage productions, including Charlotte's Web and The Real Tweenagers of Atlanta. She received positive reviews for leading performance in Alliance Theatre's The C.A. Lyons Project. Deadwyler made her film debut playing the leading role of a homeless mother in the 2012 drama A Cross to Bear directed by Tandria Potts. Deadwyler later acted in a number of short films, then landed roles on television.

In 2015, Deadwyler guest-starred in the second season of BET's drama series Being Mary Jane. Later that year, she joined the cast of Tyler Perry’s series The Haves and the Have Nots, playing antagonist LaQuita "Quita" Maxwell. She left the series during Season 4. Eventually, Deadwyler had secondary roles in the films Gifted and The Leisure Seeker, and appeared in the television series Greenleaf, Atlanta and Watchmen. On Atlanta stage, she appeared in the Pulitzer Prize-winning play Clybourne Park at Aurora Theater, portrayed an actress injured doing Shakespeare in Smart People at True Colors Theater, and played multiple roles in The Temple Bombing at the Alliance Theater. In 2018, Deadwyler played the title role of Jane Manning James in the period drama film Jane and Emma. She played a leading role and produced the 2019 thriller film The Devil To Pay. The film and Deadwyler's performance received positive reviews from critics. Cath Clarke from The Guardian wrote in her review: "Deadwyler’s soulful performance really grounds The Devil to Pay even as it cranks into revenge-movie mode."

In 2020, Deadwyler was cast in a series regular role in the series Paradise Lost, with Josh Hartnett, Bridget Regan and Barbara Hershey. The series was not renewed for a second season. That same year, Deadwyler guest-starred on FBI: Most Wanted and had a recurring role as Yoli in the series P-Valley.

2021–present

Deadwyler in 2023

In 2021, Deadwyler played the role of Cuffee in the Netflix western film The Harder They Fall. The character was inspired by Cathay Williams. The film and her performance received positive reviews from film critics. Deadwyler received a NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture nomination for her performance and well as number of Best Ensemble awards. Later in 2021, she played Miranda Carroll in the miniseries Station Eleven. Also that year, Deadwyler was in the Netflix miniseries From Scratch, based on Tembi Locke's memoir. She played the role of lead character' older sister, receiving positive reviews.

Deadwyler starred as Mamie Till in the biographical film Till (2022) directed by Chinonye Chukwu. She received positive reviews from critics for her lead performance in the movie. Manohla Dargis in The New York Times: "With fixed intensity and supple quicksilver emotional changes, Deadwyler rises to the occasion as Mamie, delivering a quiet, centralizing performance that works contrapuntally with the story’s heaviness, its profundity and violence." Deadwyler received the National Board of Review Award for Breakthrough Performance (shared with Gabriel LaBelle for The Fabelmans) and the Gotham Independent Film Award for Outstanding Lead Performance for her performance.

In 2024, Deadwyler played the leading role in the science fiction thriller film Parallel directed by Kourosh Ahari, a remake of Lei Zheng's feature of the same name. She starred in the horror-thriller film I Saw the TV Glow, which premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival to positive reviews from critics. Deadwyler also starred in The Piano Lesson, an adaptation of the August Wilson play, and in the Canadian post-apocalyptic thriller film 40 Acres.

Deadwyler appeared in the action thriller Carry-On for Netflix. She will also star in the horror film The Woman in the Yard directed by Jaume Collet-Serra.

Deadwyler is set to executive produce and lead in the forthcoming comedic thriller, The Saviors. She has also been cast to play Zelma Redding, the widow of American singer Otis Redding, in an upcoming biographical film titled Otis and Zelma.

Filmography

Denotes projects that have not yet been released

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2010	Cyburbia	Cyburbia	Short film
2012	A Cross to Bear	Erica Moses
2013	Sweet, Sweet Country	Ndizeye	Short film
2014	Ir/Reconcilable	Maria	Short film, also producer
2015	The Youth	Hoda	Short film
2017	Gifted	Animal Shelter Worker
	The Leisure Seeker	Hotel Waitress
2018	Jane and Emma	Jane Manning
2019	The Devil to Pay	Lemon Cassidy	Also producer
2020	It's Time	Karen Phillips
	Bygone Billy	Trudy Wake
2021	The Harder They Fall	Cuffee
2022	Till	Mamie Till
2024	I Saw the TV Glow	Brenda
	Parallel	Vanessa	Also executive producer
	The Piano Lesson	Berniece Charles	Netflix film
	40 Acres	Hailey Freeman
	Carry-On	Elena Cole	Netflix film
2025	The Woman in the Yard	Ramona	Also executive producer; post-production
TBA	The Saviors	TBA	Also executive producer; post-production

Television

Awards and nominations

See also

In Spanish: Danielle Deadwyler para niños