Jeffrey Wright facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Jeffrey Wright
Wright in 2019
Born	(1965-12-07) December 7, 1965 (age 59) Washington, D.C., U.S.
Education	Amherst College (BA)
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1990–present
Spouse(s)	Carmen Ejogo ​ ​ (m. 2000; div. 2014)​
Children	2
Awards	Full list

Jeffrey Wright (born December 7, 1965) is an American actor. He is known for his many roles in movies and TV shows. He has won several important awards. These include a Primetime Emmy Award, a Tony Award, and a Golden Globe Award. He was also nominated for an Academy Award.

Wright started his acting career in theater. He became well-known for his role in the play Angels in America in 1993. For this, he won a Tony Award. He played the same role in the TV miniseries Angels in America in 2003. This earned him a Primetime Emmy Award.

He has been in many popular films. These include Basquiat (1996), Syriana (2005), and The Ides of March (2011). He also appeared in Wes Anderson's films The French Dispatch (2021) and Asteroid City (2023). Wright played Peoples Hernandez in Shaft (2000). He was Felix Leiter in the James Bond movies. These include Casino Royale (2006) and No Time to Die (2021). He was also Beetee Latier in The Hunger Games films. In 2022, he played Jim Gordon in The Batman. He received an Academy Award for Best Actor nomination for his role in American Fiction (2023).

On TV, Wright was praised for his roles in the HBO series Boardwalk Empire (2013–2014). He also played Bernard Lowe in Westworld (2016–2022). For Westworld, he received three Primetime Emmy Award nominations. He also voiced Isaac Dixon in the video game The Last of Us Part II (2020). He is the voice of the Watcher in the Disney+ animated series What If...? (2021–2024). In 2025, he returned as Isaac Dixon in the TV show The Last of Us.

Jeffrey Wright's Early Life and Education

Wright was born on December 7, 1965. His birthplace was Washington, D.C.. His mother worked as a customs lawyer. His father passed away when Jeffrey was a young child.

He went to St. Albans School. Later, he attended Amherst College. He earned a bachelor's degree in political science. He had planned to go to law school. However, he decided to study acting instead. After two months at New York University Tisch School of the Arts in 1988, he left. He chose to become a full-time actor.

Jeffrey Wright's Acting Career

Early Roles and Angels in America

Wright at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2007

Jeffrey Wright started acting in plays. He performed in New York City and Washington, D.C. In 1990, he was in his first big movie. It was a legal drama called Presumed Innocent. He played an attorney in the film. In 1991, he joined The Acting Company. He performed in plays like A Midsummer Night's Dream.

From 1993 to 1994, he played Norman "Belize" Arriaga. This was in the famous play Angels in America. His role was a gay nurse. This nurse cared for Roy Cohn, who was dying of AIDS. Wright won a Tony Award for this performance. He also had small roles in films like Jumpin' at the Boneyard (1992).

In 1996, Wright got his first main movie role. He played the painter Jean-Michel Basquiat in the film Basquiat. Critics really liked his acting. One critic, Roger Ebert, praised his performance. Wright was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, he was in other films. These included Celebrity (1998) and Ride with the Devil (1999).

In 2000, he starred in three movies. These were Shaft, Hamlet, and Crime and Punishment in Suburbia. He also played Martin Luther King Jr. in the TV movie Boycott (2001). He won an AFI Award for this role. In 2001, he played Howard Bingham in the movie Ali. In 2002, he returned to Broadway. He played Lincoln in the play Topdog/Underdog. He was nominated for a Tony Award for this role. In 2003, he played Belize again. This was in the TV version of Angels in America. He won an Primetime Emmy Award and a Golden Globe Award for it.

Becoming a Well-Known Actor

Wright at the 2017 San Diego Comic-Con

In 2004, he was in The Manchurian Candidate. This movie starred Meryl Streep and Denzel Washington. In 2005, he played Bennett Holiday in Syriana. He also played Winston in Broken Flowers. For Broken Flowers, he was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award. In 2006, he was in Lady in the Water.

In 2006, he played Felix Leiter in the James Bond movie Casino Royale. He played this role again in Quantum of Solace (2008) and No Time to Die (2021). In 2007, Wright starred in The Invasion. In 2008, he played Colin Powell in the movie W.. He also played Muddy Waters in Cadillac Records.

In 2011, he was in three films. These were Source Code, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, and The Ides of March. Wright played Beetee in The Hunger Games movies. His first appearance was in The Hunger Games: Catching Fire in 2013. He also joined the TV show Boardwalk Empire in 2013. He played Dr. Valentin Narcisse. In 2015, he voiced Poppa Henry in the animated film The Good Dinosaur.

Westworld and American Fiction

Wright at the 2019 San Diego Comic-Con

In 2016, he played Charles Ogletree in the HBO film Confirmation. He also played Bernard Lowe in HBO's Westworld. This role earned him three Primetime Emmy Award nominations. In 2018, Wright was in several movies. These included Monster, The Public, and Game Night. He also starred in the HBO film O.G.. This movie was filmed inside a real prison.

In 2018, Wright helped produce a documentary. It was called We Are Not Done Yet. This film shared stories from war veterans. It showed how art helped them deal with stress. That same year, he starred in O.G.. He played Louis, a man getting ready to leave prison. Many real prisoners and staff acted in the film. Critics praised Wright's performance.

In 2019, he was in The Laundromat with Meryl Streep. He also acted in The Goldfinch. In 2020, Wright voiced Isaac in the video game The Last of Us Part II. Since 2021, he has voiced the Watcher in the animated series What If...?. This show is part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

In 2021, Wright played Roebuck Wright in The French Dispatch. He worked with director Wes Anderson again in 2023. He played General Gibson in the film Asteroid City.

He played Adam Clayton Powell Jr. in the film Rustin (2023). He also starred as Thelonious "Monk" Ellison in American Fiction (2023). For American Fiction, he was nominated for a Golden Globe Award and an Academy Award. This was a special moment. It was the first time a Black lead actor and a Black supporting actor from the same film were both nominated for Academy Awards.

In 2024, Wright starred in the TV series The Agency. In 2025, he returned as Isaac Dixon in the second season of The Last of Us TV series.

Jeffrey Wright's Personal Life

Jeffrey Wright married actress Carmen Ejogo in August 2000. They have a son named Elijah and a daughter named Juno. They used to live in Brooklyn, New York City. They are now divorced.

He is a fan of the Washington Commanders football team.

In 2004, his college, Amherst College, gave him an honorary degree.

Wright was involved in a company called Taia, LLC. It aimed to create a safe gold mining operation in Sierra Leone. He was also involved with the Taia Peace Foundation.

Jeffrey Wright's Acting Credits

Film

Key

Denotes works that have not yet been released

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1990	Presumed Innocent	Prosecuting Attorney
1992	Jumpin' at the Boneyard	Derek
1996	Faithful	Young Man
	Basquiat	Jean-Michel Basquiat
1997	Critical Care	Bed Two
1998	Too Tired to Die	Balzac Man
	Celebrity	Greg
	Meschugge	Win
	Blossoms and Veils	Ben
1999	Cement	Ninny
	Ride with the Devil	Daniel Holt
2000	Hamlet	Gravedigger
	Crime and Punishment in Suburbia	Chris
	Shaft	Peoples Hernandez
2001	Ali	Howard Bingham
2002	D-Tox	Jaworski
2004	Sin's Kitchen	Rex
	The Manchurian Candidate	Al Melvin
2005	Broken Flowers	Winston
	Syriana	Bennett Holiday
2006	Lady in the Water	Mr. Dury
	Casino Royale	Felix Leiter
2007	Chicago 10: Speak Your Peace	Bobby Seale (voice)
	The Invasion	Dr. Stephen Galeano
	Blackout	Nelson	Also producer
2008	W.	Colin Powell
	Quantum of Solace	Felix Leiter
	Cadillac Records	Muddy Waters
2009	One Blood	Dan Clark	Also producer
2011	Source Code	Dr. Rutledge
	The Ides of March	Senator Thompson
	Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close	William Black
2013	Broken City	Carl Fairbanks
	A Single Shot	Simon
	The Hunger Games: Catching Fire	Beetee
	The Inevitable Defeat of Mister & Pete	Henry
2014	Ernest & Celestine	Grizzly Judge (voice)	English dub
	Only Lovers Left Alive	Dr. Watson
	The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1	Beetee
2015	The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2
	The Good Dinosaur	Poppa Henry (voice)
2018	Monster	Mr. Harmon
	The Public	Mr. Anderson
	Game Night	FBI Agent Ron Henderson	Uncredited
	Age Out	Detective Portnoy
	O.G.	Louis
	Hold the Dark	Russell Core
2019	The Laundromat	Malchus Irvin Boncamper
	The Goldfinch	James "Hobie" Hobart
	Rigged: The Voter Suppression Playbook	Narrator
2020	All Day and a Night	J.D.
2021	The French Dispatch	Roebuck Wright
	No Time to Die	Felix Leiter
2022	The Batman	Jim Gordon
2023	Asteroid City	General Gibson
	Rustin	Adam Clayton Powell Jr.
	American Fiction	Thelonious "Monk" Ellison
2025	The Phoenician Scheme	Marty
	Atrabilious	Vincent Daugherty
	Highest 2 Lowest	Paul Christopher
0TBA	The Wizard of the Kremlin	0TBA	Post-production

Television

Theatre

Video Games

Audio

Awards and Nominations

See also

In Spanish: Jeffrey Wright para niños

• African-American Tony nominees and winners
• List of black Academy Award winners and nominees
• List of actors with Academy Award nominations
• List of Primetime Emmy Award winners
• List of Golden Globe winners