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American actress From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Teyonah Parris (/tiˈɒnə/ tee-ON-ə;[1] born September 22, 1987)[2] is an American actress. A graduate of Juilliard School, she began acting in 2010. Her first prominent roles were those of secretary Dawn Chambers in the AMC drama series Mad Men (2012–2015), and a starring role in the 2014 independent film Dear White People. Since then, she has appeared in the drama series Empire (2014), Spike Lee's crime comedy Chi-Raq (2015), and the drama film If Beale Street Could Talk (2018).
Teyonah Parris | |
---|---|
Born | Hopkins, South Carolina, U.S. | September 22, 1987
Education | Juilliard School (BFA) |
Occupation | Actress |
Years active | 2010–present |
Spouse | James Parris |
Children | 1 |
In 2021, Parris starred in the horror film Candyman, and began portraying Monica Rambeau in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, starting with the Disney+ series WandaVision.[3]
Parris was born[2] and raised in Hopkins, South Carolina.[citation needed] She attended Lower Richland High School until her sophomore year. She was accepted into the South Carolina Governor's School for the Arts & Humanities where she finished 11th and 12th grades, before attending and graduating from the Juilliard School.[4]
She made her television debut in 2010, with a guest-starring role on The Good Wife. In 2012, she was cast in a recurring role as Dawn Chambers in the AMC drama series, Mad Men.[5] She played the first major African American character on Mad Men.[6]
In 2014, Parris had her breakthrough role in the independent film Dear White People.[4][7] Later in that year, Parris began starring in the Starz comedy series, Survivor's Remorse.[8][9][10] In 2015, Parris went to star in the satirical drama film Chi-Raq directed by Spike Lee.[11] She received her first NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture nomination for this film.[12] She played the leading role in Where Children Play directed by Leila Djansi, and starred alongside David Oyelowo in Five Nights in Maine.[13][14] Later in 2015, she played R&B/Jazz singer Miki Howard in the biopic Love Under New Management: The Miki Howard Story.[15]
In 2016, Parris was cast as lead character in the period drama film Buffalo Soldier Girl about a woman who, disguised as a man, enlisted and fought with the African American Post Civil War era as a Buffalo Soldier.[16] In 2017, she had a recurring role on the Fox prime time soap opera Empire playing Detective Pamela Rose.[17] In early 2018, Parris was cast in a leading role on the CBS drama pilot Murder.[18] Also that year, she co-starred in If Beale Street Could Talk, a drama film written and directed by Barry Jenkins and based on James Baldwin's novel of the same name.[19] She played the lead role of Kaneisha in the 2018 Off-Broadway production of Slave Play at the New York Theatre Workshop.[20]
Parris plays the adult version of Monica Rambeau (introduced in the Marvel Cinematic Universe film Captain Marvel) in the Disney+ series WandaVision.[21] She reprised the role in The Marvels released in November 2023.[3]
In September 2022, Parris and her husband James announced that they were expecting their first child;[22] their daughter was born in early 2023.[23]
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2010 | Empire Corner | Alma | Short film |
Wu is Dead | Alma | Short film | |
How Do You Know | Riva | ||
2013 | A Picture of You | Mika | |
2014 | Dear White People | Colandrea "Coco" Conners | |
They Came Together | Wanda | ||
2015 | Five Nights in Maine | Penelope | |
Where Children Play | Bellissima Mccain | ||
Chi-Raq | Lysistrata | ||
2016 | Love Under New Management: The Miki Howard Story | Miki Howard | Also producer |
90 Days | Jessica | Short | |
2018 | If Beale Street Could Talk | Ernestine Rivers | |
2019 | Point Blank | Taryn | |
2020 | Charm City Kings | Terri | |
The Photograph | Asia | ||
2021 | Candyman | Brianna Cartwright | |
2023 | They Cloned Tyrone | Yo-Yo | |
The Marvels | Monica Rambeau | ||
Dashing Through the Snow | Allison Garrick |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2010 | The Good Wife | Melinda Gossett | Episode: "Double Jeopardy" |
2012–15 | Mad Men | Dawn Chambers | Recurring cast: season 5-7a, guest: season 7b |
2013 | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Karen Branston | Episode: "Take the Money and Run" |
2014–17 | Survivor's Remorse | Missy Vaughn | Main cast |
2017 | Placeholders | Marla | 2 episodes |
Empire | Detective Pamela Rose | Recurring cast: season 4 | |
2018 | Murder | Det. Ayana Lake | TV movie |
2021 | WandaVision | Monica Rambeau / "Geraldine" | Main cast |
Marvel Studios: Assembled | Herself | Episode: "Assembled: The Making of WandaVision" | |
2024 | Marvel Studios: Assembled | Herself | Episode: "Assembled: The Making of The Marvels" |
TBA | No Good Deed | Carla | Upcoming series[24] |
Association | Year | Work | Category | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
AAFCA Awards | 2015 | Chi-Raq | Best Actress | Won | [25] |
Black Reel Awards | 2015 | Dear White People | Outstanding Breakthrough Performance, Female | Won | [26] |
Outstanding Supporting Actress, Motion Picture | Nominated | ||||
2016 | Chi-Raq | Outstanding Actress, Motion Picture | Won | [27] | |
2017 | Love Under New Management: The Miki Howard Story | Outstanding TV Movie or Limited Series (as producer) | Nominated | [28] | |
Outstanding Actress in a TV Movie or Limited Series | Nominated | ||||
2021 | WandaVision | Nominated | |||
Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards | 2021 | WandaVision | Best Supporting Actress in a Limited Series, Anthology Series, or Television Movie | Nominated | [29] |
Hollywood Film Festival | 2017 | 90 Days | Exceptional Emerging Artist - Acting | Won | [30] |
MTV Movie & TV Awards | 2021 | WandaVision | Best Hero | Nominated | [31] |
NAACP Image Awards | 2016 | Chi-Raq | Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture | Nominated | [32] |
Screen Actors Guild Awards | 2013 | Mad Men | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Nominated | [33] |
Seattle Film Critics Society | 2018 | If Beale Street Could Talk | Best Ensemble Cast | Nominated | [34] |
Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association | 2018 | If Beale Street Could Talk | Best Acting Ensemble | Nominated | [35] |
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