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Aaron Pierre (actor)

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Aaron Pierre
Pierre in 2024
Born
Aaron Stone Pierre

(1994-06-07) 7 June 1994 (age 30)[1]
Alma materLAMDA
OccupationActor
Years active2016–present

Aaron Stone Pierre (born 7 June 1994) is an English actor. After training at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, Pierre gained recognition for his role as Dev-Em in the science fiction series Krypton (2018–2019). He has since starred in the period drama miniseries The Underground Railroad (2021), the thriller films Old (2021) and Rebel Ridge (2024), and the biographical miniseries Genius (2024) in which he portrayed Malcolm X.

Early life

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Pierre was born on 7 June 1994 in Brixton, Greater London.[2] He is of Jamaican, Curaçaoan, and Sierra Leonean descent.[3]

He participated in athletics and sprinting as a child and developed an interest in acting as a teenager.[4] He joined the Croydon Young People's Theatre (CRYPT) once he moved areas.[5][6] He took Performing Arts at Lewisham College[7] before going on to train in Toronto and at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art,[8] graduating in 2016.[9]

Career

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Pierre appeared in 2 episodes of the BBC One series The A Word and played a Roman soldier Antonius in series 1 of the Sky Atlantic series Britannia.[10] In 2018, he began starring as Dev-Em in the Syfy series Krypton.[11][12][13] That same year, Pierre starred as Cassio in Othello at Shakespeare's Globe.[14][15] For his performance, he received an Ian Charleson Award commendation. He played the King opposite Lenny Henry in the 2019 production of King Hedley II at the Theatre Royal Stratford East.[16]

American director Barry Jenkins saw Pierre in Othello and sent him a message after, inviting him to audition for his new series. Pierre landed the role of Caesar in The Underground Railroad, released on Amazon Prime in May 2021.[17][18] In July 2021, Pierre appeared as Mid-Sized Sedan / Brendan in M. Night Shyamalan's film Old.[19][20]

In August 2021, it was reported that Pierre would reteam with Barry Jenkins as a young Mufasa in a Lion King film.[21]

In October 2021, after John Boyega stepped down for family reasons,[22] Pierre starred in Jeremy Saulnier's film Rebel Ridge, streamed on Netflix in 2024. In 2021, he starred in Foe, an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Iain Reid.[23]

In February 2022, Pierre joined the cast of the upcoming superhero film Blade, set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and scheduled to be released on November 7, 2025,[24] but was released from the project by March 2024 as a result of script rewrites.[25]

He won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Supporting Performance in a Film at the 11th Canadian Screen Awards in 2023, for his performance as Francis in the film Brother.[26]

In October 2024, Pierre was cast as John Stewart / Green Lantern in DC Studios's Lanterns television series.[27]

Filmography

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Film or show that is yet to be released

Film

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Year Title Role Notes
2021 Old Mid-Sized Sedan / Brendan [28]
2022 Brother Francis
2023 Foe Terrance
2024 Rebel Ridge Terry Richmond
Mufasa: The Lion King Mufasa (voice) (replacing James Earl Jones) Completed

Television

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Year Title Role Notes
2017 Prime Suspect 1973 Terrence O'Duncie 2 episodes
The A Word James Thorne 2 episodes (series 2)
2018 Britannia Antonius 3 episodes (series 1)
2018–2019 Krypton Dev-Em Main role
2021 The Underground Railroad Caesar Miniseries
2024 Genius Malcolm X Lead role (season 4)
2025 The Morning Show Miles Main role (season 4)

Stage

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Year Title Role Notes
2018 Othello Cassio Globe Theatre, London
2019 King Hedley II King Theatre Royal Stratford East, London

Awards and nominations

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Year Award Category Work Result Ref.
2018 Ian Charleson Awards Othello Nominated [29]
2023 Canadian Screen Award Best Supporting Performance in a Film Brother Won [26]

References

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  1. ^ Aaron Pierre (7 June 2019). "Chapter 25". Archived from the original on 25 December 2021. Retrieved 14 March 2021 – via Instagram.
  2. ^ a b Hedley, Mark (24 May 2019). "Aaron Pierre is the South Londoner taking over stage and screen". Square Mile. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  3. ^ "My heritage consists of Jamaica, Curaçao and Sierra Leone. Recently, for the first time in my life, I visited Curaçao. It was everything. Thank you Curaçao for receiving me, educating me, and bringing me immense joy. Danki!". Instagram.
  4. ^ Goulakos, Katina. "Aaron Pierre". Imagista. Retrieved 14 May 2021.
  5. ^ Williams, Holly (4 August 2018). "Actor Aaron Pierre: 'I've been taking notes from Mark Rylance since day one'". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  6. ^ Okundaye, Jason (14 May 2021). "Aaron Pierre on The Underground Railroad and working with 'genius' Barry Jenkins". GQ. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  7. ^ Bradshaw, Paul (10 June 2021). "'The Underground Railroad' star Aaron Pierre: "Certain doors are now being opened"". NME. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  8. ^ Loades, Bec (19 August 2018). "In Conversation with Aaron Pierre". Menswear Style. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  9. ^ "Aaron Pierre". 1883. 24 May 2021. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  10. ^ Bley Griffiths, Eleanor (13 April 2018). "Meet the cast of The A Word series 2". Radio Times. Retrieved 14 May 2021.
  11. ^ Bastianello, Maria (20 July 2018). "5 Talkie Minutes with Aaron Pierre: on 'Britannia' and 'Krypton'". The Italian Rêve. Retrieved 14 May 2021.
  12. ^ "Aaron Pierre – Character – Krypton". Syfy. February 2018. Retrieved 14 May 2021.
  13. ^ "Aaron Pierre on Krypton, Britannia & Othello". Crookes Magazine. 26 July 2018. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  14. ^ Ackman, Nicole (16 August 2018). "BWW Interview: Aaron Pierre Talks OTHELLO at Shakespeare's Globe". BroadwayWorld. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  15. ^ Tauer, Kristen (12 May 2021). "Aaron Pierre, From Cassio to Caesar in 'The Underground Railroad'". WWD. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  16. ^ Billington, Michael (24 May 2019). "King Hedley II review – Lenny Henry and Aaron Pierre make a dynamic duo". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  17. ^ Rosseinsky, Katie (12 May 2021). "Aaron Pierre interview: When I got a Twitter message from Barry Jenkins, I thought it must be a joke". Evening Standard. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  18. ^ "Aaron Pierre". Amazon Studios. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  19. ^ "M. Night Shyamalan Untitled Universal Movie Sets Cast With Eliza Scanlen, Thomasin McKenzie & More". 8 May 2020. Archived from the original on 24 June 2020. Retrieved 14 May 2021.
  20. ^ "M. Night Shyamalan Sets Abbey Lee, Nikki Amuka-Bird & Ken Leung For Universal Thriller". Deadline Hollywood. 22 June 2020. Archived from the original on 23 June 2020. Retrieved 14 May 2021.
  21. ^ Wiseman, Andreas (26 August 2021). "'The Lion King' Prequel: Kelvin Harrison Jr. & Aaron Pierre To Lead Cast For Disney & Barry Jenkins". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  22. ^ West, Amy (19 October 2021). "John Boyega replaced by Krypton star in new Netflix movie". Digital Spy.
  23. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (11 June 2021). "'Foe': Saoirse Ronan, Paul Mescal, LaKeith Stanfield To Star In Sci-Fi Thriller". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 11 June 2021. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
  24. ^ Kroll, Justin (22 February 2022). "Blade: Aaron Pierre Joins Mahershala Ali In Marvel's New Pic Centered On The Vampire Hunter". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 22 February 2022. Retrieved 22 February 2022.
  25. ^ Thompson, Jaden (17 March 2024). "Aaron Pierre Says He's Not Attached to Marvel's 'Blade': 'As the Project Evolved, I'm No Longer Part of That'". Variety. Archived from the original on 17 March 2024. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  26. ^ a b Jenna Benchetrit, "Brother dominates with a dozen wins on third night of Canadian Screen Awards". CBC News, April 13, 2023.
  27. ^ Kit, Borys; Couch, Aaron (9 October 2024). "'Lanterns' Finds Its John Stewart with Aaron Pierre". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  28. ^ "OLD". Universal Pictures. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  29. ^ Bowie-Sell, Daisy (19 March 2019). "Ian Charleson Award shortlist announced". What's on Stage. Retrieved 14 May 2021.
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