David Oyelowo
David Oyelowo
David Oyetokunbo Oyelowo, OBE is a African actor and producer. He has played supporting roles in the films Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Middle of Nowhere, Lincoln, and garnered praise for portraying Louis Gaines in The Butler. On television, he played MI5 officer Danny Hunter in the British series Spooks, and as of 2014, provides the voice of Imperial Security Bureau Agent Kallus on the animated series Star Wars Rebels. In 2014, Oyelowo played Martin Luther King, Jr...
NationalityEnglish
ProfessionTV Actor
Date of Birth1 April 1976
CityOxford, England
kings believe thinking
I think what a lot of people don't realize is how much being the leader of this movement weighed upon him. After all, he [Dr. Martin Luter King] was only 39 years-old when he was assassinated, and only 36 during the Selma campaign. He always seemed older than he actually was, and I believe part of that had to do with just how much life he had to live in order to lead this movement.
thinking giving watches
I certainly don't feel there's a distinction to be made between a television and a film actor. I think there's a distinction between great actors and not so great actors. But I really think if you watch a person working in television give a wonderful performance, that person is f - ing great, because there is no time.
thinking actors
I like to think of myself as a physical actor.
thinking slavery bitterness
I know that there is still a lot of bitterness and anger, and arguably justifiably so, when you think about how brutal slavery was and what its brutal legacy still is.
stars character thinking
I admire many actors, though I don't think there's anyone whose career I would want to mirror sort of by the beats. What I'm really looking to do is constantly defy expectations. I'm very curious to see if you can actually have a character actor and a movie star's career combined.
thinking style age
It's fascinating to work with a company of actors of such different ages, experience and talents. I'm one of a generation brought up on television whose acting is more 'naturalistic', whereas with some of the older generation it's more heightened. But I think there's room for both styles.
thinking people black
I love that as a black person I've experienced not being a minority. I think that's helped me to combat the minority mentality people can have here, which can stop them scaling the heights.
thinking people black
I think until Britain acknowledges just how much of a presence black people had here before the Sixties, then there are certain stories that are not going to be inclusive of what I have to offer.
country thinking black
I think that having a black president in this country has been a seismic shift, in terms of what has been going on racially in America. I think that America is now engaging with how we have come to this point.
drama thinking agency
Getting to do what I think was my fifth BBC drama with Nikki Amuka-Bird - we've done 'Shoot The Messenger,' 'Five Days,' 'The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency,' 'Born Equal' and now 'Small Island' - was another highlight for me. And filming in Jamaica was great, too.
drama school opportunity
I do think opportunity breeds bravery. It's such a competitive profession, no one owes you anything, talent in itself is not enough. I went to drama school with so many great actors who are not doing it anymore and it's circumstantial.
play two people
I know for a fact the reason I'm an actor is because one, two, maybe three people when I was younger saw something that I did, in youth theater or some small play somewhere, and said, "You're good."
insecure people actors
One of the occupational hazards of being an actor, the reason why so many actors are insecure, is that the only way we know we're good is when other people tell us.
moving actors television
I'm one of those actors who says, "Point me toward the work that matters to me and I don't care where you're putting it. Television show. Movie. Projected on the back of someone's garage." If that's where the work is that's exciting to me and moving, I want to be there.