DANAI GURIRA DID YOU KNOW

Danai Jekesai Gurira was born February 14, 1978 in Grinnell, Iowa. She is the youngest of four siblings.

Her parents, Josephine and Roger Gurira, moved to the United States in 1964 from Southern Rhodesia, which is now Zimbabwe. In 1983, when Danai was five years old, she and her family moved back to Harare, the capital of Zimbabwe, after the country gained independence.

Gurira returned to the United States to study at Macalester College in Saint Paul, Minnesota, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in psychology. She also earned a Master of Fine Arts in acting from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts.

She co-wrote and co-starred in the play “In the Continuum,” which won her an Obie Award, an Outer Critics Circle Award, and a Helen Hayes Award for Best Lead Actress.

Gurira made her acting debut on Broadway in 2009 in “Joe Turner’s Come and Gone” playing Martha Pentecost.

In 2012, Gurira joined the cast of AMC’s horror-drama series “The Walking Dead” as the katana-wielding Michonne in the show’s third season.

In 2016, Gurira’s play “Eclipsed” moved to Broadway at the John Golden Theatre. It was the first play to premiere on Broadway with an all female and black cast and creative team. “Eclipsed” was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Play, and won the Tony Award for Best Costume Design in a Play.

She speaks four languages: English, French, Shona and basic Xhosa.

Gurira co-founded Almasi Arts Inc., an organization dedicated to continuing arts education in Zimbabwe. She currently serves as the Executive Artistic Director.

Gurira starred in Marvel’s superhero blockbuster “Black Panther” (2018) as the fierce female warrior Okoye.