Ruth Negga

2.1. Birth and family background

Ruth Negga was born on May 4, 1981, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Her mother, Nora, is Irish, and her father was Ethiopian. Her parents met while working at a hospital in Ethiopia, where her mother was a nurse and her father was a doctor. Negga is an only child. She lived in Ethiopia until she was four years old. When she was seven, her father tragically died in a car accident, after which her mother returned to Ireland with her. Negga subsequently grew up in Limerick, Ireland. She later moved to London, England, for her secondary education and resided there from 2006.

2.2. Education

Negga pursued her higher education at the Samuel Beckett Centre, located within Trinity College Dublin. She graduated with a BA in Acting Studies, laying the foundation for her professional acting career.

3.1. Early career and theatre (2004-2012)

Negga made her screen debut in the Irish film Capital Letters in 2004, where she played the lead role of Taiwo. The following year, she starred as Mary in Isolation. Prior to these film roles, she had primarily worked in theatre. Director Neil Jordan, impressed by Negga's acting, modified the script for his film Breakfast on Pluto (2005) specifically to include her. She also appeared in Colour Me Kubrick (2005) alongside John Malkovich, and in short films such as The Four Horsemen, 3-Minute 4-Play, and Stars.

On television, Negga's early appearances included roles in Doctors, Criminal Justice, and the Irish series Love Is the Drug. She took on the lead role of Doris "Sid" Siddiqi in the BBC Three series Personal Affairs, where she co-starred with Laura Aikman, Annabel Scholey, and Maimie McCoy. Negga also portrayed Rosie in the first two series of RTÉ's Love/Hate. In 2011, she played Shirley Bassey in the BBC production Shirley, for which she won the IFTA Award for Best Actress (Television).

Her early theatre work included roles in Duck, Titus Andronicus, and Lay Me Down Softly. In 2007, she began collaborating with the Irish theatrical group Pan Pan Theatre. In 2010, she played Ophelia in the National Theatre's production of Hamlet.

3.2. Breakthrough roles and international recognition (2013-2019)

In 2013, Negga was cast in a recurring role as Raina in the American television series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., appearing in 17 episodes across two seasons. Although she filmed scenes for Steve McQueen's Oscar-winning biographical drama 12 Years a Slave (2013), her role was ultimately cut from the final movie. In March 2015, Negga was cast as Tulip O'Hare in the AMC fantasy drama series Preacher, which premiered the following year. She also served as an executive producer for 16 episodes of the series.

A pivotal moment in her career came in 2016 when Negga starred as Mildred Loving in the Jeff Nichols historical romance Loving. The film premiered at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival and was later screened at the Toronto International Film Festival. Based on the true story of the Lovings, an interracial married couple in 1950s and 1960s Virginia whose relationship led to the landmark Supreme Court decision, the film highlighted a crucial moment in the American Civil Rights Movement. Negga's portrayal of Mildred Loving garnered widespread critical acclaim, earning her numerous award nominations, including for the Academy Award for Best Actress, the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama, and the BAFTA Rising Star Award. Her performance was praised for its depth and sensitivity in depicting a woman at the center of a pivotal legal and social battle for racial equality.

In 2018, Negga took on the challenging role of Prince Hamlet in the Gate Theatre's production of Hamlet in Dublin, directed by Yaël Farber. This marked a significant artistic choice, building on a precedent set in Dublin by Fanny Furnival in 1741, who also played Hamlet as a woman. Negga reprised the role to similar acclaim at St. Ann's Warehouse in spring 2020.

3.3. Recent work and acclaim (2020-present)

In 2021, Negga starred in Rebecca Hall's period drama Passing opposite Tessa Thompson. The film is an adaptation of Nella Larsen's 1929 novel of the same name. It premiered at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival and was later shown at the New York Film Festival. In the film, Negga portrays Clare Bellew, a light-skinned Black woman in 1920s New York City, who navigates the complexities of racial identity by passing as a white woman. Her performance in Passing was highly praised by critics, with Variety noting that "Negga, brittle and dazzling, commands attention exactly the way Clare does in every room she walks into." For this role, Negga received nominations for the Golden Globe Award, BAFTA, and Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Supporting Actress.

In 2022, Negga made her Broadway debut as Lady Macbeth in a production of Shakespeare's Macbeth, starring alongside Daniel Craig as the titular character. Her performance earned her a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play. In 2023, Negga starred as Sophie in Dan Levy's feature directorial debut, Good Grief. In February 2021, it was announced that Negga would star in and executive produce a limited drama series about the legendary Jazz Age performer and civil rights activist Josephine Baker.

3.4. Voice acting

Beyond her on-screen and stage performances, Ruth Negga has also contributed her voice to video games. She voiced Ishtar in El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron (2011) and Shanalotte, also known as "the Emerald Herald," in Dark Souls II (2014). She also provided voice work for the animated films Angela's Christmas (2017) and Angela's Christmas Wish (2020), portraying the role of Mother in both.

4.1. Film

4.2. Television

4.3. Theatre

4.4. Video games