Chiwetel Ejiofor - Biography

Who is Chiwetel Ejiofor?

Chiwetel Ejiofor is a British-Nigerian actor. He is the older brother of CNN news anchor, Zain Asher. Read on about the BAFTA-winning actor of 12 Years a Slave fame.

Chiwetel Ejiofor – Age, Parents, Siblings

Chiwetel Ejiofor was born on 10 July 1977 in Forest Gate, London, England. The name given at his birth is Chiwetel Umeadi Ejiofor by his Nigerian father Arinze Ejiofor, a doctor, and his mother Obiajulu Ejiofor, a pharmacist. 

He is not the only child of his parents and has two younger sisters, Zain Asher, who is now a CNN correspondent, and Kandibe Ejiofor, a medical doctor. 

In 1988, when Chiwetel Ejiofor was 11 years old, the family took a trip to Nigeria for a wedding. He and his father were driving to Lagos when the car crashed into a lorry. His father was fatally injured while Chiwetel Ejiofor received serious injuries, but survived with still visible scars on his forehead.

Source: Daily Mail (Chiwetel Ejiofor,  Zain Asher pictured 1987)

Education, Ethnicity

At Dulwich Prep London, Chiwetel Ejiofor began acting in school plays and continued to do so well into his college days at Dulwich College. He later attended the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art for a year before dropping out, only a year after.  He used to be a member of the National Youth Theatre as well.

His ethnicity is Nigerian.

Chiwetel Ejiofor – Girlfriend, Wife, Children, Divorce

Nothing is known about the actor's past girlfriends, with a few exceptions. He was in a relationship with Sari Mercer for around 8 years, from 2000 to 2007. After they broke up, Ejiofor was rumored to have a short fling with actress Lupita Nyong'o in 2012.

Chiwetel Ejiofor is dating supermodel Frances Aaternir. They started dating around 2016 but kept it private for 2 years!  The lovebirds only went public about their relationship in December 2018. The couple has kept a secret about their private lives. As of 2019, the couple has made no announcements of an engagement or plans to marry. The couple reportedly parted ways in late 2019.

He does not have any children from previous relationships and currently resides in Los Angeles, California.

Also read: Naomie Harris - Actress of James Bond 

Source: mtonews (Chiwetel Ejiofor and Frances Aaternir pictured on December 15, 2018)

Chiwetel Ejiofor – Career

Early Career

Being offered a role in Steven Spielberg's film Amistad, he left college. In 1996, he starred in Deadly Voyage followed by a role in the 1999 movie G:MT – Greenwich Mean Time. He landed his first lead role in the 2000 movie It Was an Accident.

Since then Chiwetel Ejiofor has starred in Dirty Pretty Things (2002), Love Actually (2003), The Knight's Tale (2003), Trust (2003), Red Dust (2004),  Redbelt, Serenity (2005),  Children of Men (2006) and  Kinky Boots (2006). 

Series, Movies

After winning several prestigious awards for his role in Kinky Boots, Chiwetel Ejiofor portrayed a role in Talk to Me alongside Don Cheadle, 2012 (2009) alongside John Cusack, Salt (2010) alongside Angelina Jolie and Liev Schreiber.  In 2013, Chiwetel Ejiofor was cast as Solomon Northup in 12 Years a Slave, which received critical acclaim. 

In 2014, Chiwetel Ejiofor bagged roles in Half of a Yellow Sun alongside Thandie Newton, Mary Magdalene alongside Rooney Mara, and Joaquin Phoenix. Other movies he has acted are in The Martian (2015) as Dr. Vincent Kapoor, Doctor Strange (2016) as Karl Mordo, and in Sherlock Gnomes (2018) as Watson, Maleficent II (2019).

Also read: David Oyelowo - Actor, Producer

Co-stars

In the 2019 movie The Lion King, Ejiofor voiced Scar, working alongside co-stars James Earl Jones, Beyoncé, Seth Rogen, Eric Andre, John Oliver, Keegan-Michael Key, among others. 

Chiwetel Ejiofor – Awards, Nominations

Chiwetel Ejiofor has been nominated for more than 85 awards including five Golden Globe Awards, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and one Primetime Emmy Award. 

Along with all the nominations, he has won one British Academy Film Award and thirty-eight Film critic awards from numerous associations.

Also read: Ashley Liao - Actress of Fuller House, Bad Teacher 

Chiwetel Ejiofor – Net Worth, Salary

His net worth has been estimated at around $16 million but the figure on his annual salary has not been shared with the public.

Chiwetel Ejiofor – Instagram, Twitter, Facebook

On social media, Chiwetel Ejiofor is absent from public handles such as Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. However several fan accounts have been set up in his name.

Also read: Hope Olaide Wilson - Actress