Djimon Hounsou

Djimon Gaston Hounsou (/ˈdʒaɪmən ˈuːnsuː/, JY-mən OON-soo;^[1] French: [dʒimɔ̃ unsu]; born April 24, 1964)^[2] is a Beninese-born actor and model. He began his career appearing in music videos. He made his film debut in Without You I'm Nothing (1990) and earned widespread recognition for his role as Cinqué in the Steven Spielberg film Amistad (1997). He gained further recognition for his roles in Gladiator (2000), In America (2003), and Blood Diamond (2006), receiving nominations for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for both of the latter films. He appeared as an antagonist in Furious 7 (2015). He played an important role as well in the French film Forces spéciales (2011). He has been nominated for a Golden Globe Award and three Screen Actors Guild Awards.

Djimon Hounsou
Hounsou at the 2016 WonderCon
Born	Djimon Gaston Hounsou (1964-04-24) April 24, 1964 (age 59) Cotonou, Dahomey (present-day Cotonou, Benin)
Citizenship	France United States
Occupations	Actor model
Years active	1986–present
Partner	Kimora Lee Simmons (2007–2012)
Children	1

In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, he portrays Korath the Pursuer in Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), Captain Marvel (2019) and the second episode of What If...? (2021). In the DC Extended Universe, he appears as the Fisherman King in Aquaman (2018), and as the wizard Shazam in Shazam! (2019), Black Adam (2022), and Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023). He also plays Papa Midnite in another DC film, Constantine (2005).

Early life

Hounsou was born in Cotonou, Benin, to Albertine and Pierre Hounsou.^[3] He emigrated to Lyon in France at the age of 12^[4] with his brother, Edmond. Soon after arriving there, he dropped out of school and was homeless for a time. A chance meeting with a photographer led to an introduction to fashion designer Thierry Mugler, who encouraged Hounsou to pursue a modeling career.^[2] In 1987, he became a model and established a career in Paris. He moved to the United States in 1990.^{[citation needed][5]}

Career

Acting

 

Hounsou at Final DipCon Opening Reception in 2013

Between 1989 and 1991, Hounsou appeared in the music videos for "Straight Up" by Paula Abdul, "Love Will Never Do (Without You)" by Janet Jackson, and Madonna's "Express Yourself".^[6][7] He also appears in En Vogue's music video for "Hold On".

Hounsou's film debut was in the 1990 Sandra Bernhard film Without You I'm Nothing. He had television parts on Beverly Hills, 90210 and ER and a guest starring role on Alias. He had a larger role in the science fiction film Stargate.^[2]

Hounsou received wide critical acclaim and a Golden Globe Award nomination for his role as Cinqué in the 1997 Steven Spielberg film Amistad, and gained further notice as Juba in the 2000 film Gladiator.^[2] In 2004, he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for In America, making him the fourth African male to be nominated for an Oscar. In 2005 he played a mercenary in the movie The Island alongside Ewan McGregor and Scarlett Johansson. In 2006 he won the National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Blood Diamond, and received Broadcast Film Critics Association, Screen Actors Guild Award and Academy Award nominations for this performance.^{[2][8][unreliable source?]}

Hounsou had a supporting role in the 2009 science-fiction film Push, as Agent Henry Carver.^[9] In 2011, he starred as a French commando in the French film Forces spéciales.^[10]

Director Tim Story told IGN that if he had done a third Fantastic Four film, he would have liked Hounsou to portray Black Panther.^[11] In November 2008, it was announced that Hounsou would provide the voice of Black Panther in the television series of the same name.^[12] He had signed on to play Abdiel in the film version of John Milton's Paradise Lost with Benjamin Walker and Bradley Cooper, but the film was scrapped in early February 2012.^[13]

In 2013, he appeared in the comedy film Baggage Claim alongside Paula Patton. He also voiced Drago Blodfist in How to Train Your Dragon 2 and portrayed Korath the Pursuer in the Marvel Studios film Guardians of the Galaxy, both in 2014.^[14][15] He played villains in two 2015 films: Seventh Son and Furious 7, the latter being the seventh installment of The Fast and the Furious franchise.^[16]

In February 2016, it was reported that Hounsou would join the second season of the television series Wayward Pines.^[17] Also in 2016, he played Chief Mbonga in The Legend of Tarzan.^[18]

In 2018 Hounsou joined the DC Extended Universe, voicing the Fisherman King Ricou in Aquaman (with the character motion-captured by Andrew Crawford). He then replaced Ron Cephas Jones as the Wizard Shazam in Shazam! (2019).^[19][20] He reprised his role in Black Adam (2022) and Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023).^[21][22] Also in 2019, he reprised his role as Korath in the Marvel Studios film Captain Marvel and then in the animated series What If...?.

In November 2022, it was announced that Honsou had joined the cast of the Gran Turismo film, with Geri Halliwell playing his wife.^[23]

Modeling

On 24 February 2007, it was announced that Hounsou would be the new Calvin Klein underwear model. At the time, he was represented by Los Angeles modeling agent Omar Albertto.^[24][25]

Other work

In 2010, Hounsou was featured as the narrator in ESPN's series of "32 Teams, 1 Dream" commercials for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. He spoke at the Summit on Climate Change at the United Nations on 22 September 2009.^[26] On 1 December 2009, he told French media that developed countries "need to be held accountable" for their contribution to climate change.^[27]

Personal life

In 2007, Hounsou began dating model Kimora Lee Simmons.^[28] In 2009, Simmons gave birth to their son, Kenzo Lee Hounsou.^[29] Hounsou and Simmons visited Hounsou's family in his native Benin in the summer of 2008, where the two participated in a traditional commitment ceremony. They were adorned in traditional clothing and used the ceremony, in the presence of Hounsou's family, to confirm that they were "dedicated to each other 100%", although they emphasized the ceremony was not a wedding. In the début of Kimora Lee Simmons' show Kimora: Life in the Fab Lane, he was billed as her husband.^[30] Hounsou and Simmons, who were never legally married in the United States, announced their separation in November 2012.^[31]

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1990	Without You I'm Nothing	Ex-Boyfriend
1992	Unlawful Entry	Prisoner On Bench
1993	Killing Zoe	Moïse (voice)
1994	Stargate	Horus	Credited as "Djimon"
1997	Ill Gotten Gains	Fyah
	Amistad	Joseph Cinqué
1998	Deep Rising	Vivo
2000	Gladiator	Juba
2002	Le Boulet	Detective Youssouf
	The Four Feathers	Abou Fatma
2003	In America	Mateo
	Biker Boyz	'Motherland'
	Lara Croft: Tomb Raider – The Cradle of Life	Kosa
2004	Blueberry	Woodhead
2005	Constantine	Papa Midnite
	Beauty Shop	Joe
	The Island	Albert Laurent
2006	Blood Diamond	Solomon Vandy
	Eragon	Ajihad
2008	Never Back Down	Jean Roqua
2009	Push	Henry Carver
2010	The Tempest	Caliban
2011	Elephant White	Curtis 'Curtie' Church
	Special Forces	Kovax
2013	Baggage Claim	Quinton Jamison
2014	How to Train Your Dragon 2	Drago Bludvist (voice)
	Guardians of the Galaxy	Korath the Pursuer
	Seventh Son	Radu
2015	Furious 7	Mose Jakande
	The Vatican Tapes	Vicar Imani
	Air	Cartwright
2016	The Legend of Tarzan	Chief Mbonga
2017	King Arthur: Legend of the Sword	Bedivere
	Same Kind of Different as Me	Denver
2018	Aquaman	King Ricou (voice)
	In Search of Voodoo: Roots to Heaven	Narrator	Also Director, Writer and Producer Documentary
2019	Serenity	Duke
	Captain Marvel	Korath
	Shazam!	The Wizard
	Charlie's Angels	Edgar 'Bosley' Dessange
2021	A Quiet Place Part II	Man On Island
	The King's Man	Shola
2022	Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank	Sumo (voice)
	Black Adam	The Wizard
2023	Shazam! Fury of the Gods
	Gran Turismo	Steve Mardenborough	Post-production
	Rebel Moon: Part One - A Child of Fire^[32]	General Titus	Post-production
2024	A Quiet Place: Day One	Man On Island	Post-production^[33]
	Gladiator 2	Juba	Filming^[34]
	Rebel Moon: Part Two - The Scargiver	General Titus	Post-production^[35]
TBA	Last Breath		Filming^[36]

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1990	Beverly Hills, 90210	Doorman	Episode: "Class of Beverly Hills"
1999	ER	Mobalage Ikabo	6 episodes
2000	The Wild Thornberrys	Villager (voice)	Episode: "Luck Be an Aye-Aye"
2001	Soul Food	Victor Onuka	Episode: "Games People Play"
2003–2004	Alias	Kazari Bomani	3 episodes
2010	Black Panther	T'Challa / Black Panther (voice)	6 episodes
2016	Wayward Pines	CJ Mitchum	8 episodes
2018	DreamWorks Dragons	Drago Bludvist (voice)	Episode: "King of Dragons, Part 2"
2019	The Longest Day in Chang'an	Master Ge	Episode: "Time Of Great Waste"
2021	Invincible	Martian Emperor (voice)	Episode: "Neil Armstrong, Eat Your Heart Out"
2021	What If...?	Korath (voice)	Episode: "What If... T'Challa Became a Star-Lord?"

Video games

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2020	NBA 2K21	Coach Henry Bishop	Also motion capture

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Work	Result
2004	Academy Awards	Best Supporting Actor	In America	Nominated
2007			Blood Diamond	Nominated
2004	Black Reel Awards		In America	Won
2007			Blood Diamond	Won
	Broadcast Film Critics			Nominated
1998	Golden Globe Awards	Best Actor – Drama	Amistad	Nominated
2004	Independent Spirit Awards	Best Supporting Male	In America	Won
1998	NAACP Image Awards	Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture	Amistad	Won
2004		Outstanding Supporting Actor	In America	Nominated
2007			Blood Diamond	Won
2006	National Board of Review	Best Supporting Actor		Won^[37]
2001	Screen Actors Guild	Outstanding Cast in a Motion Picture	Gladiator	Nominated
2004			In America	Nominated
2007		Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role	Blood Diamond	Nominated^[38]

See also

• List of male underwear models

References

1. Hounsou, Djimon (May 26, 2016). "Tonight at 9/8c on #foxtv #waywardpines". Instagram. Archived from the original on 2021-12-26.
2. "Djimon Hounsou: Biography". TV Guide. from the original on June 11, 2013. Retrieved November 22, 2012.
3. Akyeampong, Emmanuel Kwaku; Gates, Henry Louis (February 2, 2012). Dictionary of African Biography. Vol. 1−6. Oxford University Press. p. 78. ISBN 9780195382075.
4. "Daily Show". Comedy Central. from the original on May 10, 2017. Retrieved May 10, 2017.
5. Djimon Hounsou Biography - Yahoo! Movies 2011-06-28 at the Wayback Machine
6. . Paula-Abdul.net. Archived from the original on September 17, 2012. Retrieved November 15, 2012.
7. "Love Will Never Do Without You". songfacts.com. from the original on November 16, 2012. Retrieved December 20, 2012.
8. "Djimon Hounsou Awards". IMDb. Retrieved November 13, 2013.
9. "Push Djimon Hounsou Interview". About.com. from the original on November 13, 2013. Retrieved November 13, 2013.
10. . January 17, 2013. Archived from the original on November 13, 2013. Retrieved November 13, 2013.
11. "Story talks black panther". ign.com. May 8, 2007. from the original on September 26, 2015. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
12. "Djimon Hounsou Roars as the Black Panther". from the original on 2010-05-15. Retrieved 2008-11-12.
13. "Legendary Pulls Plug on Bradley Cooper's 'Paradise Lost'". The Hollywood Reporter. 9 February 2012. from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
14. "Alan Taylor Offers New 'Thor 2′ Details; Djimon Hounsou on 'Guardians of the Galaxy'". screenrant.com. from the original on November 13, 2013. Retrieved November 13, 2013.
15. "Marvel Studios Begins Production on Guardians of the Galaxy". Marvel.com. July 20, 2013. from the original on July 24, 2013. Retrieved July 20, 2013.
16. "Djimon Hounsou Joins Fast & Furious 7". empireonline.com. 12 September 2013. from the original on 13 November 2013. Retrieved November 13, 2013.
17. Wagmeister, Elizabeth (February 17, 2016). "Djimon Hounsou cast in 'Wayward Pines' season 2". Variety. from the original on February 18, 2016. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
18. [1]^{[dead link]}
19. "Exclusive: DC's 'Shazam!' casts 'Guardians' actor Djimon Hounsou as the Wizard". Entertainment Weekly. from the original on 2018-07-10. Retrieved 2019-03-08.
20. "Exclusive: 'Aquaman' reveals first look at the exotic Fisherman King". Entertainment Weekly. from the original on 2021-03-05. Retrieved 2019-03-08.
21. Jirak, Jamie (July 23, 2021). "Shazam! Fury of the Gods Set Photo Reveals Return of Surprising Actor". ComicBook.com. from the original on 2021-07-24. Retrieved July 24, 2021.
22. "Djimon Hounsou to Appear in Black Adam". Streamr. July 26, 2021. from the original on October 12, 2022. Retrieved October 9, 2022.
23. ‘Gran Turismo’: Djimon Hounsou, Spice Girls’ Geri Halliwell-Horner Join Sony’s Racing Movie (Exclusive) The Hollywood Reporter. November 4, 2022
24. "Omar Albertto on FASHION NET". www.fashion.net. from the original on 2017-09-05. Retrieved 2018-02-09.
25. . ashionweekdaily.com. February 23, 2007. Archived from the original on November 13, 2013. Retrieved November 13, 2013.
26. "NPR". NPR. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
27. "Developed countries need to be held accountable". Rfi.fr. 2009-12-02. from the original on 2012-10-11. Retrieved November 15, 2012.
28. Slonim, Jeffrey (November 15, 2012). "Russell Simmons Okay with Kimora & Djimon". People. from the original on April 20, 2020. Retrieved March 11, 2019.
29. "'Life in the Fab Lane' star Kimora Lee Simmons gives birth to baby boy". Reality TV World. June 1, 2009. from the original on September 23, 2015. Retrieved March 11, 2019.
30. "Kimora Lee Simmons, Djimon Hounsou Had Commitment Ceremony". Usmagazine.com. 2009-03-09. from the original on 2010-06-09. Retrieved November 15, 2012.
31. Jordan, Julie (November 21, 2012). "Kimora Lee Simmons and Djimon Hounsou Separate". People. from the original on February 12, 2017. Retrieved March 11, 2012.
32. Sharf, Zack (2022-02-09). "'Rebel Moon' First Look: Zack Snyder Debuts Concept Art From His 'Star Wars'-Inspired Netflix Epic". Variety. from the original on 2022-02-09. Retrieved 2022-02-10.
33. Jirak, Jamie (March 12, 2023). "A Quiet Place Prequel Confirms Part II Star is Returning". ComicBook. Retrieved March 12, 2023.
34. Ridley Scott's Gladiator 2 enter production
35. "Zack Snyder's Rebel Moon 2 Releases On Netflix Just 5 Months After First Movie". Screenrant.
36. Geisinger, Gabriella (8 June 2023). "Simu Liu, Woody Harrelson, Djimon Hounsou new movie Last Breath filming in Malta". KFTV.com.
37. "Winners: National Board Of Review". CBS News. from the original on October 19, 2015. Retrieved September 19, 2015.
38. "Screen Actors Guild: The nominees". ew.com. from the original on October 19, 2015. Retrieved September 19, 2015.

External links

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Djimon Hounsou.

• Djimon Hounsou at IMDb
• Djimon Hounsou: The Push Interview with Kam Williams