Rutina Wesley
Rutina Wesley (born December 21, 1978)[1] is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Tara Thornton on the HBO television series True Blood, and Nova Bordelon on OWN’s Queen Sugar.
Rutina Wesley | |
|---|---|
Wesley in 2012 | |
| Born | December 21, 1978 |
| Education | University of Evansville (BFA) Juilliard School (GrDip) |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 2005–present |
| Spouse | Jacob Fishel (m. 2005; sep. 2013) |
Early life and education Edit
Wesley was born and raised in Las Vegas, Nevada.[2] Her father, Ivery Wheeler, is a professional tap dancer, and her mother, Cassandra Wesley, was a showgirl.[3] She attended high school at the Las Vegas Academy of International Studies, Performing and Visual Arts.[4] She studied dance at Simba Studios and the West Las Vegas Arts Center.[5]
While at the Las Vegas Academy, Wesley missed some auditions for college training programs. She finally decided to attend the University of Evansville in Indiana.[6]
After Wesley earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre Performance in 2001,[7] her grandmother suggested that she do a nursing course to have a practical fallback job, but Wesley insisted on pursuing her artistic education.[6] She enrolled at the Juilliard School in 2001[8] and graduated in May 2005 (Group 34).[9] Her studies included a summer spent at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London.[10]
Career Edit
In December 2006, Wesley was featured in David Hare's Broadway play The Vertical Hour.[3] In 2007, Wesley also appeared in The Public Theater production of In Darfur by playwright Winter Miller, co-starring Heather Raffo and Aaron Lohr, among others.[11]
Wesley had a minor role in the 2005 film Hitch, which was edited out in the final cut.[5] In 2007, she made her on-screen debut as the main character in the film How She Move, from British director Ian Iqbal Rashid. The character Raya Green, who enters a step-dancing competition to secure funds for her education, was inspired by Tony Manero, portrayed by John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever.[12] Prior to the shooting of the film, Wesley underwent a five-week dance rehearsal period.[5] Portraying a woman of Jamaican descent, she also took dialect coaching for the role.[13]
Wesley auditioned for the role Tara Thornton in the HBO series True Blood in 2007 and secured the part after creator Alan Ball chose her because "[she] was the first person who showed [Tara's] vulnerable side".[3]
In January 2015, it was announced that Wesley had been cast in a recurring role on the NBC drama series Hannibal. She portrayed Reba McClane, "a blind woman who enters into a relationship with Francis Dolarhyde (Richard Armitage), and helps soothe his murderous urges—at least at first."[14] Wesley appeared as Liza Warner in the fourth season of Arrow.[15][16]
In 2016, Wesley was cast as the lead character Nova Bordelon in the Oprah Winfrey Network drama series Queen Sugar, produced by Ava DuVernay and Oprah Winfrey.[17]
In 2023, Wesley portrayed Maria in the HBO series The Last of Us.[18]
Personal life Edit
Wesley divides her time between Los Angeles and Astoria, Queens. In 2005, she married her former Juilliard classmate Jacob Fishel, an actor. After separating in July, Wesley filed for divorce on August 16, 2013, citing irreconcilable differences.[19]
In November 2017, Wesley announced her partnership to Shonda, a chef from New Orleans. They later broke up in 2019.[20]
Filmography Edit
Film Edit
| Year | Movies | Roles | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | How She Move | Raya Green | |
| 2012 | California Winter | Marcy Sanchez | |
| 2013 | The Championship Rounds | Tina | Short |
| 2014 | 13 Sins | Shelby | |
| Last Weekend | Nora Finley-Perkins | ||
| 2015 | The Perfect Guy | Alicia | |
| Broad Squad | Joanne | TV movie | |
| 2017 | Last Looks | Sister | Short |
| 2019 | Live and Let Die | Solitaire (voice) | Video |
| Stucco | Officer | Short | |
| 2021 | Outsiders | Ramila |
Television Edit
| Year | TV show | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Numb3rs | Sarah/Jenny Calandro | Episode: "Magic Show" |
| 2008–14 | True Blood | Tara Thornton | Main cast |
| 2009 | Family Guy | Cheryl (voice) | Episode: "Partial Terms of Endearment" |
| 2009–12 | The Cleveland Show | Yvette (voice) | Episode: "Ladies' Night" & "Frapp Attack" |
| 2010 | True Blood: Webisodes | Tara Thornton | Episode: "Sookie, Tara & Lafayette" |
| 2010–11 | Generator Rex | Providence Cadet Kenwyn Jones (voice) | Episode: "Basic" & "Lost Weekend" |
| 2011 | Bandwagon: The Series | Auditioner | Episode: "It's Your One Shot" |
| 2012 | True Blood: Jessica's Blog | Tara Thornton | Episode: "Big Vampire Sisters" |
| 2015 | Hannibal | Reba McClane | Recurring cast: season 3 |
| 2015–17 | Arrow | Liza Warner/Lady Cop | Episode: "Beyond Redemption" & "The Sin-Eater" |
| 2016–22 | Queen Sugar | Nova Bordelon | Main cast |
| 2019 | The Walking Dead | Jocelyn | Episode: "Scars" |
| 2023 | The Last of Us | Maria | Episode: "Kin" |
Awards and nominations Edit
| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 5th Scream Awards | Best Supporting Actress | True Blood | Nominated |
| 14th Satellite Awards | Best Cast – Television Series | Won | ||
| 2010 | 16th Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | Nominated | |
| 2013 | 44th NAACP Image Awards | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series | Nominated | |
| 2017 | 48th NAACP Image Awards | Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series | Queen Sugar | Nominated |
| 17th Black Reel Awards | Won | |||
| 2018 | 49th NAACP Image Awards | Nominated | ||
| 18th Black Reel Awards | Won | |||
| 2019 | 50th NAACP Image Awards | Nominated | ||
| 19th Black Reel Awards | Won | |||
| 2020 | 51st NAACP Image Awards | Nominated | ||
| 20th Black Reel Awards | Nominated | |||
| 2022 | 53rd NAACP Image Awards | Nominated |
See also Edit
References Edit
- ^ "Correction To Rutina Wesley's Birthday Post". trueblood-online.com. February 2, 2014. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
- ^ "Community of Scholars - Rutina Wesley". University of Southern Indiana. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
- ^ a b c Rochlin, Margy (October 30, 2008). "Flesh and Blood in a Town of Vampires". The New York Times. Retrieved April 14, 2009.
- ^ Staff, Hollywood.com (February 6, 2015). "Rutina Wesley | Biography and Filmography | 1979". Hollywood.com. Retrieved July 21, 2017.
- ^ a b c Cling, Carol (January 29, 2008). "Las Vegas Academy grad a shooting star". Las Vegas Review Journal. Retrieved April 14, 2009.
- ^ a b . Back Stage. Nielsen Business Media Inc. January 17, 2007. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved April 14, 2009.
- ^ . Biography.com. Archived from the original on October 29, 2013. Retrieved April 6, 2012.
- ^ . Alumni News. The Juilliard School. May 2010. Archived from the original on November 11, 2011. Retrieved April 6, 2012.
- ^ . The Juilliard Journal. The Juilliard School. March 2008. Archived from the original on March 16, 2012. Retrieved April 6, 2012.
- ^ "Five Minutes with Rutina Wesley". W Magazine. September 30, 2011. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
- ^ Pincus-Roth, Zachary (April 11, 2007). "Public's in Darfur to Star Raffo, Lohr, Washington, Wesley, Jah". Playbill. Archived from the original on September 9, 2012. Retrieved April 14, 2009.
- ^ Marchand, Philip (January 24, 2008). "'How She Move' shows dance as escape". TheStar.com. Toronto Star Inc. Retrieved April 14, 2009.
- ^ "Rutina Wesley: The How She Move Interview with Kam Williams". AALBC.com. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
- ^ Prudom, Laura (January 23, 2015). "'Hannibal' Casts Rutina Wesley as 'Red Dragon's' Reba McClane". Variety. Retrieved January 24, 2015.
- ^ Otterson, Joe; Sneider, Jeff (August 10, 2015). "'True Blood' Alum Rutina Wesley in Talks to Join 'Arrow' for Multi-Episode Arc (Exclusive)". The Wrap. Retrieved August 11, 2015.
- ^ "'Arrow' scoop: Get details on Rutina Wesley's role - EW.com". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved January 13, 2016.
- ^ Nellie Andreeva (January 13, 2016). "Rutina Wesley To Star In OWN Drama Series 'Queen Sugar' - Deadline". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved January 13, 2016.
- ^ "Rutina Wesley wanted to play Maria in 'The Last of Us' her way". EW.com. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
- ^ . People.com. August 20, 2013. Archived from the original on November 24, 2017.
- ^ Gilchrist, Tracy E. (November 20, 2017). "True Blood's Rutina Wesley Comes Out in Heartfelt Instagram Engagement Post". Retrieved November 21, 2017.
External links Edit
- Rutina Wesley on Instagram
- Rutina Wesley at IMDb
- at MSN Movies
- Rutina Wesley at Rotten Tomatoes