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Maisie Richardson-Sellers

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Maisie Richardson-Sellers
Richardson-Sellers in 2017
Born
London, England
EducationHertford College, University of Oxford (2013)
OccupationActress
Years active2011–present

Maisie Richardson-Sellers is a British actress and director. She first gained recognition for her role as Rebekah Michaelson / Eva Sinclair on The CW series The Originals. She has since gained wider recognition for her starring roles as Kathy Freeman in CH4/Peacock's The Undeclared War, Chloe Winthrop in Netflix's The Kissing Booth 2, as well as the third installment in the franchise. She also played both Amaya Jiwe / Vixen and Charlie on The CW superhero series DC's Legends of Tomorrow, and Korr Sella in Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

Early life

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Richardson-Sellers was born and raised in London. Her mother Joy Richardson is black Guyanese and her father is white British.[1][2] Richardson-Sellers comes from a family of stage actors.[3] She grew up attending private schools through bursaries and scholarships.[4] In 2013, Richardson-Sellers graduated, with a degree in Archaeology and Anthropology, from Hertford College, University of Oxford,[5] where she participated in and directed several plays, including Mephisto and There Will Be Red.[6]

Career

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While studying at Oxford University, Maisie Richardson-Sellers began directing theatre, including a production of ‘For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow Is Enuf’.[7]

After graduating from university, Richardson-Sellers started auditioning and landed her first role in Star Wars sequel Star Wars: The Force Awakens,[8][9] in the cameo role of Korr Sella.[10]

After wrapping filming for her The Force Awakens role, Richardson-Sellers booked her second role as Rebekah Mikaelson in the CW series The Originals in 2014, where the character of Rebekah inhabits a different body after a spell gone wrong.[11] She later played the character of Eva Sinclair on The Originals.[12] Executive Producer Michael Narducci described her performance as having "an incredibly strong sparkle" and "there's a great beauty – not only with physical beauty but there's a great inner beauty – that comes up in her performance. There's also just this incredible strength."[13]

In early March 2015, it was announced that Richardson-Sellers would play a starring role in Of Kings and Prophets, a short-lived ABC drama series that was filmed in South Africa.[14] In June 2016, it was reported that Richardson-Sellers would be playing Amaya Jiwe / Vixen on the second season of the CW series Legends of Tomorrow, who is the grandmother of the titular character in the CW Seed animated series Vixen.[15] Her mother guest starred as a distant ancestor of Jiwe on two episodes, "Zari" and "No Country for Old Dads".[2] After two seasons, Richardson-Sellers was cast in the new role of shapeshifter Charlie.[16][17] Richardson-Sellers exited Legends of Tomorrow in 2020 at the end of the series' fifth season.[18]

In 2018 she began shadowing directors on Legends of Tomorrow, and was accepted into the Warner Brother’s Directors Program.[19] Richardson-Sellers then went on to direct two episodes of Legends of Tomorrow.[20]

In May 2019, it was announced Richardson-Sellers would star in The Kissing Booth 2 as Chloe, directed by Vince Marcello for Netflix.[21] In 2021, Richardson-Sellers then starred in the sequel, The Kissing Booth 3.

Richardson-Sellers is the founder of ‘Barefaced Productions’, a production company that seeks to tell the stories of, and provide a platform for, marginalized communities and individuals.[22]

In 2021, Richardson-Sellers co-wrote and directed the short film, ‘Sunday’s Child’, which achieved high acclaim from numerous film festivals. [23]

In 2022, Richardson-Sellers starred in the political drama "The Undeclared War" directed by 7 time BAFTA winner Peter Kosminsky, opposite Mark Rylance and Simon Pegg.[24]

In June 2023, it was announced that Maisie Richardson-Sellers had been cast in the upcoming season 2 of ‘Nine Perfect Strangers’, starring opposite Nicole Kidman, Murray Bartlett and Liv Ullman. [25]

Personal life

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Richardson-Sellers openly identifies as queer.[26]

In 2017, along with her Arrowverse co-stars, Richardson-Sellers co-founded Shethority ("She + Authority"), an online global collective described as "a positive place for women and the feminine to inspire, empower, and share."[27] Active members of the initiative include Melissa Benoist, Nicole Maines, Chyler Leigh, Caity Lotz, Tala Ashe, Emily Bett Rickards, Juliana Harkavy, Katie Cassidy, Candice Patton, and Danielle Panabaker. Through social media, women share their own stories and experiences on dealing with self-acceptance, homophobia, and workplace sexual harassment.

Filmography

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Film roles
Year Title Role Notes
2015 Star Wars: The Force Awakens Korr Sella Cameo appearance[10]
2020 The Kissing Booth 2 Chloe Winthrop Streaming film
2021 The Kissing Booth 3 Chloe Winthrop Streaming film
2023 Jagged Mind Billie [28]
Television roles
Year Title Role Notes
2014–2015, 2017 The Originals Rebekah Mikaelson / Eva Sinclair Recurring role, 15 episodes
2016 Of Kings and Prophets Michal Main role, 9 episodes
2016–2020 Legends of Tomorrow Amaya Jiwe / Vixen Main role (season 2–3)
Charlie / Clotho Main role (season 4–5)
2020 Group Chat with Annie & Jayden Herself Episode: "Would You Rather Kiss"
2022 The Undeclared War Kathy Freeman Main role
Directing
Year Title Role Notes
2021 Sunday's Child Director, Co-Writer, Producer Short Film
DC's Legends of Tomorrow Director Season 6, EP 14 ‘There Will Be Brood’
2022 DC's Legends of Tomorrow Director Season 7 EP 10 ‘The Fixed Point'

References

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  1. ^ Maisie Richardson-Sellers (24 July 2020). "Actress Maisie Richardson-Sellers Pens a Powerful Personal Essay: "We all deserve to see ourselves represented, to know that our stories are valued, and that there are no limits on our dreams."". Pulse Spikes. Archived from the original on 7 June 2022. Retrieved 7 June 2022.
  2. ^ a b "'Legends of Tomorrow': Maisie Richardson-Sellers Real-Life Mom to Play Mysterious Woman From Vixen's Past". TV Insider. 3 August 2017. Archived from the original on 29 March 2019. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
  3. ^ Olga Kuznietsova (5 June 2018). "Glass meets actor Maisie Richardson-Sellers – The Glass Magazine". Glass Magazine. Archived from the original on 10 August 2018. Retrieved 3 March 2020.
  4. ^ Roxy Bourdillon (31 July 2020). "MAISIE RICHARDSON-SELLERS: "Intersectional feminism is the only feminism"". Diva. Archived from the original on 8 August 2020. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
  5. ^ "Hertford College Magazine" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 24 August 2021. Retrieved 24 August 2021.
  6. ^ Newbold, Mark (10 December 2019) [First published 10 April 2014]. "Star Wars Episode 7: English actress Maisie Richardson-Sellers to play Kenobi descendant?". Metro. DMG Media. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
  7. ^ Aaron Peasley (16 December 2020). "Actor Maisie Richardson-Sellers is an Accidental Superhero".
  8. ^ Daniel Barna (16 December 2014). "Star Wars' Maisie Richardson-Sellers Knows How To Keep A Secret". refinery29.com. Archived from the original on 30 March 2015. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  9. ^ Alice Vincent (22 December 2014). "Maisie Richardson-Sellers confirms Star Wars The Force Awakens role". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 19 December 2014. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
  10. ^ a b Hugh Armitage (15 April 2016). "Star Wars: The Force Awakens deleted scenes: 6 things we learned". Digital Spy. Archived from the original on 12 March 2017. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
  11. ^ Marisa Roffman (8 December 2014). "'The Originals' Boss on the Fallout From the Rebekah Twist". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 2 January 2015. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
  12. ^ Andy Swift (16 March 2015). "The Originals' New Rebekah Talks Meeting Claire Holt, Future With Marcel". TVLine. Archived from the original on 16 May 2021. Retrieved 16 May 2021.
  13. ^ Edward Vkanty (16 March 2015). "'The Originals' Brings in a New Rebekah in More Ways Than One". Inquisitr. Archived from the original on 16 November 2016. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
  14. ^ Nellie Andreeva (6 March 2015). "Richardson-Sellers Joins 'Of Kings and Prophets'". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 20 March 2017. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
  15. ^ Lesley Goldberg (23 June 2016). "'Legends of Tomorrow' Finds New Vixen in 'Star Wars' Actress". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 16 March 2017. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
  16. ^ Chancellor Agard (2 November 2018). "'Legends of Tomorrow' stars say Maisie Richardson-Sellers' new role 'messes everybody up'". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 26 February 2020. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  17. ^ "Legends of Tomorrow Casts Maisie Richardson-Sellers in Surprising New Role". Comic Book Resources. 22 July 2018. Archived from the original on 27 July 2018. Retrieved 27 July 2018.
  18. ^ Vlada Gelman (2 June 2020). "Legends of Tomorrow: [Spoiler] Not Returning for Season 6". TVLine. Archived from the original on 3 June 2020. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  19. ^ Tamara Rappa (August 2020). "Actor Maisie Richardson-Sellers is an Accidental Superhero".
  20. ^ Maisie Richardson-Sellers. www.imdb.com. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
  21. ^ Amanda N'Duka (30 May 2019). "Netflix's 'The Kissing Booth 2' Sets Maisie Richardson-Sellers & Taylor Perez In Key Roles". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 30 October 2020. Retrieved 17 October 2019.
  22. ^ Kristin Prim (2021). "Maisie Richardson-Sellers on Inclusivity, Identity, and Accepting Your Truest Self".
  23. ^ Indie Shorts Mag Team (14 December 2021). "Sunday's Child: The Significance Of Acceptance".
  24. ^ Chris Mandle (21 July 2022). "'I'm an all-or-nothing person': actor Maisie Richardson-Sellers on risks, rewards and keeping it real". TheGuardian.com.
  25. ^ Nellie Andreeva (21 June 2023). "'Nine Perfect Strangers' Season 2 A Go At Hulu With Nicole Kidman Back As Star & EP; Liv Ullmann, Murray Bartlett, Dolly De Leon, Maisie Richardson-Sellers & Aras Aydin Cast".
  26. ^ "Maisie Richardson-Sellers". Gay Times. Archived from the original on 27 March 2019. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
  27. ^ "Shethority Twitter Page". candicepatton.com. October 2017. Archived from the original on 28 February 2019. Retrieved 24 June 2018.
  28. ^ Earl William (20 April 2023). "Jagged Mind: First Look at Hulu-Bound Horror (Exclusive)". Variety. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
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