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Winston Duke

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Winston Duke
Duke in 2020
Born (1986-11-15) 15 November 1986 (age 38)
Argyle, Saint Paul, Tobago, Trinidad and Tobago
Alma materUniversity at Buffalo (BA)
Yale University (MFA)
OccupationActor
Years active2014–present
RelativesWatson Duke (cousin)

Winston Duke (born 15 November 1986) is a Tobagonian[1] actor. Duke was born in the village of Argyle, Tobago, and moved to Brooklyn at age nine. He attended Brighton High School in Rochester, and earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University at Buffalo and a Master of Fine Arts from the Yale School of Drama.

Duke began his career with minor roles in theatre productions and recurring roles on the science fiction series Person of Interest (2014–2015) and the sitcom Modern Family (2016). He rose to prominence after playing M'Baku in several films of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (2018–2022), which is one of the highest-grossing media franchises. He continued this success with leading roles in Jordan Peele's horror film Us (2019), the fantasy drama film Nine Days (2020), and the action comedy films Spenser Confidential (2020) and The Fall Guy (2024).

Early life and education

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Winston Duke was born in the village of Argyle, Tobago in the country of Trinidad and Tobago on 15 November 1986.[2][3] He was raised by single mother Cora Pantin, a Tobagonian government worker and restaurant owner, who died at age 66.[4][5] He does not have a relationship with his father.[6] He has one older sibling, Cindy.[6][7] His cousin is the Tobagonian politician and Progressive Democratic Patriots leader Watson Duke.[8]

As a child, Duke showed the restaurant's customers to their tables and learned how to "charm" strangers at an early age. When he was nine, his mother sold the restaurant and their possessions.[citation needed] Duke, Pantin, and his older sister, Cindy, then moved to a studio apartment in Brooklyn, United States, so that Cindy could attend medical school.[3][9]

Duke attended a public primary school in Crown Heights, and often frequented the local library and comic book store after school.[6][9] He graduated from Brighton High School in Rochester, New York in 2004.[10] He attended the University at Buffalo, earning a Bachelor of Arts in theatre. He then moved on to Yale School of Drama where he earned a Master of Fine Arts in acting, graduating in 2013.[11]

Career

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Duke promoting Black Panther at San Diego Comic-Con in 2017

Duke started acting in theatre productions for Portland Stage Company and Yale Repertory Theatre before being cast in Person of Interest.[12][13] In 2012 Duke returned to his native Trinidad and Tobago to appear in the theatre production of An Echo in the Bone starring alongside actress Taromi Lourdes Joseph and directed by fellow Yale alumna Timmia Hearn Feldman.[citation needed]

He was cast in small roles in television series, such as a football star who commits a hate crime in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, a gang leader in Person of Interest and a football player in Modern Family.[14]

In September 2016, Duke was cast in the role of M'Baku in Black Panther after Marvel tested several actors for the role, including Yahya Abdul-Mateen II.[15] It was released in 2018.[16] Wesley Morris of The New York Times named his performance in Black Panther as one of the best in 2018, describing him as "funny, shameless [and] imposing".[17] He subsequently reprised the role in Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and Avengers: Endgame (2019), which are among the highest-grossing films ever made.[18][19]

In 2019, Duke starred in the blockbuster horror film Us, directed by Jordan Peele.[20] In October 2019, Duke signed on to headline in the upcoming Apple TV+ drama series Swagger, but was replaced by O'Shea Jackson Jr. due to an injury suffered on-set in February 2020.[21] In September, Duke was named Actor of the Year by GQ Australia.[22] He starred in Nine Days (2020), directed by Edson Oda, as a manager who interviews unborn souls and selects them to live on Earth.[6] In March 2020, he starred alongside Mark Wahlberg in the Netflix thriller Spenser Confidential.[23]

On October 24, 2021, Duke received the Maverick Award at the Newport Beach Film Festival.[24] It was reported in July 2021 that Duke would be playing Bruce Wayne/Batman in the Spotify podcast audio drama Batman Unburied,[25] which was released in 2022. Although Duke worried that backlash from fans about a Black actor playing Wayne would surface, his role was instead met with support and intrigue.[26] Duke reprised his role as M'Baku in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022).[27] He appeared in the latest Savage X Fenty fashion show.[6]

Personal life

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Duke is friends with actress Lupita Nyong'o, whom he met while attending Yale and went on to co-star with in several films.[28] According to Esquire magazine, he is an "art fanatic".[6]

Filmography

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Film

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Key
† Denotes films that have not yet been released
Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2018 Black Panther M'Baku [29]
Avengers: Infinity War M'Baku [30]
2019 Us Gabriel "Gabe" Wilson / Abraham [31]
Avengers: Endgame M'Baku [32]
2020 Nine Days Will Also executive producer [33]
Spenser Confidential Hawk [34]
2022 Black Panther: Wakanda Forever M'Baku [27]
2024 The Fall Guy Dan Tucker [35]

Television

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Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2014 Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Cedric Jones Episode: "Gridiron Soldier" [14]
2014–2015 Person of Interest Dominic Besson / Mini Recurring role; 7 episodes [13]
2015 The Messengers Zahir Zakaria Recurring role; 3 episodes [36]
Major Crimes Curtis Turner Episode: "#FindKaylaWeber" [37]
2016 Modern Family Dwight Recurring role; 3 episodes [38]

Podcast

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Year Title Role Notes
2022 Batman Unburied Bruce Wayne Season One[39]

Awards and nominations

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Awards and nominations received by Winston Duke
Award Year[a] Category Nominated work Result Ref.
AARP Movies for Grownups Awards 2019 Best Ensemble Black Panther Nominated [40]
Austin Film Critics Association Awards 2018 Best Ensemble Black Panther Nominated [41]
Black Reel Awards 2019 Outstanding Breakthrough Performance, Male Black Panther Won [42]
Outstanding Ensemble Black Panther Won
2022 Outstanding Actor Nine Days Nominated [43]
2023 Outstanding Ensemble Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Nominated [44]
Critics' Choice Awards 2019 Best Acting Ensemble Black Panther Nominated [45]
Denver International Film Festival 2020 Excellence in Acting Nine Days Won [46]
Fangoria Chainsaw Awards 2020 Best Actor Us Nominated [47]
Georgia Film Critics Association 2019 Best Ensemble Black Panther Nominated [48]
MTV Movie & TV Awards 2018 Best Fight[b] Black Panther Nominated [49]
2023 Best Kick-ass Cast Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Nominated [50]
NAACP Image Awards 2019 Outstanding Breakthrough Performance in a Motion Picture Black Panther Nominated [51]
Outstanding Ensemble Cast in a Motion Picture Black Panther Won
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture Black Panther Nominated
2020 Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture Us Nominated [52]
2023 Outstanding Ensemble Cast in a Motion Picture Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Won [53]
Newport Beach Film Festival Awards 2021 Maverick Award Nine Days Won [54]
Online Film & Television Association Awards 2019 Best Ensemble Black Panther Nominated [55]
Screen Actors Guild Awards 2019 Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Black Panther Won [56]
Seattle Film Critics Society Awards 2018 Best Ensemble Black Panther Nominated [57]
Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Awards 2018 Best Ensemble Black Panther Nominated [58]

Notes

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  1. ^ Indicates the year of ceremony. Each year is linked to the article about the awards held that year, wherever possible.
  2. ^ Shared with Chadwick Boseman.

References

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  1. ^ "'Black Panther' star Winston Duke acquires Rwandan nationality". The New Times. 4 September 2023. Retrieved 9 September 2023.
  2. ^ Perine, Aaron (15 November 2022). "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Fans Celebrate Winston Duke's Birthday". ComicBook.com. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  3. ^ a b Westenfeld, Adrienne (22 March 2019). "Winston Duke Wants to Shatter Your Expectations". Esquire. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  4. ^ Khalifeh, Mona (1 November 2022). "'Black Panther's Winston Duke on Grieving His Mother's Recent Death and Chadwick Boseman (Exclusive)". Entertainment Tonight. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
  5. ^ Ford, Rebecca (16 November 2022). "The "Triumphant Discomfort" of Winston Duke's Wakanda Forever Press Tour". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
  6. ^ a b c d e f Harris, Hunter (15 November 2022). "The Winston Duke Era Begins Now". Esquire. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
  7. ^ Jones, Nate (25 April 2019). "Winston Duke's American Dream". Vulture. New York. Retrieved 28 November 2022.
  8. ^ Harrinanan, Sasha (22 February 2018). "Watson Duke buys Black Panther tickets for Tobago children". Trinidad and Tobago Newsday. Retrieved 27 November 2022. Winston Duke, who is in the Marvel Comics movie about the black superhero character, is Watson Duke's cousin.
  9. ^ a b Desta, Yohana (16 February 2018). "Black Panther's Winston Duke Is the Star You Should Be Watching". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
  10. ^ Arnold, Alexis (22 May 2018). "From Brighton High School to Wakanda: Winston Duke remembers his days in Rochester". 13WHAM ABC Rochester. Retrieved 23 February 2019.
  11. ^ "Winston Duke, UB Alumnus, Cast in Marvel Film". theatredance.buffalo.edu. University at Buffalo. Retrieved 17 February 2018.
  12. ^ Cay (24 April 2015). "Exclusive Interview: Winston Duke Talks Person of Interest and The Messengers". Nice Girls TV.
  13. ^ a b Patton, Joshua M. (13 November 2022). "Wakanda Forever's Winston Duke Played Terrifying Person of Interest Baddie". CBR. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  14. ^ a b Klein, Brennan (30 December 2022). "Winston Duke Responds to TikTok Video Of His Law & Order SVU Appearance". ScreenRant. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  15. ^ Kroll, Justin (28 September 2016). "'Black Panther' Taps 'Person of Interest' Actor Winston Duke to Play M'Baku (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  16. ^ Rahman, Abid (29 January 2018). "'Black Panther': First Reactions From the Premiere". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  17. ^ Morris, Wesley (7 December 2018). "Best Performances of 2018". The New York Times. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
  18. ^ "Avengers: Infinity War". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  19. ^ "Avengers: Endgame". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  20. ^ Hipes, Patrick (8 May 2018). "Jordan Peele Unveils Title Of New Movie; Lupita Nyong'o In Talks, Winston Duke & Elisabeth Moss Eyed". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 5 February 2019.
  21. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (1 October 2019). "Winston Duke To Headline Apple's Kevin Durant Drama Series 'Swagger' From Imagine & CBS TV Studios". Deadline. Retrieved 2 October 2019.
  22. ^ "Winston Duke Is 2019's GQ Australia Actor Of The Year". GQ Australia. 28 November 2019. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
  23. ^ Kroll, Justin (2 October 2018). "'Black Panther's' Winston Duke to Star With Mark Wahlberg in Netflix's 'Wonderland' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
  24. ^ Plunkett, Paul (21 October 2021). "Newport Beach Film Festival Returns Live with Events and Honorees Including Harvey Keitel and Regina Hall". Variety. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
  25. ^ Couch, Aaron (27 July 2021). "'Batman Unburied': Winston Duke to Voice Star as Bruce Wayne (Exclusive)". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 27 July 2021.
  26. ^ Grady, Kai (31 May 2022). "How 'Batman Unburied' reinvented the Dark Knight for a global audio audience". Los Angeles Times. Photography by Mariah Tauger. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
  27. ^ a b Couch, Borys Kit,Aaron (20 November 2020). "Marvel's 'Black Panther' Sequel Shoot to Begin in July (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 15 September 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  28. ^ Falcone, Dana Rose (4 October 2017). "PEOPLE's 'Ones to Watch' Talks to Winston Duke About His Breakout Role in Marvel's Upcoming Black Panther". People. Retrieved 3 November 2017.
  29. ^ Kroll, Justin (29 September 2016). "'Black Panther' Taps 'Person of Interest' Actor Winston Duke to Play M'Baku (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  30. ^ Gonzalez, Umberto (23 February 2018). "'Black Panther' Star Winston Duke Spills Behind-the-Scenes Details, Teases 'Infinity War' (Video)". TheWrap. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  31. ^ Galuppo, Borys Kit,Mia (8 May 2018). "Winston Duke, Lupita Nyong'o, Elisabeth Moss Circling New Jordan Peele Movie 'Us' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 15 September 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  32. ^ "Winston Duke on How 'Avengers' Will Top Itself with 'Endgame'". Entertainment Tonight. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  33. ^ "How Actor Winston Duke Brought All of Himself to "Nine Days" | The Takeaway". WNYC Studios. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  34. ^ Kroll, Justin (2 October 2018). "'Black Panther's' Winston Duke to Star With Mark Wahlberg in Netflix's 'Wonderland' (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  35. ^ Kit, Borys (4 November 2022). "Winston Duke Joins Ryan Gosling in Universal's 'The Fall Guy' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  36. ^ "Winston Duke joins The Messengers". Digital Spy. 12 December 2014. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  37. ^ "Introducing our second cover star, renowned actor Winston Duke". www.gq.co.za. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  38. ^ Enechi, Ada (1 May 2024). "Winston Duke Reflects On How "The Fall Guy" Guided Him Through His Grief Journey". BuzzFeed. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  39. ^ Couch, Aaron (27 July 2021). "'Batman Unburied': Winston Duke to Voice Star as Bruce Wayne (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  40. ^ Maddox, Garry (29 October 2018). "Ladies in Black, Mystery Road top Australian Academy Award nominations". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  41. ^ Whittaker, Richard. "Austin Film Critics Release 2018 Awards Nominee Lists". www.austinchronicle.com. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  42. ^ "19th Annual Black Reel Awards Winners". Black Reel Awards. Archived from the original on 6 September 2020. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  43. ^ Neglia, Matt (16 December 2021). "The 2021 Black Reel Awards (BRAs) Nominations". Next Best Picture. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  44. ^ Complex, Valerie (16 December 2022). "Black Reel Awards Nominations Announced For 23rd Annual Ceremony; 'The Woman King' And 'Black Panther: Wakanda Forever' Lead With 14 Nominations". Deadline. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  45. ^ Crist, Allison (13 January 2019). "Critics' Choice Awards: 'Roma,' 'Americans,' 'Mrs. Maisel' Top Winners". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  46. ^ "2020 Award Winners". Denver Film. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  47. ^ Nobile Jr, Phil (11 February 2020). "Ari Aster (Again!) Dominates FANGORIA Chainsaw Awards". FANGORIA. Archived from the original on 23 July 2020. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
  48. ^ "AwardsWatch - Georgia Film Critics Association (GFCA) names 'A Star Is Born' Best Picture". AwardsWatch. 12 January 2019. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  49. ^ Nordyke, Kimberly (18 June 2018). "MTV Movie & TV Awards: 'Black Panther,' 'Stranger Things' Take Top Honors". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  50. ^ Nordyke, Kimberly (8 May 2023). "MTV Movie & TV Awards: Full List of Winners". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  51. ^ N'Duka, Anita Bennett,Amanda (31 March 2019). "Beyoncé Nabs Entertainer Of The Year, 'Black Panther', 'Black-Ish' Among Top Winners At 50th NAACP Image Awards". Deadline. Retrieved 15 September 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  52. ^ Haring, Bruce (9 January 2020). "NAACP Image Awards Nominees: 'Harriet,' 'When They See Us', Netflix Lead Way". Deadline. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  53. ^ "2023 NAACP Image Awards: Complete Winners List". Entertainment Tonight. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  54. ^ Grobar, Matt (22 October 2021). "Random Media Acquires 'The Kybalion'; WIA Sets Scholarship Program Partners; Sundance Institute's Kendeda Grantees; Newport Honorees – Film Briefs". Deadline. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  55. ^ Neglia, Matt (19 January 2020). "The 2019 Online Film & Television Association Nominations". Next Best Picture. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  56. ^ Staff, Variety (28 January 2019). "SAG Awards Winners: Complete List". Variety. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  57. ^ White, Aaron (17 December 2018). ""ROMA" NAMED BEST PICTURE OF 2018 BY SEATTLE FILM CRITICS SOCIETY". Seattle Film Critics Society. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  58. ^ Marr, Rhuaridh (3 December 2018). ""Roma," "A Star Is Born" lead winners at DC Film Critics awards". Metro Weekly. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
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