Latest news with #DanielKaluuya
Daily Mirror
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Oscar winner Daniel Kaluuya's absence from spotlight fuels wild rumours
After winning an Oscar for Judas and the Black Messiah, Daniel Kaluuya has retreated from the spotlight, which has led some fans to believe that the star now leads a secret life outside of Hollywood Daniel Kaluuya's career has recently become the subject of wild speculation following his absence from the screen. Since winning the Best Supporting Actor Oscar in 2021 for Judas and the Black Messiah, the British star has kept a surprisingly low profile in Hollywood blockbusters. When he bagged his Oscar, Kaluuya was reportedly flooded with movie offers - but he has since stayed clear from appearing on screen. However, this had ultimately led to wild rumours emerging online, particularly after a social media post claimed he'd 'joined a cult.' The post blew up with over 24 million views before being pulled, which had ignited an old story dating back to the filming of Nope. At that time, US media outlets linked Kaluuya to a New Age figure named Vanylla Salimah Mahmoud, also known as Heir Holiness, who described herself as his spiritual adviser and once said she was his manager. Reports said Kaluuya had ended his relationship with his previous agency and publicists amid concerns about Mahmoud's influence. However, a Hollywood executive close to the actor said Kaluuya hasn't disappeared but is simply following his own path, focusing on smaller films, writing, and producing rather than mainstream blockbusters. Currently, Kaluuya is involved in the upcoming Spider-Verse animated film and is developing a live-action movie based on the children's character Barney. He is now represented by the William Morris Endeavor agency and has several projects underway through his production company, 59%. Raised on a council estate in north London by his Ugandan single mother, Kaluuya began his career in British television before gaining international recognition with Jordan Peele's 2017 film Get Out, which earned him Oscar and BAFTA nominations. When asked about the cult rumours in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Kaluuya said: 'It showed me that I was in a paradigm of fame. An unnamed, unverified source has more credibility than what is actually said and the truth of the situation... That's not what happened.' Heir Holiness also denied the cult allegations, calling Kaluuya 'family' and saying, 'They made it up. It was very shocking... My main thing was to make sure he's safe and able to do his work. All of it is fake.' Born in London in 1989 to Ugandan parents, the actor grew up on a Camden council estate. He attended Torriano Primary School, St Aloysius' College, and Camden School for Girls in its co-educational sixth-form for his A-levels. From a young age, he had a passion for acting, writing his first play at nine and studying the art at the Anna Scher Theatre School. Kaluuya began acting professionally in 2006, gaining early fame for his role as Posh Kenneth in Skins and appearing in shows like Doctor Who and Silent Witness before breaking into film.
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
What has happened to Daniel Kaluuya? British star has barely appeared on the big screen since winning an Oscar, sparking outlandish claims he's 'joined a cult' after he was linked to 'spiritual adviser' called Heir Holiness
He is the first black British actor to win an Oscar and has been hailed as the 'outstanding talent of his generation'. But Daniel Kaluuya has become the talk of Hollywood again in recent weeks, not for his work but for a scurrilous old rumour which resurfaced on the internet about why he has barely appeared on the big screen since winning his Academy Award.
The Guardian
16-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
The play that changed my life: ‘Daniel Kaluuya winked at me and my mum – and said he acted better for us'
My mother has always been my champion and has pumped culture into me for a very long time. Theatre and the arts were part of our bonding. She used to say, if you see a show that you like the look of, I'll get tickets. So I'd go on the Royal Court website and if there were many black people in the cast, I'd want to go because I could see myself. I would have been around 16 when I saw Sucker Punch by Roy Williams. It's about two young men who know that their bodies can be a kind of tool to better themselves so they fall into boxing. An aspiring white promoter zeroes in on their talent. It is about rivalry, but also about how community works together, and is a really good investigation of masculinity and the ownership of black bodies. I had been to shows at the Royal Court before but they transformed the space for Sacha Wares' 2010 production. It was completely 360-degree, in the round. I remember the accuracy of the boxing ring, the ropes. It was visceral. The actors were dripping with sweat. And when they moved, we moved, because we thought we were going to get punched! The acting felt so charged and so full-body, as if they'd been plucked from the street. We were fully in it – as if you could ultimately step into the characters' roles if you just walked a couple of metres. It felt very real. I came away feeling, I need to understand how this is made. It was my first time seeing Daniel Kaluuya. I remember him winking at me and my mum in the audience. And Mum shoved me in front of Daniel afterwards. He said it had felt special for him seeing us in the audience because so often the audience is white. He said: 'I acted better for you.' I was a Stagecoach kid – I had been to their classes from a very young age to do drama, singing and dancing. But by that time I was not gagging to be where Daniel Kaluuya was. I had no idea directing could be a career – I wanted to become a barrister. When I realised there was this role, that you could create the vision, that you were actually the orchestrator of the actors, my mind really just opened. I was like, wow, that's where my skill set lies. Years later, after university, I joined the Young Vic's introduction to directing course and Sacha Wares was the programme leader. So I walked into her room and said, gosh, the best show I've ever watched was made by you. Please tell me everything … Marie and Rosetta by George Brant, directed by Monique Touko, is at Chichester Festival theatre, 25 June-26 July As told to Lindesay Irvine
Yahoo
13-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
14 A-List Stars You Forgot Had Once Appeared In Black Mirror
In more recent years, waiting to see which A-listers have been cast in a new season of Black Mirror is as much a part of the experience as pondering which modern trends it will be satirising in its unique dystopian way. The seventh run of the award-winning anthology series is now streaming – boasting what is undoubtedly the most impressive host of star names to appear in a single season to date. So, it's easy to forget that the show has also been a springboard for plenty of stars in in the early stages of their career. Here are just 14 stars you might have forgotten appeared in episodes of Black Mirror before their big breakthrough moments – that you might well have totally forgotten about... Daniel Kaluuya took the lead in one of Black Mirror's first ever episodes, Fifteen Million Merits, way back in 2011. The episode was a send-up of The X Factor (which was still a dominant force on both the music and TV industries at that time) and was written by Charlie Brooker's wife Konnie Huq, who had not long completed a series hosting companion show The Xtra Factor. In the years since his role in Black Mirror, Daniel has become a global star, appearing in huge films like Get Out, Black Panther and Judas And The Black Messiah, which earned him an Oscar win in 2021. Another cast member from Black Mirror's very first season, Jodie Whittaker appeared in The Entire History Of You as Ffion, the girlfriend of Toby Kebbell's character, who begins obsessively doubting their relationship. Since Black Mirror, she appeared in Broadchurch and later made history as the first woman to take the lead in Doctor Who. Earlier in 2025, she also appeared in another of Netflix's big hits of the year, Toxic Town. When Black Mirror returned for its second season in 2013, Domhnall Gleeson took on two roles – first, as Ash Starmer, a man who dies early on in the episode, as well as an android who takes on his personality using artificial intelligence technology. Although Domnhall was already known for his performance in the Harry Potter films when he was cast in Black Mirror, he's now perhaps most famous for his role as General Armitage Hux in the rebooted Star Wars trilogy. He's also appeared in Mother!, The Revenant and Run. Tobias Menzies is probably most recognisable now for playing Prince Philip in the third and fourth seasons of The Crown, but he too was a part of Black Mirror long before Netflix took over at the helm. He appeared in the season two episode The Waldo Moment, playing a politician in the race to become an MP up against a cute cartoon character who swiftly gets adopted by a group with sinister intentions. Before I May Destroy You made Michaela Coel a celebrated star on both sides of the Atlantic, she had the distinction of appearing in not one but two Black Mirror episodes. During season three opener Nosedive, she appeared in a small cameo as an airline stewardess, before taking a more prominent role in the Star Trek-inspired season four instalment USS Callister (though she was notably not part of the sequel in season seven). Black Museum was a rather different spin on Black Mirror in its fourth season, telling three distinct stories which were woven together as part of a supposed museum visit. Letitia Wright took the lead as Nish in the episode, earning her an Emmy nomination in the Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie category. A year later, she starred opposite Chadwick Boseman and Angela Bassett in Marvel's adaptation of Black Panther, reprising the character of Shuri in the film's 2022 sequel. Black Mirror's most ambitious moment to date came in 2018, when Netflix debuted the one-off interactive episode Bandersnatch, which allowed viewers to decide what happened next with hundreds of different outcomes. British actor Will Poulter appeared in a principal role of video game developer Colin Ritman, who meets a grisly end during the episode. Or, depending on which outcome you chose, maybe he didn't... Will has gone on to appear in the Ari Aster horror Midsommar, the Marvel offering Guardians Of The Galaxy, Vol. 3 and the acclaimed TV series Dopesick and The Bear. He also reprises his role from Bandersnatch in the season epiode Plaything. Australian actor Sarah Snook joined the cast of Black Mirror for the season three episode Men Against Fire, in which she played a squad leader in a military that hunts humanoid monsters (or so they're all led to believe, anyway). Nowadays, of course, Sarah is more famous for her performance as Shiv in Succession, which has earned her two Golden Globes and an Emmy. Joining Sarah in Men Against Fire was Malachi Kirby as a young soldier, Stripe, who discovers a disturbing truth about his squad's missions. In 2021, Malachi won a Bafta for his performance in the Small Axe film Mangrove, in which he shared the screen with fellow Black Mirror alum Letitia Wright, and has since shared the screen with Stephen Graham and Erin Doherty in A Million Blows. Hated In The Nation was Black Mirror's first ever feature-length episode, telling the story of a group of malfunctioning drone bees who began targeting anyone who becomes the subject of a social media pile-on. In the season three closer, Kelly MacDonald portrays DCI Karin Parke, who was in charge of investigating the bizarre case. Kelly had already starred in Bad Girls, Boardwalk Empire and the Harry Potter series when Black Mirror came calling, and she later joined the cast of Line Of Duty as Joanne Davidson (yes, another DCI). Owen Teague played a teen love interest in the (in our opinion, criminally underrated) Black Mirror episode Arkangel. He's gone on to play Patrick Hockstetter in It parts one and two, as well as portraying Harold Lauder in The Stand, another Stephen King adaptation. His other credits include an upcoming Planet Of The Apes adaptation and To Leslie, in which he shared the screen with Andrea Riseborough. Oh, and speaking of Andrea Riseborough, her star has only continued to rise since the 2017 Black Mirror episode Crocodile. As well as the sports biopic Battle Of The Sexes, the surreal horror Mandy and the musical Matilda, she famously appeared in To Leslie back in 2023, earning her first Oscar nomination (and sparking plenty of conversation in the process). When she was still a teenager, Angourie Rice made an appearance in the Black Mirror episode Rachel, Jack And Ashley Too – best remembered because of that earworm musical performance from Miley Cyrus. Since then, Angourie has appeared opposite Kate Winslet in Mare Of Easttown and took the lead as Cady Heron in the movie adaptation of the Mean Girls musical. Yeah alright, Anthony Mackie was already a force within Hollywood when he was cast in Striking Vipers thanks to his work in films like 8 Mile, The Hurt Locker and numerous Marvel projects. Since then, though, his profile has only continued to grow thanks to his leading performance in the Marvel series The Falcon And The Winter Soldier, after which his character Sam Wilson became the new Captain America. All seven seasons of Black Mirror are available to stream on Netflix now. 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