After over a decade of impressive work on stage, film and television, British-Afro Caribbean actor Kingsley Ben-Adir is becoming one of the most sought after talents and appears in a number of highly anticipated projects.

In Regina King’s directorial debut ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI, Ben-Adir stars as civil rights leader Malcom X. Written by Kemp Powers, adapted from his own 2013 stage play, the film takes place on the evening of Feb. 25, 1964, after Cassius Clay (pre-name-change to Muhammad Ali) stunned the world by defeating heavyweight boxing champion Sonny Liston. Young Clay heads to the Hampton House Motel in one of Miami's historically Black neighborhoods to celebrate with his friends Jim Brown, Sam Cooke, and Malcolm X. By the next morning, the group of men who would all go on to become civil rights icons develop renewed ideas of what their responsibilities to the world are. Most recently, Ben-Adir received an IFP Gotham Award in the category of ‘Breakthrough Actor’ for his role as Malcom X. The feature film will debut on Amazon Prime Video on January 15th.  

Previously, Ben-Adir played the role of Barack Obama in Billy Ray’s THE COMEY RULE, starring Jeff Daniels as James Comey and Brendan Gleeson as Donald Trump. Based on the memoir A Higher Loyalty by former Director of the FBI James Comey, the two-night special premiered September 27th and 28th on Showtime. Ben-Adir also starred opposite Sarah Snook in SOULMATES, an episodic anthology for AMC and created by Will Bridges and Brett Goldstein. Wryly examining the nature of romantic love, SOULMATES is set fifteen years into the future, when science has made a discovery that changes the lives of everyone on the planet – a test that unequivocally tells you who your soulmate is. Each of the six episodes features a different cast and explores an entirely new story around discovering (or opting not to discover) the results of this new test and the impact of those results on a myriad of relationships.  

Ben-Adir can also be seen in the Hulu comedy-drama series HIGH FIDELITY opposite Zoe Kravitz as well as the HBOMax anthology rom-com series, LOVE LIFE, alongside Anna Kendrick and produced by Paul Feig.  Previously, he starred in the second season of the hugely popular Netflix series, THE OA, as private detective Karim Washington opposite Brit Marling and Jason Isaacs. Additionally, Ben-Adir was a series regular during seasons 4, 5, 6 and returned in season 8 on ITV’s drama VERA, alongside Brenda Blethyn, which is based on a series of novels written by Ann Cleeves. He can also be seen playing the role of Colonel Ben Younger, in the latest season of the BBC/Netflix’s critically acclaimed series PEAKY BLINDERS, starring alongside Cillian Murphy, Tom Hardy and Helen McCrory. The crime drama is based on the exploits of the Peaky Blinders gang operating in Birmingham during the aftermath of the First World War. 

Ben-Adir’s other notable roles in television and film include: Special Agent Rodriguez in THE COMMUTER alongside Liam Neeson, the Fox series DEEP STATE, Guy Ritchie’s KING ARTHUR: LEGEND OF SWORD, DIANA & I and BBC’s TRESPASS AGAINST US. 

In addition to film and television, Ben-Adir has made a name for himself in the theatre realm as well. He has played multiple characters in the award-winning UK stage production, THE RIOTS, which focuses on the real lives of those who were involved in the London riots of 2011. He has also performed in THE WESTBRIDGE, A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM at the Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, Mark Rylance’s MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING at the Old Vic starring Vanessa Redgrave and James Earl Jones and GOD’S PROPERTY at the Soho Theatre.