# Cynthia Addai-Robinson

Cynthia Addai-Robinson (born January 12, 1985) is an American actress. She is known for her roles as Naevia in the Starz television series Spartacus, DC Comics character Amanda Waller in The CW TV series Arrow, and Nadine Memphis on the USA Network series Shooter. She currently plays the role of Tar-Míriel on the Amazon Prime The Lord of the Rings series The Rings of Power.

## Early life and education

Addai-Robinson was born in London; her mother is from Ghana and her father is a U.S. citizen. She moved to the U.S. when she was 4 and was raised by her mother in a suburb of Washington, D.C. She graduated from Montgomery Blair High School in Silver Spring, Maryland, and Tisch School of the Arts with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theater. In addition, she trained at Lee Strasberg Theater Institute.

## Career

After participating in several various Off-Broadway plays, Addai-Robinson got her first role on television in 2002 in an episode of The Education of Max Bickford. In following years, she made small appearances on television shows like Law & Order: Trial by Jury, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, CSI: Miami, Numb3rs and Justice. In 2006, she was originally cast to play Melanie Barnett in the American sitcom The Game, but was replaced by Tia Mowry for unspecified reasons prior to the show's production. In 2009, she got her first recurring role on the ABC drama FlashForward as the character Debbie, a nurse. The same year she appeared in Tina Mabry's independent film Mississippi Damned as Milena.
In 2011, Addai-Robinson made her big screen debut as the mother of Zoe Saldana's character (played by Amandla Stenberg) in Colombiana.
Her biggest role came from 2012 to 2013 when she was cast as Naevia in the third season Spartacus: Vengeance and the fourth season Spartacus: War of the Damned after Lesley-Ann Brandt decided to leave the series.
In early 2013, Addai-Robinson played Aja, a powerful witch who came to help Bonnie on The Vampire Diaries for two episodes. She made a brief appearance as an on looker in the crowd in the film Star Trek Into Darkness. She played Leslie in Jodi Arias: Dirty Little Secret, a television movie about the murder of Travis Alexander. In September 2013, she was cast as the recurring character Amanda Waller in the hit The CW show Arrow.
In March 2014, she was cast as Emily D. West in the History Channel 2015 miniseries Texas Rising. Her performance was nominated for a Women's Image Network Award for Best Actress in a Drama Series.
In January 2015, Addai-Robinson was cast in Gavin O'Connor's The Accountant, alongside Ben Affleck and J. K. Simmons, playing a U.S. Treasury Department analyst. The film was released in October 2016.
In March 2016, it was announced that she would be taking over Emily Rios's role from the television series Shooter as the female lead.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2009 | Mississippi Damned | Milena | |
| 2011 | Colombiana | Alicia | |
| 2013 | Star Trek Into Darkness | San Francisco Woman | |
| 2016 | The Accountant | Agent Marybeth Medina | |
| 2018 | Closure | Yasmina | |
| 2018 | Always & 4Ever | Nicole | |
| 2022 | The People We Hate at the Wedding | Eloise | |
| 2025 | The Accountant 2 † | Agent Marybeth Medina | Post-production |
Key :
| † | Denotes film or TV productions that have not yet been released |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2002 | The Education of Max Bickford | Susan | Episode: "Murder of the First" |
| 2005 | Law & Order: Trial by Jury | Lillian Beaudriville | Episode: "41 Shots" |
| 2005 | Law & Order: Criminal Intent | Jeanette | Episode: "Saving Face" |
| 2006 | Justice | Debra Mortin | Episode: "Prior Convictions" |
| 2007 | CSI: Miami | Courtney Rinella | Episode: "Internal Affairs" |
| 2007 | Dirt | Michelle / Woman | 2 episodes |
| 2007 | Entourage | Amanda's Assistant #2 | Episode: "Less Than 30" |
| 2007 | Life | Stephanie | Episode: "Tear Asunder" |
| 2007 | Dash 4 Cash | Meredith | Television film |
| 2007 | A.M.P.E.D. | Paige Moscavell | Television film |
| 2009 | Numb3rs | Trisha Moreno | Episode: "Guilt Trip" |
| 2009 | CSI: NY | Dr. Karita Neville | Episode: "Greater Good" |
| 2009–2010 | FlashForward | Debbie / Nurse | 6 episodes |
| 2010 | Edgar Floats | Dana | Television film |
| 2012 | NCIS: Los Angeles | Female Flight Attendant | Episode: "Touch of Death" |
| 2012–2013 | Spartacus | Naevia | 18 episodes |
| 2013 | The Vampire Diaries | Aja | 2 episodes |
| 2013 | King & Maxwell | Megan Ainsley | Episode: "Pilot" |
| 2013 | Jodi Arias: Dirty Little Secret | Sheri | Television film |
| 2013 | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Michelle Rowlands | Episode: "Last Supper" |
| 2013–2016 | Arrow | Amanda Waller | 17 episodes |
| 2014 | Dallas | Private Investigator | Episode: "Like Father, Like Son" |
| 2014 | Ambience Man | Megan | Episode: "Miss Period" |
| 2015 | Texas Rising | Emily West | 5 episodes |
| 2016–2018 | Shooter | Nadine Memphis | 31 episodes |
| 2016–2019 | Chicago Med | Vicki Glass / Dr. Vicki Glass | 10 episodes |
| 2019 | Power | Ramona Garrity | 10 episodes |
| 2020 | Stumptown | Violet | Episode: 'The Dex Factor' |
| 2022–present | The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power | Tar-Míriel | 6 episodes |

### Video games

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 2011 | L.A. Noire | Female Pedestrian 5 | Voice role |
| 2014 | Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham | Amanda Waller | Voice role |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Association | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
| 2015 | Women's Image Network Award | Best Actress in a Drama Series | Texas Rising | Nominated | |