Amandla Stenberg
Amandla Stenberg (born October 23, 1998) is an American actor and singer. They were included in "Time"s list of Most Influential Teens in both 2015 and 2016, and has received several accolades, including a Teen Choice Award, an NAACP Image Award, and nominations for four Black Reel Awards and a Critics' Choice Award. Stenberg made their acting debut with the film "Colombiana" (2011), and had their breakthrough playing Rue in the film "The Hunger Games" (2012), for which they won the Teen Choice Award for Best Chemistry. They had the recurring role of Macey Irving in the series  Sleepy Hollow (2013–2014), voiced Bia in "Rio 2" (2014) and starred as Halle Foster in the sitcom "Mr. Robinson" (2015). They garnered acclaim for their portrayals of Maddy Whittier in "Everything, Everything" (2017) and as Starr Carter in the film "The Hate U Give" (2018), the latter of which won them the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture and earned them a nomination for the Critics' Choice Award for Best Young Actor/Actress. Stenberg also starred as Ruby in "The Darkest Minds" (2018), Leyna in "Where Hands Touch" (2018), Julie in the Netflix miniseries "The Eddy  (2020) and Alana Beck in Dear Evan Hansen" (2021). They are set to star in "The Acolyte". Stenberg has been recognized for their outspoken views, particularly towards their activism for LGBT youth, which has received significant media coverage. In 2015, they made their musical debut as part of the folk-rock duo Honeywater. Their single, "Let My Baby Stay" was featured in the film "Everything, Everything" (2018). Early life. Amandla Stenberg was born in Los Angeles, California, the child of Karen Brailsford, an African-American spiritual counselor and writer, and Tom Stenberg, who is Danish. Their paternal grandmother had Greenlandic  Inuit ancestry. Stenberg has two older half-sisters on their father's side. Their first name means "power" or "strength" in the South African languages of IsiXhosa and Zulu. At age four, Stenberg started doing catalog modeling shoots for Disney. They have appeared in commercials for clients such as Boeing. Career. 2011–2016: Early roles and breakthrough. In 2011, they appeared in their first feature film, "Colombiana", as a younger version of Zoe Saldana's character. Their breakthrough came at the age of 14, when they were cast as Rue in the 2012 film "The Hunger Games". The film was a  critical and financial success, and Stenberg's performance was praised. They received a number of awards and nominations, including a Black Reel Award nomination. In 2013, they were cast in the short film "Mercy" playing the daughter of Robin Thicke and Paula Patton; Thicke directed the film. Stenberg had a recurring role on season one of "Sleepy Hollow" from 2013 to 2014. In 2013, Stenberg began performing on the violin and singing harmonies at Los Angeles venues with singer-songwriter Zander Hawley. In 2014, Stenberg voiced Bia in the animated film "Rio 2", which was a commercial success. In 2015 , Stenberg released their first EP in August 2015 as the folk-rock duo Honeywater. In 2015, they released the video "Don't Cash Crop My Cornrows". They played series regular Halle Foster on the short-lived series "Mr. Robinson", which ran in 2015. Stenberg co-wrote the comic book "Niobe: She is Life" with Sebastian Jones, which was illustrated by Ashley A. Woods, and published in November 2015. It is the first nationally distributed comic that has a black woman as its protagonist, author, and another as the artist. In 2016, Stenberg appeared in the music video for "Lemonade" by  Beyoncé, and won the BET YoungStars Award. In the same year, they signed with The Society, a modelling agency. Also in 2016, Stenberg had auditioned for the role of Shuri in the superhero film "Black Panther", however, they walked away because they felt that they were not right for the role. They told Variety in 2018: "It was so exhilarating to see it fulfilled by people who should have been a part of it and who deserved it and who were right for it. I just wasn't." The role was instead given to actress Letitia Wright. 2017–present: critical  acclaim. In 2017, Stenberg and Sebastian Jones released "Niobe: She is Death", the second part of the trilogy. In the same year, they starred in the romantic drama "Everything, Everything", directed by Stella Meghie, and co-starring Nick Robinson. Their single, "Let My Baby Stay", was featured in the film's soundtrack. They received praise for their performance, and earned a Teen Choice Award nomination. In 2018, they played the lead role of Starr Carter in the contemporary drama "The Hate U Give", based on the novel of the same name, which is about the Black Lives Matter movement. The  film was received positively, and Stenberg received critical acclaim for their performance, with the magazine "Rolling Stone" writing "It is impossible to over-praise Stenberg's incandescent performance, a gathering storm that grows in ferocity and feeling with each scene." The film's director, George Tillman Jr. wrote that "She has this ability to make you feel like you're seeing the real deal, which comes from a level of dedication to the material that's rare at any age." They earned several awards and nominations for the role, which include winning an NAACP Image Award and being nominated for  a Critics' Choice Award. In late 2018, Stenberg starred in Amma Asante's World War II drama "Where Hands Touch". In 2019, Stenberg portrayed Elizabeth Eckford, a 15 year old girl who in 1957 was among a group of nine black students who were initially prevented from entering a racially segregated high school in Little Rock, during a segment on the television show "Drunk History" (2019). In May 2019, they joined the cast of the Netflix miniseries "The Eddy", which was released on May 8, 2020. That same month, they signed on to star in the remake of the 1996  thriller film "Fear". In August 2020, they were cast as Alana Beck in Stephen Chbosky's film adaptation of the broadway musical "Dear Evan Hansen". They also collaborated with the show's composers, Pasek and Paul, on "The Anonymous Ones," a new song written specifically for their character, whose role was expanded upon from the stage version. In 2021 Stenberg was cast in the main role for the upcoming series "The Acolyte". Personal life. In 2016, Stenberg announced via Instagram that they would be studying filmmaking at New York University Tisch School of the Arts. They ultimately decided against attending  the school, as they found themself booking jobs, and instead chose to continue with their acting career. Stenberg is non-binary, and uses both she/her and they/them pronouns. They have previously said that they were bisexual and pansexual. In June 2018, in an interview with "Wonderland" magazine, they came out as gay. From early 2018 to late 2018, Stenberg dated singer Mikaela Mullaney Straus, better known by her stage name King Princess. In a July 2017 interview, Stenberg said they had stopped using a smartphone, and that they thought phones and social media can have a negative effect  on mental health. In 2020, they spent three months living in Copenhagen in order to qualify for Danish citizenship. "Dazed" magazine named Stenberg "one of the most incendiary voices of her generation" when it featured them on its Autumn 2015 cover. They were included in "Time"s list of Most Influential Teens in 2015, and again in 2016. In 2016, they were included in the list of "SuperSoul 100" list of visionaries and influential leaders by Oprah Winfrey. Stenberg is an intersectional feminist. They are outspoken about their political views in interviews and on social media, and was named "Feminist of  the Year" in 2015 by the Ms. Foundation for Women. They have spoken publicly on social media about cultural appropriation. Their video, "Don't Cash Crop My Cornrows" admonished Kylie Jenner for adopting that traditionally African-American hairstyle. In April 2016, Stenberg gave a speech at WE Day California, a WE Charity event. Awards and nominations. Stenberg's accolades include an NAACP Image Award, a Teen Choice Award, and nominations for four Black Reel Awards and a Critics' Choice Award. They have also won awards for their activism.