Breakthrough actor Kaluuya first Ugandan nominated for an Oscar
Daniel Kaluuya, a British actor of Ugandan origin, becomes the first Ugandan nominated for an Oscar for his role in the hit horror film Get Out.
He is nominated for “Actor in a Leading Role” alongside established Hollywood stars, including Denzel Washington and Daniel Day-Lewis.
According to the UK newspaper, Kaluuya, 28, has already received a Bafta nomination and a Golden Globe nomination for his breakthrough role in the horror film, a dark satire on race relations in the United States.
“I feel what the film’s done is articulate an experience. It’s a touchstone where people can go, ‘Yeah, this,’ and feel like they aren’t crazy,” says Kaluuya.
“But I can’t say it’s changed the political landscape,” he said in an interview with Dujour publication.
Kaluuya wrote his first play at nine. His big breakthrough was joining gritty British teen drama Skins as a staff writer at 18, drawing on his own experience growing up in London, Dojour writes.
He has previously appeared in the sci-fi anthology series Black Mirror and Channel 4’s Skins, but Get Out is his first leading role in a major feature film.