John Adedayo Bamidele Adegboyega is a British-Nigerian actor and producer widely known as John Boyega. He attended the Oliver Goldsmith Primary School where he played his first role as a leopard in a play. At age nine, he enrolled at Theatre Peckham, a learning theatre for young people. John Boyega went on to attend Westminster City School for his secondary education and South Thames College for his National Diploma in Performing Arts. While in school, he took part in various art productions.
For his professional career, he trained at the Identity School of Acting in Hackney, London, where he appeared in “Six Parties” at the National Theatre and Category B at the Tricycle Theatre. He later became a patron of its Los Angeles branch in 2018. He also appeared in the film Junkhearts but it was his role in the 2011 sci-fi comedy film – Attack the Block that catapulted him into national stardom. That same year, John Boyega was chosen by Screen International as one of the the “UK Stars of Tomorrow 2011” and appeared alongside two other actors on the front cover of Screen International magazine in its July 2011 edition.
Read also: David Oyelowo
In March 2012, John Boyega appeared in the film adaptation of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s book, Half of a Yellow Sun. In 2015, John Boyega was cast as a lead character Finn in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Both the film and Boyega’s performance received great acclaim from audiences and critics bringing him international recognition. He went on to play the character in the rest of the film’s sequel trilogy, The Last Jedi in 2017, and The Rise of Skywalker in 2019.
In January 2016, Boyega started his own production company, Upperroom Entertainment Limited which co-produced Pacific Rim: Uprising (2018), the sequel to the 2013 movie Pacific Rim, alongside Legendary Entertainment.
In 2020, John Boyega was listed in the Top 100 of the most influential people in the UK of African/African-Caribbean descent by Powerlist. Powerlist is a list of the 100 most influential people of African OR African Caribbean heritage in the United Kingdom, published annually by Powerful Media.
John Boyega is proud of his Nigerian heritage, he speaks Yoruba and wears his traditional Agbada to movie premieres.
We are proud of John Boyega and wish him more success in future.