Ashton Sanders
Sanders at2016 TIFF
Born	Ashton Durrand Sanders[1] (1995-10-24)October 24, 1995 (age 30) Carson, California, U.S.
Education	DePaul University
Occupation	Actor
Years active	2012–present

Ashton Durrand Sanders (born October 24, 1995)^[2] is an American actor best known for his portrayal of teenage Chiron in theAcademy Award-winning filmMoonlight (2016). He has since acted in films such asThe Equalizer 2 (2018),All Day and a Night (2020), andJudas and the Black Messiah (2020). He portrayedBigger Thomas inNative Son (2019) andBobby Brown inWhitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody (2022).

Sanders was born in Carson, California. He attendedGrand Arts High School in Downtown Los Angeles, from which he graduated in 2014.^[3] He was studying towards aBFA atThe Theatre School at DePaul University, before leaving after three years in 2016 to focus on his acting career.^[4][5]

Sanders made his film debut inThe Retrieval, directed by Chris Eska.^[6] The film had its world premiere atSouth by Southwest on March 11, 2013.^[7] It was released in alimited release on April 2, 2014, byVariance Films.^[8][9]

In 2015, Sanders had a small role inStraight Outta Compton.^[10] In 2016, he appeared in an episode ofRefinery29'sweb seriesThe Skinny.^[11]

The same year, Sanders appeared in the drama filmMoonlight, directed byBarry Jenkins.^[12] The film had its world premiere at theTelluride Film Festival on September 2, 2016, and began alimited release on October 21, 2016, byA24.^[13][14]Moonlight received massive critical acclaim as welldozens of accolades, including theGolden Globe Award for Best Picture – Drama.^[15] The film also won threeAcademy Awards forBest Picture,Best Adapted Screenplay, andBest Supporting Actor forMahershala Ali.^[16] Sanders' role in the film was praised by critics;^[17] Benjamin Lee ofThe Guardian called his performance "powerful".^[18]

Sanders co-starred inThe Equalizer 2, a sequel to the hitaction filmThe Equalizer, oppositeDenzel Washington.^[19] In 2019, Sanders starred inRupert Wyatt's science fiction thriller filmCaptive State, oppositeJohn Goodman andVera Farmiga.^[20] He also played the lead in HBO's adaptation of the novelNative Son. Sanders was cast asBobby "RZA" Diggs on theHulu biographical drama seriesWu-Tang: An American Saga. The series ran for three seasons from September 4, 2019, to April 5, 2023. In November 2020, he was set to star inThe Things They Carried, aVietnam War movie with an ensemble cast.^[21]

In September 2021, Sanders was cast asBobby Brown inWhitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody, abiopic feature onWhitney Houston.^[22]

• Ashton Sanders atIMDb

• Living people
• 1995 births
• 21st-century American male actors
• American male film actors
• American male television actors
• People from Carson, California
• Male actors from Los Angeles County, California
• 21st-century African-American male actors
• Ramón C. Cortines School of Visual and Performing Arts alumni

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