John Kani | |
|---|---|
 Kani inRosebank, Johannesburg, in 2023 | |
| Born | Bonisile John Kani (1942-08-30)30 August 1942 (age 83) New Brighton, Eastern Cape, South Africa |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1965–present |
| Known for | Sizwe Banzi is Dead;The Island |
| Children | Atandwa Kani |
| Awards | Tony Award (1975);Obie Award (2003);SAFTA Lifetime award (2010) |
| Honours | Order of Ikhamanga in Silver[1] |
Bonisile John KaniOISOBE (born 30 August 1942) is a South African actor. He is known for portrayingT'Chaka in theMarvel Cinematic Universe filmsCaptain America: Civil War (2016) andBlack Panther (2018),Rafiki inThe Lion King (2019) andMufasa: The Lion King as well as Colonel Ulenga in theNetflix filmsMurder Mystery (2019) andMurder Mystery 2 (2023). Also a playwright, Kani co-wrote withAthol Fugard andWinston Ntshona the 1975 anti-apartheid playSizwe Banzi Is Dead, as well as performing in it.
Kani was born on 30 August 1942 inNew Brighton, Port Elizabeth, in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa.[1] In 1975, after appearing inAthol Fugard's anti-apartheid playSizwe Banzi Is Dead, which he also co-wrote, in the United States, Kani returned to South Africa. There, he received a phone call saying that his father wanted to see him. On his way there, he was surrounded by police who beat him and left him for dead. His left eye was lost as a result of the incident, and he now wears aprosthesis which is technically a glass eye.[2]
His sonAtandwa is also an actor, who made his debut on U.S. television on theCW seriesLife Is Wild, and played a younger version of Kani's character T'Chaka inBlack Panther.[3]
Kani joinedThe Serpent Players (a group of actors whose first performance was in the former snake pit of the zoo, hence the name)[4] inPort Elizabeth in 1965 and helped to create many plays that went unpublished but were performed to a resounding reception.[5][6]
These were followed by the more famousSizwe Banzi is Dead andThe Island, co-written withAthol Fugard andWinston Ntshona, in the early 1970s. Kani also received anOlivier Award nomination for his role inMy Children! My Africa![7]
Kani's work has been widely performed around the world, includingNew York, where he and Winston Ntshona won aTony Award in 1975 forSizwe Banzi Is Dead (which ran for 159 performances) andThe Island.[8] These two plays were presented in repertory at theEdison Theatre for a total of 52 performances.[9]
In 1987, Kani playedOthello in a performance ofWilliam Shakespeare's playof the same name in South Africa, which was still underapartheid. "At least I'll be able to kissDesdemona without leaving a smudge," he said then.[10]
Nothing but the Truth (2002) was his debut as sole playwright and was first performed in theMarket Theatre inJohannesburg. This play takes place in post-apartheid South Africa and does not concern the conflicts between whites and blacks, but the rift between blacks who stayed in South Africa to fight apartheid, and those who left only to return when the hated regime folded. It won the 2003Fleur du Cap Awards for the best actor and best new South African play.[11] In the same year, Kani was also awarded a specialObie Award for his extraordinary contribution to theatre in the United States.[12]
Kani is executive trustee of the John Kani Theatre Foundation, founder and director of the John Kani Theatre Laboratory and chairman of the National Arts Council of SA.[13] He starred as T'Chaka in theMarvel Studios blockbustersCaptain America: Civil War (2016) andBlack Panther (2018). The fact that Kani was aXhosa native speaker ledChadwick Boseman, who played his onscreen sonT'Challa, to make that Wakanda's language, and to learn whole scenes in Xhosa, although he had never studied the language before.
In 2019, Kani appeared in the Netflix filmMurder Mystery where he played Colonel Ulenga. He then voicedRafiki inThe Lion King (the photorealistically animated remake of theDisney animated film).[14]
Kani's playKunene and the King, a co-production for theRoyal Shakespeare Company andFugard Theatre, was staged in theSwan Theatre inStratford-upon-Avon, in 2019 before transferring back to Cape Town. Kani starred alongsideAntony Sher.[15]
On 20 February 2010, Kani received aSAFTA Lifetime award.[16] He has also received the Avanti Hall of Fame Award from the South African film, television, and advertising industries, an M-Net Plum award and a Clio award in New York. Other awards include theHiroshima Peace Culture Foundation Award for the year 2000 and theOlive Schreiner Prize for 2005. He was voted 51st in theTop 100 Great South Africans in 2004.[17]
In 2006, he was awarded anhonorary doctorate by theUniversity of Cape Town.[18]
In 2013,Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University appointed him an honorary Doctor ofPhilosophy.[19][20]
In 2016, Kani received the national honour of theOrder of Ikhamanga in Silver, for his "Excellent contributions to theatre and, through this, the struggle for a non-racial, non-sexist and democratic South Africa".[1]
The main theatre of the Market Theatre complex inNewtown, Johannesburg, has been renamed TheJohn Kani Theatre in his honour.[21]
In 2020, he was awarded an honorary doctorate by theUniversity of the Witwatersrand.[22]
In 2021, Kani was conferred as the Da Vinci Laureate by The Da Vinci Institute.
In 2023, he was awarded an HonoraryOBE fromBritish Government for services to drama.[23]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | BBC2 Playhouse | Styles / Buntu | Episode: "Sizwe Bansi Is Dead" |
| 2nd House | Episode: "Athol Fugard" | ||
| 1978 | Play for Today | George O'Brien | Episode: "Victims of Apartheid" |
| 1985 | Master Harold...and the Boys | Willie | Television film |
| 1986 | Miss Julie | John | Television film |
| 1989 | Othello | Othello | Television film |
| 1997 | Kap der Rache | Inspektor Khumalo | Television film |
| 2006 | Hillside | Dr. Vincent Maloka | 1 episode |
| 2008 | The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency | Daddy Bapetsi | Episode: "Pilot" |
| Silent Witness | Dr. Phiri | 2 episode | |
| 2012 | iNkaba | Mkhuseli Mthetho | 1 episode |
| 2015 | Wallander | Max Khulu | Episode: "The White Lioness" |
| 2021 | What If...? | T'Chaka | Voice, 2 episodes: "What If... T'Challa Became a Star-Lord?", "What If... Killmonger Rescued Tony Stark?" |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | The Wild Geese | Sgt. Jesse Link | |
| 1980 | Marigolds in August | Melton | |
| 1981 | Killing Heat | Moses | |
| 1987 | Saturday Night at the Palace | September | |
| An African Dream | Khatana | ||
| 1989 | Options | Jonas Mabote | |
| A Dry White Season | Julius | ||
| The Native Who Caused All the Trouble | Tselilo Mseme | ||
| 1992 | Sarafina! | School Principal | |
| 1995 | Soweto Green: This Is a 'Tree' Story | Dr. Curtis Tshabalala | |
| 1996 | The Ghost and the Darkness | Samuel | |
| 1997 | Kini and Adams | Ben | |
| 1998 | The Tichborne Claimant | Bogle | |
| 2001 | Final Solution | Rev. Peter Lekota | |
| 2007 | The Bird Can’t Fly | Stone | |
| 2008 | Nothing but the Truth | Sipho | Also director and writer |
| 2009 | Endgame | Oliver Tambo | |
| 2010 | White Lion | Old Gisani | |
| 2011 | Coriolanus | General Cominius | Tragedy / Drama / Thriller / War |
| Janapriyan | Drama / Family / Musical / Romance | ||
| How to Steal 2 Million | Julius Twala Snr. | Action / Drama | |
| 2012 | Jail Caesar | Marius | Drama / History |
| 2016 | The Suit | Mr. Maphikela | Short film |
| Captain America: Civil War | T'Chaka | Superhero / Action / Sci-Fi | |
| 2018 | Black Panther | T'Chaka/Black Panther | Superhero / Action / Adventure / Sci-Fi |
| 2019 | Murder Mystery | Colonel Ulenga | Cozy mystery / Action / Comedy / Crime / Romance |
| The Lion King | Rafiki | Voice | |
| 2021 | Seal Team | Brick | Voice |
| 2023 | Murder Mystery 2 | Colonel Ulenga | [24] |
| Beyond the Light Barrier | Narrator | ||
| 2024 | Mufasa: The Lion King | Rafiki | Voice |
Kani lost his eye when he returned to South Africa after appearing in Athol Fugard's anti-apartheid play, "Sizwe Banzi Is Dead," here and in New York. The actor was lured from his home by a telephone caller who said Kani was wanted at his father's home. On the way there, Kani says he was surrounded by police, who beat him and left him for dead.
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