Keisha Castle-Hughes | |
|---|---|
 Castle-Hughes in 2019 | |
| Born | (1990-03-24)24 March 1990 (age 35) Donnybrook, Western Australia, Australia |
| Nationality | New Zealand (from 2001) |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 2001–present |
| Spouses | |
| Partner | Bradley Hull(2003–2010) |
| Children | 2 |
Keisha Castle-Hughes (born 24 March 1990) is a New Zealand actress. She made her acting debut in the drama filmWhale Rider (2002), for which she was nominated for theAcademy Award for Best Actress, making her thesecond-youngest nominee in such category. Her subsequent films include the biblical drama filmThe Nativity Story (2006) and the teen filmHey, Hey, It's Esther Blueburger (2008).
Castle-Hughes was born in 1990 inDonnybrook,Western Australia to aMāori mother, Desrae Hughes, ofNgāti Porou,Tainui, andNgāpuhi descent,[1] and Tim Castle, anAnglo-Australian father.[2][3] Her family moved toAuckland,New Zealand when she was four years old. She attained citizenship in 2001.[4] Castle-Hughes attendedPenrose High School and graduated fromSenior College of New Zealand in Auckland.[1]
In 2002, Castle-Hughes made her debut in the filmWhale Rider, in which she played the main role of Paikea Apirana (Pai). She had no previous acting experience and went directly from herAuckland school classroom to the film set when the shoot began in New Zealand in late 2001. Castle-Hughes received widespread critical acclaim for her performance, and in 2004 she received anAcademy Award nomination forBest Actress at the76th Academy Awards. Although she did not win the Best Actress award (it went toCharlize Theron forMonster), at age 13 she becamethe youngest person nominated in this category at the time and thesecond Indigenous actress, afterMerle Oberon andJocelyne LaGarde, to be nominated for an Oscar.
She soon followed the role by appearing inPrince's controversial "Cinnamon Girl" music video and with a shoot inVanity Fair magazine. In 2004, Castle-Hughes was invited to join theAcademy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.[5]
In 2005, Castle-Hughes had a small part asQueen Apailana inStar Wars: Revenge of the Sith. In 2006, she portrayed the starring role of theVirgin Mary inThe Nativity Story.New York Times critic, A. O. Scott, said that she "seemed entirely unfazed by the demands of playing Mary. She had the poise and intelligence to play the character not as an icon of maternity, but rather as a headstrong, thoughtful adolescent transformed by an unimaginable responsibility."[6] The Christian-themed film earned only $8 million during its opening week, but its box office surged during the week of Christmas.[7]
In 2008, Castle-Hughes appeared in the Australiancomedy-drama filmHey, Hey, It's Esther Blueburger, which was filmed in late 2006.[8]
Castle-Hughes reunited with New Zealand directorNiki Caro for the film adaption ofThe Vintner's Luck, which had its international premiere in September 2009.
Castle-Hughes starred in the Japanese horror filmVampire,[9] and she also played a recurring role as Axl's flatmate inThe Almighty Johnsons which premiered in 2011. In 2011 Castle-Hughes also played a minor part in the filmRed Dog as Rosa the veterinary assistant and wife of Vanno.
In 2014, Castle-Hughes had a guest role in the American television seriesThe Walking Dead in which she played Joan.[10]
In 2015, she joined the cast of theHBO TV seriesGame of Thrones inSeason 5 asObara Sand.[11] She pursued a role on the show in part because she is a fan of the books.[12] Castle-Hughes found out that she had won the role the night theSeason 4 episode "The Mountain and the Viper" aired, in which her on-screen father's death was shown. She described having a very intense emotional reaction to the scene, because of the connection between the characters on the show.[12]
Beginning in 2020, Castle-Hughes has played Hana Gibson, an FBI analyst, onCBS'sFBI: Most Wanted.
In a return to theStar Wars franchise, Castle-Hughes voiced Dr. Emerie Karr, anImperial scientist at the Mount Tantiss facility and femaleclone ofJango Fett, in Seasons 2 and 3 ofStar Wars: The Bad Batch.[13]
Castle-Hughes campaigned forGreenpeace as part of the SignOn.org.nz climate campaign in 2009. New Zealand Prime MinisterJohn Key initially admonished her to "stick to acting", but offered a week later to discuss the issues with her over tea after she maintained she knew more about them than he gave her credit for.[14]
In October 2006, when she was 16, it was announced that Castle-Hughes and boyfriend Bradley Hull were expecting a child together.[15] Their daughter was born in 2007.[15] Castle-Hughes and Hull broke up in 2010 after seven years together.[1][16]
In 2012, Castle-Hughes began dating Jonathan Morrison. After six weeks together, the couple became engaged in August 2012.[17][18] Their wedding took place on Valentine's Day 2013. They were divorced in December 2016.[19]
In early 2014, Castle-Hughes revealed that she hasbipolar disorder, in the wake of television personalityCharlotte Dawson's suicide.[20]
In early 2021, she married Donny Grahamer in New York City. A month later she announced that she was pregnant with her second child, a daughter born in June.[21][22]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Whale Rider | Paikea | Nominated for Academy Award for Best Actress. |
| 2004–2009 | bro'Town | Herself | 3 episodes |
| 2005 | Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith | Queen Apailana of Naboo | |
| 2006 | The Nativity Story | Mary | |
| 2008 | Hey Hey It's Esther Blueburger | Sunni | |
| 2009 | The Vintner's Luck | Celeste | |
| 2009 | Piece of My Heart | Young Kat | TV movie |
| 2010 | Legend of the Seeker | Maia / The Creator | Episode: "Creator" |
| 2011 | Mika's Aroha Mardi Gras | Self | TV special |
| 2011 | Vampire | Jellyfish | |
| 2011 | Red Dog | Rose | |
| 2011–2013 | The Almighty Johnsons | Gaia | Series Regular - seasons 1-2, Recurring - season 3 |
| 2012 | Rewind | Priya | TV movie, post-production |
| 2013 | The Stolen | Aroha | |
| 2014 | The Walking Dead | Joan | Episode: "Slabtown" |
| 2014 | Queen of Carthage | Simi | Film |
| 2015–2017 | Game of Thrones | Obara Sand | 8 episodes |
| 2016 | Roadies | Donna Mancini | Series regular |
| 2017 | Thank You for Your Service | Alea | |
| 2017 | Find Your Voice | Princess | |
| 2017 | Manhunt: Unabomber | Tabby Milgrim | |
| 2018 | On the Ropes | Jessica Connor | TV miniseries |
| 2019 | Tone-Deaf | Wyatt | |
| 2019–2020, 2023 | FBI | Special Agent Hana Gibson | 3 episodes |
| 2020–present | FBI: Most Wanted | Main role | |
| 2023–2024 | Star Wars: The Bad Batch | Emerie Karr (voice) | 11 episodes |
| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
2003 | New Zealand Film Awards | Best Actress | Whale Rider | Won |
| Washington DC Area Film Critics Association | Best Actress | Nominated | ||
2004 | Academy Awards | Best Actress in a Leading Role | Nominated | |
| Chicago Film Critics Association | Best Actress | Nominated | ||
| Most Promising Performer | Won | |||
| Chlotrudis Awards | Best Actress | Nominated | ||
| Critics Choice Movie Awards | Best Young Actor/Actress | Won | ||
| Gold Derby Film Awards | Best Lead Actress | Nominated | ||
| Breakthrough Performance | Won | |||
| NAACP Image Awards | Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture | Nominated | ||
| Online Film Critics Society | Breakthrough Performer | Won | ||
| Phoenix Film Critics Society | Best Performance by a Youth - Female | Nominated | ||
| Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role | Nominated | ||
2007 | Young Artist Awards | Best Leading Young Actress - Feature Film | The Nativity Story | Nominated |
2009 | Qantas TV and Film Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Piece of My Heart | Won |
Rangiahua, Sonny.Māori in media. Cambridge, N.Z. : Kina Film Productions, ©2003.OCLC 489299539.
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Data from Wikidata