Maisie Richardson-Sellers
Maisie Richardson-Sellers is a British actress. She is known for her recurring role as Eva Sinclair on The CW series The Originals, as well as her starring roles as King Saul of Israel's daughter Michal in the ABC Biblical series Of Kings and Prophets and as Amaya Jiwe / Vixen and Charlie on The CW superhero series Legends of Tomorrow.
Maisie Richardson-Sellers | |
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Richardson-Sellers in 2017 | |
Born | England |
Education | University of Oxford (2013) |
Occupation | Actress |
Years active | 2011–present |
Early life
She has self-described herself as "born and raised in London, to a black Guyanese mother and a white English father".[1] The daughter of Joy Richardson,[2][3] Richardson-Sellers comes from a family of stage actors.[4] She grew up attending private schools through bursaries and scholarships.[5] In 2013, Richardson-Sellers graduated, with a degree in Archaeology and Anthropology, from University of Oxford, where she participated in and directed several plays, including Mephisto, Chatroom, and There Will Be Red.
Career
After graduating university, she started auditioning and landed her first role in Star Wars sequel Star Wars: The Force Awakens,[6][7] in the cameo role of Korr Sella.[8]
After wrapping filming for her The Force Awakens role, Richardson-Sellers booked her second role as Rebekah Mikaelson in the CW series The Originals in 2014, where the character of Rebekah inhabits a different body after a spell gone wrong.[9] Executive Producer Michael Narducci described her performance as having "an incredibly strong sparkle" and "there's a great beauty – not only with physical beauty but there's a great inner beauty – that comes up in her performance. There's also just this incredible strength."[10]
In early March 2015, it was announced that Richardson-Sellers would play a starring role in Of Kings and Prophets, a short-lived ABC drama series that was filmed in South Africa.[11] In June 2016, it was reported that Richardson-Sellers would be playing Amaya Jiwe / Vixen on the second season of the CW series Legends of Tomorrow, who is the grandmother of the titular character in the CW Seed animated series Vixen.[12] Her mother, actress Joy Richardson, guest starred as a distant ancestor of Richardson-Sellers' character on two episodes, "Zari" and "No Country for Old Dads".[2] After two seasons, she was cast in the new role of shapeshifter Charlie.[13] Richardson-Sellers exited Legends of Tomorrow in 2020 at the end of the series' fifth season.[14]
In 2018, Richardson-Sellers appeared in the short film Melody, directed by Bernard Kordieh.[15] In May 2019, it was announced Richardson-Sellers would star in The Kissing Booth 2, directed by Vince Marcello for Netflix.[16] She plays Chloe in the Kissing Booth 2.
Personal life
Richardson-Sellers openly identifies as queer.[17]
In 2017, along with her Arrowverse co-stars, Richardson-Sellers co-founded Shethority ("She + Authority"), an online global collective described as "a positive place for women and the feminine to inspire, empower, and share."[18] Active members of the initiative include Melissa Benoist, Nicole Maines, Chyler Leigh, Caity Lotz, Tala Ashe, Emily Bett Rickards, Juliana Harkavy, Katie Cassidy, Candice Patton, and Danielle Panabaker. Through social media, women share their own stories and experiences on dealing with self-acceptance, homophobia, sexual harassment at the workplace.
Filmography
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2012 | Our First World | N/A | Short film |
2013 | Americano and Rum | Ellie | Short film |
2015 | Star Wars: The Force Awakens | Korr Sella | Cameo[8] |
2018 | Melody | Melody | Short film |
2020 | The Kissing Booth 2 | Chloe Winthrop | |
TBA | The Kissing Booth 3 | Chloe Winthrop | Post-production |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2014–2015, 2017 | The Originals | Rebekah Mikaelson / Eva Sinclair | Recurring role, 15 episodes |
2016 | Of Kings and Prophets | Michal | Main role, 9 episodes |
2016–2020 | Legends of Tomorrow | Amaya Jiwe / Vixen | Main role (season 2–3) |
Charlie / Clotho | Main role (season 4–5)[19] | ||
2020 | Group Chat with Annie & Jayden | Herself | Episode: "Would You Rather Kiss" |
References
- Richardson-Sellers, Maisie (24 July 2020). "Actress Maisie Richardson-Sellers Pens a Powerful Personal Essay: "We all deserve to see ourselves represented, to know that our stories are valued, and that there are no limits on our dreams."". Pulse Spikes. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
- "'Legends of Tomorrow': Maisie Richardson-Sellers Real-Life Mom to Play Mysterious Woman From Vixen's Past". TV Insider. 3 August 2017. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
- "'Legends of Tomorrow' Season 3 Casts Maisie Richardson-Sellers' Real-Life Mom". International Business Times. 4 August 2017. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
- Kuznietsova, Olga (5 June 2018). "Glass meets actor Maisie Richardson-Sellers – The Glass Magazine". Glass Magazine. Retrieved 3 March 2020.
- Bourdillon, Roxy (31 July 2020). "MAISIE RICHARDSON-SELLERS: "Intersectional feminism is the only feminism"". Diva. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
- Daniel Barna (16 December 2014). "Star Wars' Maisie Richardson-Sellers Knows How To Keep A Secret". refinery29.com.
- Alice Vincent (22 December 2014). "Maisie Richardson-Sellers confirms Star Wars The Force Awakens role". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
- Hugh Armitage (15 April 2016). "Star Wars: The Force Awakens deleted scenes: 6 things we learned". Digital Spy. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
- Marisa Roffman (8 December 2014). "'The Originals' Boss on the Fallout From the Rebekah Twist". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
- Edward Vkanty (16 March 2015). "'The Originals' Brings in a New Rebekah in More Ways Than One". Inquisitr. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
- Nellie Andreeva (6 March 2015). "Richardson-Sellers Joins 'Of Kings and Prophets'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
- Lesley Goldberg (23 June 2016). "'Legends of Tomorrow' Finds New Vixen in 'Star Wars' Actress". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
- Agard, Chancellor (2 November 2018). "'Legends of Tomorrow' stars say Maisie Richardson-Sellers' new role 'messes everybody up'". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
- Vlada Gelman (2 June 2020). "Legends of Tomorrow: [Spoiler] Not Returning for Season 6". TVLine. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
- "British Filmmaker Bernard Kordieh Presents Short film 'Melody' Premiering at the Hollyshorts Film Festival August 2018". The British Blacklist. 9 August 2018. Retrieved 17 October 2019.
- N'Duka, Amanda (30 May 2019). "Netflix's 'The Kissing Booth 2' Sets Maisie Richardson-Sellers & Taylor Perez In Key Roles". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 17 October 2019.
- "Maisie Richardson-Sellers". Gay time magazine.
- "Shethority Twitter Page". candicepatton.com. October 2017. Retrieved 24 June 2018.
- "Legends of Tomorrow Casts Maisie Richardson-Sellers in Surprising New Role". Comic Book Resources. 22 July 2018. Retrieved 27 July 2018.