O. T. Fagbenle

He started acting at the age of 14 for the Ritual Theatre Arts and was given the lead role in an adaptation of William Shakespeare's Macbeth, performing at international venues and at central London's Bloomsbury Theatre. He trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts[5] and graduated early to make his graduate debut at the Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester in Les Blancs in 2001.

Fagbenle continued his Shakespearean roles performing in Romeo and Juliet as Mercutio in a national tour culminating at the Hong Kong Arts Festival in 2004. The Evening Telegraph said of his performance, "O-T Fagbenle achieves the impossible by almost overshadowing the young lovers with his inspired performance of Mercutio".[9]

Fagbenle was soon offered his first all out lead. Outstanding reviews[10][11][12][13] preceded a M.E.N. Theatre award for best actor in a leading role[14] for his portrayal of a man claiming to be Sidney Poitier's son in John Guare's award-winning play Six Degrees of Separation.

In 2008, Fagbenle flew to Paris with world-renowned theatre director Peter Brook to help workshop and develop Brook's international production of Tierno Bokar.

Fagbenle played the role of Sportin' Life in Sir Trevor Nunn's award-winning production of Porgy and Bess at the Savoy Theatre in the West End of London (a part played by Cab Calloway in the opera and Sammy Davis Jr. in the feature film).[15] Fagbenle received outstanding reviews across the board,[16][17][18][19][20] Variety magazine's review remarked 'There are moments everything take wing as a musical, mostly whenever Fagbenle's splendidly serpentine, easeful Sportin' Life is around. Light on his feet, his every moment is poised and polished.'[21]

In 2012 in London, England, Fagbenle took on the role of Slupianek (originated by Alan Cumming) in The Conquest of the South Pole at the Arcola and Rose Theatres. Again Fagbenle won critical acclaim across the board for his performance, with TimeOut, The British Theatre Guide, Spoonfed, Whatsonstage.com and industry standard 'The Stage' all praising his performance.[22][23][24][25][26] Fagbenle went on to be Panel nominated for 'Best Male Performance' at the prestigious Off West End Awards.[27]

It was announced by The Royal National Theatre, that Fagbenle would be cast as the lead in their 2016 production of the Award New York Drama Critic Circle Award-winning play Ma Rainey's Black Bottom.

Fagbenle led his cast to win the prestigious Olivier Award for best revival.[28] BBC's Radio 4 said of his performance "Mesmeric - almost impossible to take your eyes off him." "I wanna see him again and again and again." "Rips your guts out."

Fagbenle has also appeared in the movie Breaking and Entering with Jude Law and Juliette Binoche.

Fagbenle portrayed Sean, the American television star opposite Oscar nominated Michelle Pfeiffer, in Amy Heckerling's I Could Never Be Your Woman. Fagbenle had a lead role in both the highly successful Thorne movies Thorne, which adapted the Mark Billingham novels Sleepyhead and Scaredy Cat. They were directed by 24 producer Stephen Hopkins and the second starred Emmy award nominated actress Sandra Oh. In 2019, he was cast as Mason in the Marvel Cinematic Universe film Black Widow.[29]

O-T Fagbenle plays Luke Bankole in the multi-award-winning The Handmaid's Tale. He has also been nominated multiple times by the Screen Actors Guild for his work on the series.

Fagbenle starred in a sitcom for the BBC called Grownups and appeared in the British TV series Agatha Christie's Marple. He also played 'Other Dave' in the two part Doctor Who story "Silence in the Library" and "Forest of the Dead".[30] He starred in Little Miss Jocelyn as Mrs Omwokwopopo's dead husband (number 2) and the YouTube hit Postman Black (2004–06). Fagbenle starred in two dramas for the BBC, including the role of Walter Tull in Walter's War, a biopic of the first mixed-heritage officer in the British Army, in which he again garnered outstanding international reviews.[31][32][33][34]

In 2009 Fagbenle played the role of Topher Kiefer in the ITV series FM.

In January 2010 Fagbenle took a leading role as Chris in the BBC One flagship show Material Girl, starring Dervla Kirwan and Lenora Crichlow. Off the back of his performance he went on to be cast in the 2011 American romantic comedy Double Wedding.

Fagbenle also appeared as 'Mark Lightfoot' in episode six of the first season of Death in Paradise in 2011.

In 2012 after taking some time to 'do some theatre and develop [his] writing projects' Fagbenle accepted a lead role in the BBC comedy Quick Cuts alongside cult comedy actress and star of Smack the Pony Doon Mackichan.

In 2014 Fagbenle starred in the first season of HBO's original drama Looking. He played 'Frank' a sweet-hearted musician from Ohio having trouble with his live-in partner. He reprised the role in 2015 for season 2.

In 2014, BBC Drama cast Fagbenle in the lead role of their criminal drama The Interceptor. Filming began in London in April 2014. In 2015 he was nominated and awarded by the MViSA awards for best male actor for his performance in The Interceptor.[35]

After appearing in the second season of HBO's Looking, Fagbenle was cast as the lead in American crime writer Harlan Coben's original drama series The Five which first aired in April 2016 on Sky 1 in the United Kingdom.[36]

On 14 November 2016 he appeared in a BBC2 adaptation of Zadie Smith's novel NW. In 2017 he began the role of Luke in Hulu's screen adaption of Margaret Atwood's novel The Handmaid's Tale.

For several months in 2004 he took the part of Kwame in the BBC World Service radio soap opera Westway.

He has performed multiple times for the BBC including the lead role in Six Degrees of Separation, playing Marvin Gaye in a biopic, and two roles in the BBC Radio adaptation of The Color Purple, which went on to win the Sony Radio Academy Awards for Drama in 2009.[37]