Chiwetel Umeadi Ejiofor CBE (Chiwetel Umeadi Ejiofor CBE) is a British actor. After enrolling in the National Youth Theatre in 1995 and attending the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, Steven Spielberg cast Ejiofor as James Covey in the film Amistad at the age of 19 and three months into his study.

What is the Net Worth of Chiwetel Ejiofor?

Chiwetel Ejiofor has a net worth of $16 million as a British actor and filmmaker. Chiwetel Ejiofor made his stage debut in 1995 as Othello in a theater rendition of the play. Following that, he starred in the television movie “Deadly Voyage” and Steven Spielberg’s historical drama “Amistad.” Since then, Ejiofor has received critical acclaim for roles in films such as “Dirty Pretty Things,” “Kinky Boots,” and “12 Years a Slave.”

Early Life:

Chiwetel Ejiofor was born in London, England, to Nigerian Igbo parents Arinze and Obiajulu on July 10, 1977. Zain, his younger sister, is his only sibling. During a trip to a wedding in Nigeria when Ejiofor was 11. Hhe and his father were involved in a head-on car accident. Ejiofor was injured in the incident and received scars on his forehead, while his father was killed.

Ejiofor was a student at Dulwich Prep in London, where he performed in a school version of Shakespeare’s “Hamlet.” At Dulwich College, he continued to act and joined the National Youth Theatre. Following that, Ejiofor was admitted into the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, but he dropped out after his first year due to his role in Steven Spielberg’s “Amistad,” his first film role. He made his professional stage debut in 1995, starring in a performance of “Othello,” which he reprised in 1996 in Glasgow. In the same year, he made his first appearance on television in the made-for-TV film “Deadly Voyage.”

Film Career:

Following “Amistad,” Ejiofor starred in the British drama “G:MT – Greenwich Mean Time” in 1999. He received his first big part the following year in the comedy “It Was an Accident”. In 2002, Ejiofor played alongside Audrey Tautou in Stephen Frears’ social thriller “Dirty Pretty Things,” which earned him his highest critical acclaim. He won the British Independent Film Award for Best Actor for his performance. In 2003, he appeared in “Love Actually,” a Christmas-themed romantic comedy, and “Three Blind Mice,” a criminal picture.

Throughout the decade, Ejiofor landed roles in a number of prominent films. In 2004, he appeared in Spike Lee’s “She Hate Me,” Tom Hooper’s post-apartheid drama “Red Dust,” and Woody Allen’s “Melinda and Melinda.”He appeared in “Four Brothers” and “Slow Burn” the next year, as well as “Kinky Boots,” a critically acclaimed dramedy, and “Serenity,” a space Western. Spike Lee’s “Inside Man,” Alfonso Cuarón’s “Children of Men,” Kasi Lemmons’ “Talk to Me,” Ridley Scott’s “American Gangster,” David Mamet’s “Redbelt,” Pete Travis’ “Endgame,” and Roland Emmerich’s disaster thriller “2012” were among Ejiofor’s subsequent credits.

After that, In 2010, Ejiofor starred in the action thriller “Salt” alongside Angelina Jolie and Liev Schreiber. He starred in three historical plays three years later: “Savannah,” “Half of a Yellow Sun,” and “12 Years a Slave.” Solomon Northup, a free black man in New York who was kidnapped and sold into slavery in 1841, was played by Ejiofor in the latter film. “12 Years a Slave” went on to become one of the most critically acclaimed films of 2013, receiving numerous award nominations and victories. Ejiofor was nominated for an Oscar for Best Actor, while the film itself took home the award for Best Picture.

Personal Life:

In 2008, Ejiofor was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire.  He received a Global Promise Award from the non-profit welfare group the GEANCO Foundation . Seven years later in recognition of his charitable work in Nigeria.

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