Ruth Negga was born on January 7, 1982, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to an Ethiopian father and an Irish mother. At the age of four, she moved to Limerick, Ireland, where she spent her formative years. She studied acting at Trinity College Dublin, graduating with a BA in Acting Studies.
Negga began her acting career in theatre and Irish film and television. Her early roles included appearances in the films Capital Letters (2004) and Breakfast on Pluto (2005). She also had roles in Irish television series such as Doctors and Criminal Justice.
Negga gained wider recognition for her roles in British television. She portrayed Shirley Bassey in the BBC film Shirley (2011), earning a BAFTA Television Award nomination. She also appeared in the BBC series Misfits and the American series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013).
Negga’s film career includes roles in diverse projects. She received critical acclaim for her performance as Mildred Loving in the biographical drama Loving (2016), which earned her nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actress, the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama, and the Critics’ Choice Movie Award for Best Actress.
Negga has a strong background in theatre. She has performed in various stage productions, including Hamlet, Pygmalion, and Lolita. In 2020, she made her Broadway debut in Macbeth, alongside Daniel Craig, receiving a Tony Award nomination for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play.
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