Celebrity Biographies
Djimon hounsou
Sword in hand. Shoulder shield. The Roman Coliseum applauds him for his tireless struggle. Djimon Hounsou was the slave who fought alongside Maximo Décimo Meridio (Russell Crowe) in Gladiator , the role for which this actor is remembered, who dances between action and fantasy in his feature films.
Djimon comes from the Republic of Benin, Africa, where he was born on April 24, 1964, although he has dual American and Beninese nationality. He had a difficult childhood, as he abandoned his parents and moved to Lyon with his brother when he was just a teenager. There he came to live on the street and ate from the garbage, until one day he had a stroke of luck. He was found by a well-known fashion designer who took him off the street. His athletic body gave him the opportunity to become a model, although Djimon Hounsou was not satisfied with just posing and he decided to pursue an acting career.
In 1990 he came to the United States and that same year he made his debut with a small role in Without You I’m Nothing . From here her career would begin to rise, even receiving several Oscar nominations. Among his most exploited genres is the drama for which he has been praised on several occasions thanks to his slave roles. Friendship , Gladiator or Blood Diamond , for which he opted for the golden statuette, are three of his most recognized works. We saw another of his great performances in the Irish film In America (2002), his first Oscar nomination in the sad story of an Irish family that moves to New York with the indelible memory of his deceased daughter.
Hounsou has also been seen in a handful of commercial action movies like the Tomb Raider sequel ; in the post-apocalyptic world of Constantine ; in Michael Bay ‘s futuristic production , The Island ; in Breaking the Rules , a martial arts movie in which he played a master; and in the latest installment of the famous Fast & Furious 7 saga .
In recent years he has been interested in fantasy and science fiction projects such as Eragon , Guardians of the Galaxy, and The Seventh Son . But his foray into this genre began in 1994 with Stargate: Gate to the Stars . For any director, having Djimon Hounsou under his command offers a wide range of possibilities since he is a very experienced actor at 51 years of age.
On the other hand, like many actors today, Hounsou has combined his feature films with small television appearances. Emergencies or Alias were his contact with this sector.