---
name: "Danai Gurira"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/danai-gurira"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "14 February 1978"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 3
average_fi1m_score: 75
average_as: "actor"
average_over: 3
updated: "2026-09-17T18:33:20.742539+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Danai Gurira

Actor. Born 14 February 1978 in Grinnell, Iowa, USA.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 14 February 1978, Grinnell, Iowa, USA
- **Active:** 2010–present
- **Also known as:** Danai Jekesai Gurira
- **Average Fi1m score:** 75, as actor, over 3 titles
- **Fi1m against the critics:** 75 to 79 across 3 titles
- **Score spread:** 0 at 80+, 3 at 60–79, 0 under 60
- **Lead roles:** 0 of 1 acting credits billed first or second
- **Genres:** Action 2, Adventure 2, Science Fiction 2, Action & Adventure 1, Drama 1, Sci-Fi & Fantasy 1
- **Screen time:** 6 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $4,852m across 2 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danai_Gurira, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q636653, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1775091/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/82104

## Coming up

- *Matchbox the Movie* (2026-10-08), as Helen — [page](https://film.one/film/matchbox-the-movie.md)
- *The Thomas Crown Affair* (2027-03-04)

## Streaming the US now

- **Netflix:** [*The Walking Dead*](https://film.one/tv/the-walking-dead.md) (68)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Biography

Danai Jekesai Gurira is a Zimbabwean-American actress and playwright. She was born on 14 February 1978 in Grinnell, Iowa, and raised partly in Zimbabwe before returning to the United States for university studies.

Gurira is best known for playing Michonne Hawthorne in the television series *The Walking Dead* (2010–2022) and its spin-off *The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live* (2024), and Okoye in the Marvel films *Black Panther* (2018), *Avengers: Infinity War* (2018), *Avengers: Endgame* (2019) and *Black Panther: Wakanda Forever* (2022). She wrote the play *Eclipsed*, which received a Tony Award nomination for Best Play, and she appears as Helen in the forthcoming film *Matchbox the Movie* (2026).

*Sources: watch.plex.tv, en.wikipedia.org, britannica.com, imdb.com.*

## On Fi1m (3)

- *Avengers: Endgame* (2019), Fi1m 79, as Okoye — [page](https://film.one/film/avengers-endgame.md)
- *Avengers: Infinity War* (2018), Fi1m 77, as Okoye — [page](https://film.one/film/avengers-infinity-war.md)
- *The Walking Dead* (2010), Fi1m 68, as Michonne Hawthorne — [page](https://film.one/tv/the-walking-dead.md)

## Complete filmography (30)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *The Thomas Crown Affair* (2027), Acting
- *Matchbox the Movie* (2026), as Helen — coming soon, [page](https://film.one/film/matchbox-the-movie.md)
- *The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live* (2024), series, Michonne, Story, Executive Producer, Writer, Creator
- *Shakespeare in the Park: Richard III* (2023), as Richard III
- *Black Panther: Wakanda Forever* (2022), as Okoye
- *What If...?* (2021), series, as Okoye (voice)
- *INVINCIBLE* (2021), series, as Universa (voice)
- *Marvel Studios Legends* (2021), series, as Okoye (archive footage) (uncredited)
- *Eclipsed* (2020), Writer
- *Avengers: Endgame* (2019), as Okoye — Fi1m 79, [page](https://film.one/film/avengers-endgame.md)
- *Avengers: Infinity War* (2018), as Okoye — Fi1m 77, [page](https://film.one/film/avengers-infinity-war.md)
- *Black Panther* (2018), as Okoye
- *The Robot Chicken Walking Dead Special: Look Who's Walking* (2017), as Michonne (voice)
- *All Eyez on Me* (2017), as Afeni Shakur
- *The Day Will Come When You Won't Be* (2016), as Michonne
- *Tinker Bell and the Legend of the NeverBeast* (2014), as Fury (voice)
- *Mother of George* (2013), as Adenike Olumide Balogen
- *Restless City* (2012), as Sisi
- *The Walking Dead* (2010), series, as Michonne Hawthorne — Fi1m 68, [page](https://film.one/tv/the-walking-dead.md)
- *My Soul to Take* (2010), as Jeanne-Baptiste
- *3 Backyards* (2010), as Woman in Blue Dress
- *Lie to Me* (2009), series, as Michelle Russo
- *Life on Mars* (2008), series, as Angela
- *Ghost Town* (2008), as Assorted Ghost
- *The Visitor* (2008), as Zainab
- *Law & Order: Criminal Intent* (2001), series, as Marei Rosa Rumbidzai
- *Law & Order* (1990), series, as Courtney Owens — Fi1m 72, [page](https://film.one/tv/law-and-order.md)
- *The Fighting Shirley Chisholm*, as Shirley Chisholm
- *Here Comes the Flood*, Acting
- *Too Far Gone*, as Michonne

## Gallery

- ![Danai Gurira](https://film.one/media/person/95617/gallery-0b38fcd5baf9.jpg) Danai Gurira — Gage Skidmore, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/01/Danai_Gurira_2024_%28cropped%29.jpg/1280px-Danai_Gurira_2024_%28cropped%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Angela Kang, Danai Gurira, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Cailey Fleming, Norman Reedus, Melissa McBride and Avi Nash speaking at the 2019 San Diego Comic Con Internation](https://film.one/media/person/95617/gallery-dec77631db2f.jpg) Angela Kang, Danai Gurira, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Cailey Fleming, Norman Reedus, Melissa McBride and Avi Nash speaking at the 2019 San Diego Comic Con Internation — Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/99/Angela_Kang%2C_Danai_Gurira%2C_Jeffrey_Dean_Morgan%2C_Cailey_Fleming%2C_Norman_Reedus%2C_Melissa_McBride_%26_Avi_Nash_%2848411591157%29.jpg/1280px-Angela_Kang%2C_Danai_Gurira%2C_Jeffrey_Dean_Morgan%2C_Cailey_Fleming%2C_Norman_Reedus%2C_Melissa_McBride_%26_Avi_Nash_%2848411591157%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Angela Kang, Danai Gurira, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Cailey Fleming and Norman Reedus speaking at the 2019 San Diego Comic Con International, for "The Walking Dead",](https://film.one/media/person/95617/gallery-2157a2686055.jpg) Angela Kang, Danai Gurira, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Cailey Fleming and Norman Reedus speaking at the 2019 San Diego Comic Con International, for "The Walking Dead", — Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/57/Angela_Kang%2C_Danai_Gurira%2C_Jeffrey_Dean_Morgan%2C_Cailey_Fleming_%26_Norman_Reedus_%2848411586257%29.jpg/1280px-Angela_Kang%2C_Danai_Gurira%2C_Jeffrey_Dean_Morgan%2C_Cailey_Fleming_%26_Norman_Reedus_%2848411586257%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Angela Kang, Danai Gurira, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Cailey Fleming and Norman Reedus speaking at the 2019 San Diego Comic Con International, for "The Walking Dead",](https://film.one/media/person/95617/gallery-bf0f326fc6d0.jpg) Angela Kang, Danai Gurira, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Cailey Fleming and Norman Reedus speaking at the 2019 San Diego Comic Con International, for "The Walking Dead", — Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/51/Angela_Kang%2C_Danai_Gurira%2C_Jeffrey_Dean_Morgan%2C_Cailey_Fleming_%26_Norman_Reedus_%2848411588912%29.jpg/1280px-Angela_Kang%2C_Danai_Gurira%2C_Jeffrey_Dean_Morgan%2C_Cailey_Fleming_%26_Norman_Reedus_%2848411588912%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Danai Gurira](https://film.one/media/person/95617/gallery-fc6d4bc8b26d.jpg) Danai Gurira — Image via TMDB
- ![Danai Gurira](https://film.one/media/person/95617/gallery-b15d665e6409.jpg) Danai Gurira — Image via TMDB
- ![Danai Gurira](https://film.one/media/person/95617/gallery-8173a5e96eaf.jpg) Danai Gurira — Image via TMDB
- ![Angela Kang, Danai Gurira, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Cailey Fleming and Norman Reedus speaking at the 2019 San Diego Comic Con International, for "The Walking Dead",](https://film.one/media/person/95617/gallery-7a9dd6affa43.jpg) Angela Kang, Danai Gurira, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Cailey Fleming and Norman Reedus speaking at the 2019 San Diego Comic Con International, for "The Walking Dead", — Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ac/Angela_Kang%2C_Danai_Gurira%2C_Jeffrey_Dean_Morgan%2C_Cailey_Fleming_%26_Norman_Reedus_%2848411611492%29.jpg/1280px-Angela_Kang%2C_Danai_Gurira%2C_Jeffrey_Dean_Morgan%2C_Cailey_Fleming_%26_Norman_Reedus_%2848411611492%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Angela Kang, Danai Gurira, Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Cailey Fleming speaking at the 2019 San Diego Comic Con International, for "The Walking Dead", at the San Die](https://film.one/media/person/95617/gallery-b6dbbf546db8.jpg) Angela Kang, Danai Gurira, Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Cailey Fleming speaking at the 2019 San Diego Comic Con International, for "The Walking Dead", at the San Die — Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/23/Angela_Kang%2C_Danai_Gurira%2C_Jeffrey_Dean_Morgan_%26_Cailey_Fleming_%2848411437106%29.jpg/1280px-Angela_Kang%2C_Danai_Gurira%2C_Jeffrey_Dean_Morgan_%26_Cailey_Fleming_%2848411437106%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Danai Gurira](https://film.one/media/person/95617/gallery-5a11fd0b7929.jpg) Danai Gurira — Image via TMDB
- ![Danai Gurira](https://film.one/media/person/95617/gallery-8b4b41505923.jpg) Danai Gurira — Image via TMDB
- ![Danai Gurira](https://film.one/media/person/95617/gallery-3e53ae913394.jpg) Danai Gurira — Image via TMDB

## Awards

### Other awards — 16 won, 2 nominated

- TIME100 Impact Awards 2023: TIME100 Impact Awards (won)
- honorary degree from Spelman College 2020: honorary degree from Spelman College (won)
- OkayAfrica 100 Women 2019: OkayAfrica 100 Women (won)
- OkayAfrica 100 Women 2017: OkayAfrica 100 Women (won)
- Lilly Awards 2016: Lilly Awards (nominated)
- Tony Award for Best Play 2016: Tony Award for Best Play (nominated), for *Eclipsed*
- Black Reel Awards 2014: Black Reel Awards (won)
- Saturn Awards 2014: Saturn Awards (won)
- Eyegore Awards 2013: Eyegore Awards (won)
- Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award 2013: Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award (won)
- Satellite Awards 2012: Satellite Awards (won)
- Whiting Awards 2012: Whiting Awards (won)
- Helen Hayes Award 2010: Helen Hayes Award (won)
- NAACP Theatre Awards 2010: NAACP Theatre Awards (won)
- Method Fest Independent Film Festival 2008: Method Fest Independent Film Festival (won)
- Helen Hayes Award 2007: Helen Hayes Award (won)
- Obie Award 2006: Obie Award (won)
- Outer Critics Circle Award 2006: Outer Critics Circle Award (won)

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/danai-gurira