Viola Davis
- Majoring in Theatre, Davis attended Rhode Island College. Following her graduation, she studied at the Juilliard School in New York City.
- In 2001, she won a Tony Award for her Broadway role in August Wilson’s King Hedley II. Prior to this, she had been nominated for a different Wilson play in 1996, Seven Guitars.
- In 2009, she was inducted into the Academy of Motion Pictures, Arts, and Sciences.
- Davis won a Tony Award in 2010 for her Broadway performance in the play Fences.
- She is one of five actresses to earn an Academy Award nomination for a role with less than 10 minutes of screen time.
- Davis is among 17 actresses to have won an Academy Award, an Emmy, and a Tony (the Triple Crown of Acting). In 2015, receiving an Emmy for her performance in How to Get Away with Murder and obtaining the first of the three for her role in the film Fences during 2017.
- With her husband Julius, she heads the JuVee Productions company.
Timothy Olyphant
- Olyphant was raised in Modesto, California, and attended the University of Southern California. While there, he swam competitively and studied Fine Art and Theatre.
- He commented on sports for the Los Angeles radio station Indie 103.1 during its morning show until 2008.
- Leading up to 2008, Olyphant was considered to play Tony Stark in Iron Man.
- Prior to receiving work as an actor, he began his career performing stand-up comedy both in New York City and Boston. At the time, other new comedians on the scene included Sarah Silverman and Dave Chappelle.
- Olyphant also studied at the William Esper Studio in New York.
- He is known for his roles in Deadwood, Justified, and Santa Clarita Diet, some of his most recent appearances being on The Mandalorian and Fargo.
- Nominated for two Emmys, Olyphant has earned a number of other nominations, as well as some awards.
Michelle Yeoh
- Yeoh got her start in acting by filming a commercial with Jackie Chan.
- She made her way to the top of the male-dominated genre of Hong Kong action films, where she became known for years as the “queen of martial arts”.
- In London, England, Yeoh attended the Royal Academy of Dance, where she obtained her Bachelor’s Degree.
- From her film Butterfly and Sword (released in 1993), she created a CD titled Love Quite Like a Comet.
- Yeoh speaks three languages – English, Malay, and Cantonese.
- In 2001, she was granted the title of “dato” by the Sultan of Perak, in her native state. It is an honourary Malaysian title similar in some ways to an English knighthood.
- For her contributions to international culture, Yeoh was named a Chevalier of the French Legion d’Honneur in 2007.
- Highly praised for her work, one can view her performances in Crazy Rich Asians and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, among other films. An upcoming project she takes part in is the Marvel film Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.
Glynn Turman
- Growing up in New York City, Turman dived into his study of acting at Manhattan’s renowned High School of Performing Arts.
- In Lorraine Hansberry’s play, A Raisin in the Sun, he originated the role of Travis Younger in 1959.
- With Aretha Franklin, whom he was married to at the time, he co-wrote the song I’m Your Speed, which is featured on her Almighty Fire album.
- Turman is an accomplished horseman, and together with his wife Jo-an, they are co-founders of Camp Gid D Up, a non-profit organization in Los Angeles.
- In 2011, he was inducted into The National Multicultural Western Heritage Museum Hall of Fame.
- For Joe Turner’s Come and Gone, Turman was awarded the 2013 Los Angeles Stage Alliance Ovation Award for Lead Actor in a Play.
- A recipient of additional accolades, some of his performances can be found in The Wire, Race, House of Lies, How to Get Away with Murder, Mr. Mercedes, and Fargo.
Tantoo Cardinal
- Born in Fort McMurray, Alberta, Cardinal is Métis, as well as Cree and French.
- Her career started with a CBC docudrama appearance, along with her involvement in productions for the Alberta Native Communications Society.
- Cardinal learned Lakota for Dances with Wolves (1990), an Academy Award-winning film.
- She has earned numerous awards in recognition of achievements in her field and her dedication to the Indigenous community.
- Cardinal can be seen in As Long as the Rivers Flow, a series of one-hour documentaries focusing on Indigenous Canadians’ drive for self-government.
- Raised in Anzac, Alberta, she has also lived in Calgary, Alberta and Vancouver, British Columbia, as well as Lyndonville, Vermont.
- Among many works, Cardinal has roles in Moccasin Flats, Blackstone, Wind River, Godless, Mohawk Girls, The Grizzlies, Frontier, and Stumptown.
