American actress, Amandla Stenberg, started her acting career as a child in 2011’s Colombiana. She has since appeared in supporting roles in various productions, including The Hunger Games (2012), Sleepy Hollow (2013-2014), and Mr. Robinson (2015).
Stenberg has also taken on leading roles in films such as Everything, Everything (2017) and The Hate U Give (2018), Bodies Bodies Bodies (2022), and The Acolyte (2024) miniseries.
Amandla Stenberg Bio Summary
Full name: Amandla Stenberg
Birthday: October 23, 1998
Age: 25 years old (as of 2024)
Height: 5 ft 3 in (160 cm)
Nationality: American
Ethnicity: African-American and Danish
Birthplace: Los Angeles, California, United States
Occupation: Actor, singer
Gender: Non-binary
Star sign: Scorpio
Father: Tom Stenberg
Mother: Karen Brailsford
Early Life
Amandla Stenberg was born in Los Angeles, California to Karen Brailsford, an African-American spiritual counselor and writer, and Tom Stenberg, who is Danish. She asserts that her paternal grandmother, Ena Stenberg, who lived in Greenland during Danish colonialism, gives her a connection to her Greenlandic Inuit roots.
Before colonialism in Greenland ended, Ena Stenberg relocated to Denmark. In Denmark, she was known as a radio host and singer, and she was part of a group called Mik that performed at the 1964 World’s Fair in New York.
Before her move, Ena Stenberg was a part of the Danish colonial community in Greenland. On her father’s side, she has two older half-sisters.
Stenberg’s name means “power” or “strength” in the South African tongues of IsiXhosa and Zulu. At the age of four, she began participating in catalog modeling projects for Disney. She has also been featured in various advertisements for companies such as Boeing and Kmart.
Career
Amandla Stenberg made her debut in the film industry in 2011 with her role as a younger Zoe Saldana in Colombiana. However, it was at the age of 14 that she gained recognition for her portrayal of Rue in The Hunger Games, which was both a critical and commercial hit. Stenberg’s acting skills were highly acclaimed in the film.
She was honored with various accolades and recognition, including a nomination for a Black Reel Award. In 2013, she landed a role in the short film Mercy as the daughter of Robin Thicke and Paula Patton, with Thicke serving as the director. From 2013 to 2014, Stenberg appeared regularly on season one of Sleepy Hollow.
Amandla Stenberg embarked on a musical journey in 2013, showcasing her talents on the violin and as a vocalist alongside singer-songwriter Zander Hawley at various Los Angeles locations.
The following year, she lent her voice to the character Bia in the hit animated movie Rio 2. In August 2015, Stenberg made her debut as one half of the folk-rock duo Honeywater, releasing their first EP.
In November 2015, Stenberg collaborated with Sebastian Jones to create the comic book Niobe: She is Life, with illustrations by Ashley A. Woods. This groundbreaking comic features a black woman as its lead character, and also has a black woman as its writer and artist. It was the first of its kind to be distributed nationwide.
In 2016, Amandla Stenberg starred in Beyoncé’s visual album “Lemonade” and received the BET YoungStars Award. That same year, she joined The Society, a modeling agency.
Stenberg also tried out for the character of Shuri in the superhero movie “Black Panther,” but ultimately declined the role as she didn’t believe it was suitable for her. The part was ultimately given to actress Letitia Wright.
Starring as Starr Carter in the modern drama The Hate U Give, adapted from the novel with the same title, she garnered praise for her portrayal. The film, which delves into the Black Lives Matter movement, was well-received and earned her numerous accolades, including an NAACP Image Award and a Critics’ Choice Award nomination.
She became a part of the Netflix miniseries The Eddy in May 2019 and it premiered on May 8, 2020. During the same month, she agreed to take on a lead role in the 1996 thriller Fear’s remake. In August 2020, she was chosen to play Alana Beck in Stephen Chbosky’s movie version of the popular Broadway musical Dear Evan Hansen.
Amandla Stenberg landed the lead role in the Star Wars series The Acolyte in 2021. In May 2023, it was revealed that she will be among the voice actors in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, playing the character Margo Kess / Spider-Byte.
Personal Life
Amandla Stenberg publicly acknowledged her bisexuality in January 2016 but later clarified that she also identifies as pansexual. In March of the same year, she shared that she is non-binary and prefers to use she/her and they/them pronouns.
In a June 2018 interview with Wonderland magazine, she revealed that she identifies as gay. She was in a romantic relationship with singer Mikaela Mullaney Straus, also known as King Princess, from early to late 2018.
Net Worth
Amandla Stenberg, an American actress and voice actress, has a net worth of $2 million. She began her career in catalog modeling for Disney at the young age of four and has appeared in advertisements for Kmart and McDonald’s. In 2011, she played Cat in Colombiana, and in 2012, she portrayed Rue in The Hunger Games.
