David Oyelowo Height, Weight, Age, Body Statistics

David Oyelowo is an English actor, director, and producer who is best known for portraying roles such as Martin Luther King Jr. in Selma, Peter Snowdin in Nightingale, Seretse Khama in A United Kingdom, Louis Gaines in The Butler, Robert Katende in Queen of Katwe, Javert in Les Misérables, Danny Hunter in Spooks, Steven Jacobs in Rise of the Planet of the Apes, and Emerson in Jack Reacher. He has also appeared in a variety of other TV shows and films such as A Sound of Thunder, As You Like It, A Raisin in the Sun, The Help, 96 Minutes, Middle of Nowhere, Interstellar, The Water Man, The Book of Clarence, Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway, As Time Goes By, The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency, Shoot the Messenger, The Lion Guard: The Rise of Scar, The Girl Before, and many more. For his acting skills, he has been honored with numerous awards such as the NAACP Image Award, Critics’ Choice Television Award, and African-American Film Critics Association Award.

Born Name

David Oyetokunbo Oyelowo

Nick Name

David

Sun Sign

Aries

Born Place

Oxford, Oxfordshire, England

Residence

Los Angeles, California, United States

Nationality

English, Nigerian

Education

David was enrolled in a military-style boarding school in Nigeria. Upon moving back to England at age 14, he got admission in theatre studies at the City and Islington College.

Later, he got enrolled in a one-year art foundation course at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA). In 1998, he completed his three years of training.

Occupation

Actor and producer

Family

• Father – Stephen Oyelowo (Employed in national airline)

Manager

David Oyelowo is represented by the Hamilton Hodell Talent Agency.

Build

Athletic

Height

5 ft 9 in or 175 cm

Weight

78 kg or 172 lbs

Girlfriend / Spouse

David Oyelowo has dated

1. Jessica Oyelowo – David met English actress Jessica Oyelowo while they were studying at the drama school. Their acquaintance slowly blossomed into a love affair and they eventually got married. They also have four children, of which they have three sons and one daughter. The names of two of their sons are Caleb Oyelowo and Asher Oyelowo. As David is a fiercely private man, little is known about his personal life such as his wedding date and the birth dates of his children.

Race / Ethnicity

Black

David has Yoruba ancestry on both his parents’ sides.

Hair Color

Black

Eye Color

Dark Brown

Sexual Orientation

Straight

Distinctive Features

• Close-cropped hairdo
• Broad face

Religion

Christianity

David was raised as a Baptist. He is a devout Christian and believes that God has helped him bag some of the prestigious roles over the years.

Best Known For

• Playing the role of Martin Luther King Jr. in the biographical drama, Selma.
• Having played the lead role of Seretse Khama in the romantic drama movie, A United Kingdom.

First Film

He made his theatrical film debut in 2001, playing the role of CJ, in the s*x comedy, Dog Eat Dog.

First TV Show

In 1998, David made his first TV show appearance in the Food of Love episode of the crime drama TV series, Maisie Raine. He played the character of Sonny McDonald.

David Oyelowo Favorite Things

• Color – Yellow

Source – Observer

David Oyelowo Facts

1. His last name is pronounced as “oh-YEH-luh-whoa”.
2. The prestigious Forbes magazine included him in the list of Thirteen African Celebrities To Watch In 2013 in their December 2012 issue.
3. He first got to read the script for the movie Selma in July 2007. With the help of his wife, he recorded four scenes and sent his tape in. However, the original director of the project, Stephen Frears felt he wasn’t best suited for the role of Martin Luther King Jr.
4. After Lee Daniels was appointed as the project director, he called David for a fresh round of auditions. But, after he was selected, Daniels’ name was removed from the project.
5. He eventually worked with Lee Daniels in The Paperboy (2011) and The Butler (2013).
6. He had suggested the eventual directorAva DuVernay‘s name for Selma after having gotten impressed with her direction in an independent drama film, Middle of Nowhere.
7. In August 2015, he was hired to narrate the audiobook version of the James Bond novel Trigger Mortis. The original book was written by Anthony Horowitz and had been commissioned by the Ian Fleming estate.
8. To prepare for the role of Peter Snowden in Nightingale, he moved out of his home and started staying in his friend’s apartment. He didn’t visit his home for the entire duration of the shoot, which lasted three weeks. He only met his family for half a day.
9. When he was trying to find a distributor for Nightingale, director Elliot Lester was told that by casting David, he was limiting the chances of his movie finding a distributor.
10. He spent most of his childhood in Nigeria before returning to London at the age of 14. His family had moved to Nigeria when he was 7 years old.
11. The meaning of his last name Oyelowo in the Yoruba language is ‘Title has respect.’ David often translates it to ‘a king deserves respect’ in his interviews.
12. He traces his lineage to a royal house in Nigeria and the street he was living on in Lagos had his family name.
13. In 2016, he was honored for his contributions to drama with an award of OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) at the Queen’s New Years Honours List event held in London.
14. He started his acting career by starring in a couple of plays with the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1999.
15. He was cast in the role of King Henry VI in the Royal Shakespeare Company’s production of a trilogy of Shakespeare plays. In doing so, he achieved the distinction of being the first actor of color to play the role of an English monarch in a major production of Shakespeare’s work.
16. He has played supporting roles in a couple of successful films such as Middle of Nowhere, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, and Lincoln.
17. His mother worked for a railway company.
18. He is not available on social media.

Featured Image by Mingle Media TV / Flickr / CC BY-SA 2.0