Nigerians abroad are really making waves with their skills and talents. In fact, they have continued to do the nation proud with their performances and talents. One of such is Nigerian Hollywood actor, Hakeem Kae-Kazim, who is making waves in the American entertainment industry.
Hakeem Kae-Kazim is one of the actors in both Hollywood and Nollywood. He was born in Nigeria on 1st of October, 1962 and trained in the United Kingdom at the highly regarded Bristol Old Vic and soon after graduation was invited to join the Royal Shakespeare Company.
Kae-Kazim rose to fame in the Oscar Nominated film Hotel Rwanda, playing George Rutugunda. The film is a 2004 American drama, which was based on real life events in Rwanda, focusing on the ravages of the 1994 Rwandan Genocide.
Kae-Kazim, a talented actor has an impressive list of credits and grew a huge fan base when he played the villain Colonel Dubaku in Fox’s Series 24. Afterwards, he went on to play in many of Hollywood’s prime time TV shows and Blockbusters, including X-men: Wolverine and Pirates of the Caribbean.
Currently, he is featuring in Starz, a much awaited new series which is Michael Bay’s original Black Sails. This film series, reflecting the 1715 Golden Age of Piracy in the Caribbean at its apex, stars Kae-Kazim alongside Zach McGowan, Jessica Parker Kennedy, Mark Ryan and Toby Stephens.
Kae-Kazim is well loved for his TV work, which recently has included many primetime shows including Human Target, Criminal Minds, Navy NCIS, Cobert Affairs and Strike Back. This Nigerian-born actor’s list of impressive credits also include Lost, Cane with Jimmy Smits, Law and Order: SVU with Mariska Hargitay, The Triangle with Sam Neill, The Librarian with Gabrielle Anwar, The 4th Kind alongside Milla Jovovich and Darfur with Billy Zane.
Even as a Hollywood actor, he still comes home to showcase his talent and contribute to the entertainment industry in Nigeria. His latest films, Half of a Yellow Sun and A Chance of Rain are set to be released soon, also the much awaited new series, Black Sails, which will be premiering in 2014.
He speaks:
Tell us about Hakeem Kae-Kazim’s background?Although I was born in Nigeria, I spent many years of my life living in both the United Kingdom and South Africa. However, I now live in Los Angeles, United States with my wife and beautiful children, but always travel back to Nigeria, because it is a place I hold very dear to my heart.
What inspired you to become an actor?When I was at school in England, I was inspired by one of my English teachers. He was a fantastic teacher who was very enthusiastic about any character he played, which inspired me to start acting. He then cast me in one of the school plays and my passion and desire grew from there.
How do you handle challenges on the job?One of the biggest challenges working as an actor, is actually working regularly. That is a challenge every actor is always trying to overcome and really the only way to overcome it, is by working really hard and being as good as one can be, in each and every acting job you do.
As a Nigerian based abroad, how did you make it to the top?Well, I’m still trying to make it to the very top but really through hard work, dedication and passion.
What’s your memorable achievement?
I haven’t won many awards, so they are all memorable. But I have been nominated many times, and I would say the most memorable nomination I’ve had would be my Gemini nomination for Best Actor, which is like the equivalent of an EMMI in Canada.
What are your plans for the future?
Within the next couple of years, I would like to put on my directing hat, I have already started working on a few projects, so really, it’s just getting round to actually starting to direct the films.
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