Da'Vine Joy Randolph | |
|---|---|
| Born | May 21, 1986 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States |
| Education | Temple University (Bachelor of Arts) Yale University (Master of Fine Arts) |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 2010–present |
Da'Vine Joy Randolph (born May 21, 1986)[1] is an American actress. She first gained recognition for playing psychic Oda Mae Brown in the Broadway production of Ghost: The Musical (2012) for which she received a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical.
Randolph's early films include The Angriest Man in Brooklyn (2014) and Office Christmas Party (2016) before gaining prominence for her roles in Dolemite Is My Name (2019), The United States vs. Billie Holiday (2020), and The Holdovers (2023). Her television roles include Selfie (2014), People of Earth (2016–17), Empire (2017–18), High Fidelity (2020), Only Murders in the Building (2021–present), and The Idol (2023).
Early life and education
Randolph grew up in Philadelphia and Hershey, Pennsylvania. She went to Temple University to focus on vocal performance, but in her junior year, she switched concentrations to musical theatre. After graduating from Temple she went to the Yale School of Drama. She graduated from Yale in 2011 with her master's degree.[2] As a youth she attended Interlochen Arts Camp, studying theatre.[3]
Career
Randolph auditioned for an understudy role in the Broadway transfer of Ghost: the Musical (which was playing in London's West End), but the producers decided to cast her in the principal role of Oda Mae Brown.[4] Before the casting of the Broadway transfer was announced Sharon D. Clarke, who played Oda Mae in the London run of Ghost the Musical, suffered a minor knee injury. Randolph was quickly flown to London to cover the role in Clarke's absence.[5] Her debut performance took place on Friday December 16, 2011, and she continued to share the role with understudy Lisa Davina Phillip until early January 2012, when Clarke returned.
After a preview period that began in March 2012, the Broadway production opened Monday April 23, 2012, with Randolph playing opposite Richard Fleeshman and Caissie Levy in the leading roles. She was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. In 2013 she acted in her feature film debut in a supporting role, in Mother of George directed by Andrew Dosunmu. The film premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival to positive reviews. The following year she played a nurse in the comedy-drama The Angriest Man in Brooklyn (2014) starring Robin Williams. Randolph rose to prominence acting in one of the main roles as Charmonique Whitaker in Selfie, which premiered on September 30, 2014. The show starred Karen Gillan and John Cho. It received mixed reviews, and it was cancelled after one season but has a cult fan base.
From 2015 to 2017 Randolph performed a voice role as Christine in the series The Mr. Peabody & Sherman Show. She also had guest roles on The Good Wife (2013), See Dad Run (2014), Life in Pieces (2015), and Veep (2017). She had a recurring role as Tanya in the drama series This Is Us (2016). The same year, she had a part in Office Christmas Party (2016). She starred as one of the main roles as Yvonne Watson, a postal worker in the sitcom People of Earth from 2016 to 2017. She had recurring roles in the series Empire from 2017 to 2018 and in the series On Becoming a God in Central Florida in 2019.
She had her breakout role as Lady Reed in Dolemite Is My Name (2019) starring Eddie Murphy. For her performance she received nominations for the African-American Film Critics Association, Black Reel Awards, and NAACP Image Awards for Best Supporting Actress. The following year, she acted in Kajillionaire (2020), and she was a main cast member in High Fidelity (2020). During this time, she took voice roles as Ranger Woolf in Madagascar: A Little Wild from 2020 to 2022, Tamarind Toucan in Tuca & Bertie (2021), Detective Gail Johnson in Ultra City Smiths (2021), Tina in Chicago Party Aunt from 2021 to 2022, and various roles in Birdgirl (2022 to present). She also voiced roles in the animated films Trolls World Tour (2020) and Puss in Boots: The Last Wish (2022).
She took roles in the drama film The United States vs. Billie Holiday (2021) and the comedy The Lost City (2022). In 2021. she took a main role in the sitcom The Last O.G. (2021). Since 2021, she has taken a recurring role as Detective Williams in the series Only Murders in the Building starring Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez. She played a manager to a pop star in the controversial series The Idol (2023). In 2023, she starred in Alexander Payne's coming-of-age film The Holdovers. The film premiered at the Telluride Film Festival. She earned praise for the role with Pete Hammond of Deadline Hollywood, who wrote "Randolph is simply wonderful, saying more with a look than any words could ever do. She is enormously touching and earns our tears along the way."[6] The same year, she played gospel singer Mahalia Jackson in the political drama film Rustin.
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Mother of George | Marsea | |
| The Purge: The Morning After | De'Shondranique | short[7] | |
| A Long Walk | Mom | short[8] | |
| 2014 | The Angriest Man in Brooklyn | Nurse Rowan | |
| 2016 | The Secrets of Emily Blair | Fran | |
| Office Christmas Party | Carla | ||
| 2019 | Dolemite Is My Name | Lady Reed | |
| 2020 | Kajillionaire | Jenny | |
| The Last Shift | Shazz | ||
| Trolls World Tour | Bliss Marina / Shelia B | voice[9] | |
| Mama Got A Cough | Yolanda | video short[10] | |
| 2021 | The United States vs. Billie Holiday | Roslyn | |
| The Guilty | CHP Dispatcher | voice[9] | |
| 2022 | The Lost City | Beth Hatten | |
| A Little White Lie | Delta Jones | ||
| Puss in Boots: The Last Wish | Mama Luna | voice[9] | |
| On the Come Up | Pooh | ||
| 2023 | Rustin | Mahalia Jackson | |
| The Holdovers | Mary Lamb | ||
| TBD | Shadow Force | TBA | post-production[11] |
| TBD | Bride Hard | TBA | post-production[12] |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | The Good Wife | Margie | episode: "A More Perfect Union" |
| Brenda Forever | Pearl | television film | |
| 2014 | See Dad Run | Mrs. Rothschild | episode: "See Dad Become Room Mom" |
| Selfie | Charmonique Whitaker | Main cast | |
| 2015 | Life in Pieces | Janice | episode: "Babe Secret Phone Germs" |
| 2015–2017 | The Mr. Peabody & Sherman Show | Christine / Abby Fisher | voice, main cast[9] |
| 2016 | This Is Us | Tanya | recurring cast (season 1) |
| 2016–2017 | People of Earth | Yvonne Watson | main cast |
| 2017 | Veep | Roberta Winston | episode: "Qatar" |
| 2017–2018 | Empire | Poundcake | recurring cast (season 4) |
| 2018 | Home: Adventures with Tip & Oh | Crushtina | voice, episode: "Like Mother, Like Pit of Fire"[9] |
| 2019 | On Becoming a God in Central Florida | Rhonda | recurring cast |
| 2020 | High Fidelity | Cherise | main cast |
| 2020–2022 | Madagascar: A Little Wild | Ranger Hoof | voice, recurring cast |
| 2021 | Cinema Toast | Vivian | voice, episode: "Kiss, Marry, Kill" |
| Tuca & Bertie | Tamarind Toucan | voice, 2 episodes | |
| Ultra City Smiths | Detective Gail Johnson | voice, main cast | |
| The Last O.G. | Veesy | main cast (season 4) | |
| 2021–present | Only Murders in the Building | Detective Williams | recurring cast |
| 2021–2022 | Chicago Party Aunt | Tina | voice, main cast |
| 2022–present | Birdgirl | Various voices | recurring cast[13] |
| 2023 | The Idol | Destiny | recurring cast[14] |
Theatre
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Hair | Tribe | Prince Music Theater May 26, 2007 - June 17, 2007 |
| 2010 | The Servant of Two Masters | Clarice | Yale Repertory Theatre March 12, 2010 - April 3, 2010 |
| 2012 | Ghost: The Musical | Oda Mae Brown | Lunt-Fontanne Theatre April 23, 2012 – August 18, 2012 |
| 2013 | The Cradle Will Rock | Performer | New York City Center July 10, 2013 - July 13, 2013 |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Tony Award | Best Featured Actress in a Musical | Ghost: The Musical | Nominated |
| Drama League Award | Distinguished Performance | Nominated | ||
| Outer Critics Circle Award | Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical | Nominated | ||
| 2020 | AAFCA Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Dolemite Is My Name | Won |
| Black Reel Awards | Outstanding Supporting Actress | Won | ||
| Outstanding Breakthrough Performance | Won | |||
| NAACP Image Awards | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture | Nominated | ||
| 2023 | Atlanta Film Critics Circle | Best Supporting Actress | The Holdovers | Won |
| Gotham Awards | Outstanding Supporting Performance | Nominated | ||
| New York Film Critics Circle Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Won |
References
- ↑ "Da'Vine Joy Randolph". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2023-01-15.
- ↑ "Da'Vine Joy Randolph on 'The Lost City' and Learning from Sandra Bullock". W Magazine. 2022-03-25. Retrieved 2023-05-27.
- ↑ "Halloween in Hollywood". Interlochen Center for the Arts. Archived from the original on 2020-07-26. Retrieved 2019-05-24.
- ↑ "Yale Grad Da'Vine Joy Randolph Gets 'Whoopi' Role In Broadway's Musical 'Ghost'". Hartford Courant. 2012-04-09. Retrieved 2021-12-10.
- ↑ Williams, Brennan (2012-04-27). "'Ghost The Musical:' Da'Vine Joy Randolph Tells How She Landed Starring Role". HuffPost. Retrieved 2019-11-04.
- ↑ "'The Holdovers' Review: Alexander Payne & Paul Giamatti Make Movie Magic Again In Wry And Funny Comedy About Finding Family – Telluride Film Festival". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved September 13, 2023.
- ↑ Schillaci, Sophie (2013-09-13). "The Morning After The Purge: Comedian Spoofs Universal's Horror Flick (Video)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2023-03-05.
- ↑ "A Long Walk". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2023-03-05.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Da'Vine Joy Randolph (visual voices guide)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved October 22, 2023. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its opening and/or closing credits and/or other reliable sources of information.
- ↑ "Mama Got a Cough - Zoom Shot Short Film". Meeting of Minds UK. Retrieved 2023-03-05.
- ↑ Itzkoff, Dave (2022-10-04). "Da'Vine Joy Randolph Doesn't Want Anyone Finishing Her Sentences". The New York Times. Retrieved 2023-03-05.
- ↑ D'Alessandro, Anthony (August 30, 2023). "Rebel Wilson Pic 'Bride Hard', Cleared for Interim Agreement, Adds Anna Camp, Justin Hartley, Anna Chlumsky, Stephen Dorff & More".
- ↑ "Birdgirl Returns for a New Season of Corporate Fails". Animation World Network. Retrieved 2023-03-05.
- ↑ Piña, Christy (2022-08-21). "'The Idol' Teaser Reveals Ensemble Cast, New Footage". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2023-03-05.