Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy (Get Out)

Daniel Kaluuya is an English actor earning much deserved critical acclaim for his role in Get Out. He appeared in the British television shows; Skins, The Black Mirror episode; Fifteen Million Merits, he played the character Tea Leaf in the series, Psychoville and the BBC horror drama The Fades. He also appeared in Kick Ass 2 and Johnny English Reborn with Rowan Atkinson. He will appear in the upcoming Ryan Coogler film Black Panther as W’kabi as well as Steve McQueen’s Widows. Of Get Out he says, “It’s nice that it’s breaking the rules in a sense,” he says, “but I don’t know why there were rules.”Kaluuya was born and raised in London, England. His parents are immigrants from Uganda. He said he did not go to acting school but learns all he can while on set. He appears in the 2015 Sicario as Reggie Wayne. The actor talks about his interactions with fans. “Some black women hug me and walk away. A lot of black men talk about dating white women and how they’ve been there too. People open up about their racial experiences. I feel like I’m a walking therapy session. It’s quite intense. But it means a lot to people.”In 2018 the 28-year-old will be honored at the Palm Springs Film Festival for his role. The film’s success and recognition for contention in major upcoming awards does come as a bit of a surprise to the young actor. “I felt like this was going to make people really uncomfortable for the right reasons,” said Kaluuya. “Racism is like a horror movie. Black kids die because of racism. I don’t know what’s more horrifying than that.”Daniel Kaluuya plays Chris Washington, a young black American man who visits his white girlfriend’s family with terrifying results. It’s an emotional performance. Kaluuya was nominated for a Gotham award against more seasoned actors. He won the next generation award at the MTV movie and television awards for his role in Get Out. “In order to prove that I can play this role, I have to open up about trauma that I’ve experienced as a black person. I have to show off my struggle so that people can accept that I’m black. I resent that I have to prove that I’m black. I don’t know what that is. I’m still processing it.”“I go to music festivals and people want to talk to me about racism. I’m like, ‘Bro, I’m trying to have fun!’” he says, “But a lot of non-white men come up to me and say, ‘I’ve been there in that house.’”“There’s a black writer and director, Jordan Peele, that has written a film that is critically acclaimed, and now commercially profitable. Yet we’re trying to separate ourselves again? There’s enough to deal with,”Daniel Kaluuya is an exciting and emotionally rich actor who will only garner more praise as we wait to see what he’ll play next.