What is John Boyega's Net Worth?
John Boyega is an English actor who has a net worth of $8 million. John Boyega first gained recognition for his role as Moses in the 2011 science-fiction comedy film "Attack the Block." He went on to achieve international fame when he was cast as Finn in the "Star Wars" sequel trilogy beginning in 2015. Among Boyega's other credits are the films "Detroit" and "Pacific Rim: Uprising," and the anthology drama series "Small Axe."
Early Life and Career Beginnings
John Boyega was born as John Adedayo Bamidele Adegboyega on March 17, 1992 in London, England. His mother, Abigail, works with disabled individuals, while his father Samson is a Pentecostal minister. He is of Nigerian ancestry, and has two older sisters. As a youth, Boyega went to Oliver Goldsmith Primary School, where he had his first acting role in a school play. While acting in another play there, he was noticed by artistic director Teresa Early of Theatre Peckham, a learning theatre for youth in South London.
Boyega spent much of his time there between the ages of nine and 14. For his secondary education, he went to Westminster City School, where he continued to act in plays. Later, from 2008 to 2010, he attended South Thames College, where he played the titular role in a production of "Othello." Boyega subsequently enrolled at the University of Greenwich to study media writing and film studies, but dropped out to pursue his career in acting. He then trained at the Identity School of Acting in London.
In 2009, Boyega made his professional acting debut in the play "Six Parties" at the National Theatre in London. He was subsequently in the plays "Category B," "Seize the Day," and "Detaining Justice," all at the Kiln Theatre.
Start of Film Career
Boyega made his feature film debut in 2011, playing the role of Moses in the British science-fiction comedy "Attack the Block." Later in the year, he portrayed a drug dealer in the drama "Junkhearts." In 2013, Boyega had a supporting role in the film adaptation of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's novel "Half of a Yellow Sun," starring Chiwetel Ejiofor and Thandiwe Newton. The next year, he had a leading role in the Netflix film "Imperial Dreams," playing a reformed gangster who tries to reintegrate into his Los Angeles community after being released from prison. The film won the Audience Award when it premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January of 2014.
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Film Breakthroughs
Boyega had his international breakthrough in 2015, when he played renegade stormtrooper Finn in "Star Wars: The Force Awakens," the first film in the "Star Wars" sequel trilogy. The movie was a massive box-office success, and Boyega drew widespread acclaim for his performance. He would reprise his role later in the decade in "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" and "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker."
Beyond "Star Wars," Boyega has had notable roles in the techno-thriller "The Circle," Kathryn Bigelow's period crime drama "Detroit," and the science-fiction sequel "Pacific Rim: Uprising." Among his other credits are the literary adaptation "Naked Singularity" and the science-fiction comedy "They Cloned Tyrone."
Television Career
In 2011, the same year he made his film debut, Boyega had his first television role in an episode of "Law & Order: UK." Also that year, he appeared in four episodes of the web series "Becoming Human," a spinoff of "Being Human." Boyega was subsequently in the television films "My Murder" and "The Whale." In 2014, he played Chris Tanner in the limited series "24: Live Another Day.
Between 2015 and 2019, Boyega lent his voice to a number of animated programs. He voiced the character Blkmrkt on the series "Major Lazer," and voiced Dutch on the children's series "Tinkershrimp & Dutch." Additionally, he reprised his role as Finn for the animated web series "Star Wars Forces of Destiny," and voiced Bigwig in Netflix's 2018 miniseries adaptation of "Watership Down." Following this, in 2020, Boyega gave one of his most acclaimed performances yet in the "Red, White and Blue" episode of Steve McQueen's historical anthology series "Small Axe." For his performance as Leroy Logan, a black London Metropolitan Police officer who attempts to reform the racist police force, Boyega won the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film.
Activism
Over the course of his young career, Boyega has been an outspoken activist for racial equity. In 2020, he spoke at a Black Lives Matter rally in London's Hyde Park, showing solidarity with George Floyd, Sandra Bland, and all the other black people murdered by the police. Later in the year, Boyega publicly denounced Disney for sidelining his character Finn in the latter two movies of the "Star Wars" sequel trilogy. Citing racism, he criticized the company for marketing his character as much more significant than he actually ended up being.
