What is John Boyega's Net Worth?
John Boyega is an English actor with a net worth of $8 million. He first gained recognition for his role as Moses in the 2011 science-fiction comedy film Attack the Block. Boyega achieved international fame as Finn in the Star Wars sequel trilogy starting in 2015. His other notable works include the films Detroit and Pacific Rim: Uprising, and the anthology drama series Small Axe.
Early Life and Career Beginnings
John Adedayo Bamidele Adegboyega, known as John Boyega, was born on March 17, 1992, in London, England. His mother, Abigail, works with disabled individuals, and his father, Samson, is a Pentecostal minister. Boyega is of Nigerian descent and has two older sisters. His acting journey began at Oliver Goldsmith Primary School, where he had his first acting role in a school play. He was later noticed by Teresa Early, artistic director of Theatre Peckham, a youth learning theatre in South London.
From ages nine to 14, Boyega spent much of his time at Theatre Peckham. He continued acting at Westminster City School and later attended South Thames College from 2008 to 2010, where he starred in a production of Othello. Boyega briefly studied media writing and film studies at the University of Greenwich before dropping out to pursue acting full-time. He then trained at the Identity School of Acting in London.
Boyega made his professional acting debut in 2009 in the play Six Parties at the National Theatre in London. He subsequently appeared in the plays Category B, Seize the Day, and Detaining Justice at the Kiln Theatre.
Start of Film Career
In 2011, Boyega made his feature film debut as Moses in the British science-fiction comedy Attack the Block. Later that 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. In 2014, he starred in the Netflix film Imperial Dreams, playing a reformed gangster reintegrating into his Los Angeles community after prison. The film won the Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival.
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Film Breakthroughs
Boyega's international breakthrough came in 2015 when he played Finn, a renegade stormtrooper, in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. The film was a massive box-office success, and Boyega received widespread acclaim for his performance. He reprised his role in Star Wars: The Last Jedi and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.
Outside of Star Wars, Boyega has had notable roles in the techno-thriller The Circle, Kathryn Bigelow's crime drama Detroit, and the science-fiction sequel Pacific Rim: Uprising. His other credits include the literary adaptation Naked Singularity and the science-fiction comedy They Cloned Tyrone.
Television Career
In 2011, Boyega made his television debut in an episode of Law & Order: UK and appeared in four episodes of the web series Becoming Human. He also starred 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 voiced characters in several animated series, including Blkmrkt in Major Lazer and Dutch in Tinkershrimp & Dutch. He also voiced Finn in the animated web series Star Wars Forces of Destiny and Bigwig in Netflix’s miniseries adaptation of Watership Down.
In 2020, Boyega starred as Leroy Logan in the Red, White and Blue episode of Steve McQueen's historical anthology series Small Axe. His portrayal of Logan, a black London Metropolitan Police officer seeking to reform the racist police force, earned Boyega a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film.
Activism
Throughout his career, Boyega has been an outspoken advocate for racial equity. In 2020, he spoke at a Black Lives Matter rally in London's Hyde Park, showing solidarity with victims of police brutality, including George Floyd and Sandra Bland. Later that year, Boyega criticized Disney for marginalizing his character Finn in the latter two Star Wars films, alleging racism and calling out the company for misleading marketing.
