Babatunde Adetomiwa Stafford "Tomiwa" Edun, (born 1985)[1][2] is a UK based Nigerian actor. He is best known for his roles as Sir Elyan in the television show Merlin, Marcus Young in Bates Motel and Alex Hunter in the football video games FIFA 17, FIFA 18 and FIFA 19.
Adetomiwa Edun | |
|---|---|
| Born | Babatunde Adetomiwa Stafford 1985 (age 38–39) Lagos, Lagos State, Nigeria |
| Alma mater | Christ's College, Cambridge Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (B.A., 2008) |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 2000–present |
| Notable work | Alex Hunter |
Early life
editEdun was born in Lagos, Nigeria, to Nigerian financier and politician Olawale Edun and half-Ghanaian, half-English Amy Adwoa (née Appiah).[1][2][3] His maternal uncle is the philosopher, cultural theorist and novelist Kwame Anthony Appiah.[4] His maternal grandparents were Ghanaian lawyer, diplomat and politician Joseph Emmanuel Appiah- a Nana of the Ashanti people through whom Edun is a descendant of Ghanaian warrior emperor Osei Tutu- and art historian and author Peggy Cripps, daughter of Sir Stafford Cripps, Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1947 to 1950 and son of the first Lord Parmoor.[1][2] Through his father, meanwhile, Edun claims direct descent from the colonial Egba official Adegboyega Edun.[5]
Edun moved to the United Kingdom at the age of 11. He attended Eton College from the age of 13, before reading Classics at Christ's College, Cambridge (University of Cambridge).[3][6][7] In his final year at Christ's College, he won the dissertation prize for his thesis on Homer's Odyssey.[7] His father, a financier, encouraged Edun to enter banking as a career, and he interned with Citigroup.[6] He considered studying for a Master of Philosophy degree, but decided to attend the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) instead.[3]
Career
editIn 2000, Edun appeared at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival as the character Clifford in the show Kassandra by Ivo Stourton.[8] Edun attended RADA, appearing in several productions and graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Acting in 2008.[6][8] Following his graduation from RADA, he played small parts in productions at the Almeida Theatre and the Liverpool Playhouse.[3] He also played Macbeth in a production of the eponymous play by the National Theatre, earning praise for being "charismatic" and a "fine verse speaker".[9][10] In 2009, Edun became only the second black actor to play Romeo at the Globe Theatre when he was cast in Dominic Dromgoole's production of Romeo and Juliet.[6] He also appeared in Slaves, a play by Rex Obano.[6]
Edun has also appeared in several television shows. In 2009, he appeared in an episode of The Fixer, before a role in Law & Order: UK as a soldier returning from the war in Afghanistan.[6] During series three of Merlin, Edun appeared as Elyan in three episodes, and was upgraded to a recurring character in series four. Elyan was killed off during the fifth and final series of Merlin in 2012. In 2011, he appeared in two episodes of The Hour as the character Sey, and reprised the role for three episodes in 2012. In 2015, Edun had a recurring role on the third season of Bates Motel as Marcus Young, a candidate for sheriff of White Pine Bay,[11] which he followed with roles in Lucifer, Legends, and Death in Paradise. He also appeared as Mr Brocks in the 2016 Doctor Who Christmas Special. The following year, Edun portrayed a war criminal in an episode of Elementary.
Edun performed motion capture and voiced the role of Alex Hunter in the video game by EA Sports, FIFA 17, and reprised his role in the sequels FIFA 18 and FIFA 19.
Filmography
editFilm
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Dara Ju | Tunde Akande | Short film |
| 2014 | Dying of the Light | Mbui | |
| 2015 | Cinderella | Trooper | |
| 2017 | What Happened to Monday | Eddie | also known as Seven Sisters |
| Banana Island Ghost | The boyfriend | Nigerian production | |
| 2018 | In the Cloud | Theo Jones | [12] |
| A Serial Killer's Guide to Life | Ben | ||
| Where Hands Touch | American Soldier | ||
| 2019 | Honeymoon | Pete | Short film |
| 2020 | Eyimofe | Seyi | |
| 2021 | Petra | Callum' | Short film |
| 2024 | Argylle | Deputy Nolan |
Television
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | The Fixer | Young Guy | Episode: "Episode #2.6" (2.6) |
| 2010 | Law & Order: UK | Lloyd Benson | Episode: "Shaken" (4.3) |
| 2010–2012 | Merlin | Sir Elyan | 21 episodes |
| 2011–2012 | The Hour | Sey Ola | 5 episodes |
| 2015 | Bates Motel | Marcus Young | 4 episodes |
| Lucifer | 2Vile | Episode: "Pilot" (1.1) | |
| Legends | Manners | 2 episodes | |
| 2016 | Death in Paradise | Ellery Wallace | Episode: "One for the Road" (5.2) |
| Doctor Who | Mr. Brock | Episode: "The Return of Doctor Mysterio" (10.0) | |
| 2017 | Elementary | Akello Akeny | Episode: "Moving Targets" (5.22) |
| 2018 | A Discovery of Witches | Sean | 3 episodes |
| 2019 | The Capture | Faisal | 2 episodes |
| 2020–2021 | Trying | Luke | 3 episodes |
| 2022 | Young Wallander | Samuel Osei | 6 episodes |
| 2023 | The Chelsea Detective | Greg Milton-Elwes | Episode: "The Blue Room" (2.1) |
| 2023 | Trigger Point | Alex | 4 episodes |
Video games
edit| Year | Game | Voice role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | FIFA 17 | Alex Hunter | Also motion capture |
| 2017 | FIFA 18 | ||
| 2018 | FIFA 19 | ||
| 2019 | FIFA 20 | ||
| 2023 | Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty |
Theatre
edit| Year | Title | Role | Director | Company | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Romeo and Juliet | Romeo | Shakespeare's Globe Theatre | ||
| 2013 | Lionboy | Charlie Ashanti | Annabel Arden's Production | ||
| 2016 | The Deep Blue Sea | Jackie Jackson | National Theatre | ||
| 2018 | Translations | Lieutenant Yolland | National Theatre |
See also
edit- Black British nobility, Edun's class in Britain
References
edit- ^ a b c Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage 2003, vol. 3, p. 3063
- ^ a b c Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage, 1995, ed. Patrick Montague-Smith, Debrett's Peerage Ltd, p. 986
- ^ a b c d Rajul, Amol (30 April 2009). "Adetomiwa Edun: A Romeo to die for". The Independent. Retrieved 18 March 2012.
- ^ Kwame Appiah's website URL= http://appiah.net/2009/04/30/my-nephew Date accessed= 20 October 2018
- ^ "Olawale Edun's tribute to Dr. Adebiyi Edun". 2021.
- ^ a b c d e f Gilbert, Gerard (7 November 2010). "Right on cue: Meet the new generation of hot young British actors taking the world by storm". The Independent. Archived from the original on 9 November 2010. Retrieved 18 March 2012.
- ^ a b "Adetomiwa Edun (m. 2002)". Christ's College, Cambridge. Archived from the original on 2 April 2012. Retrieved 18 March 2012.
- ^ a b "Adetomiwa Edun". Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Retrieved 18 March 2012.
- ^ Elkin, Susan (12 February 2009). "Macbeth". The Stage. Retrieved 18 March 2012.
- ^ Heart, Gwen (3 January 2010). "The incredible Romeo and he is... black". Sunday Observer. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 18 March 2012.
- ^ Remling, Amanda (13 April 2015). "'Bates Motel' Season 3 Spoilers: Norman Unravels In Episode 6; "Norma Louise" Gives New Look At "Psycho" [recap]". International Business Times. Retrieved 4 July 2017.
- ^ Spangler, Todd (20 September 2017). "Gabriel Byrne, Justin Chatwin Star in Crackle's VR-Themed Movie 'In the Cloud'". Variety. Retrieved 16 April 2018.