D'Pharaoh Miskwaatez Loescher McKay Woon-A-Tai (born September 19, 2001) is a Canadian actor of

Oji-Cree The Anisininew or Oji-Cree are a First Nation in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Manitoba, residing in a band extending from the Missinaibi River region in Northeastern Ontario at the east to Lake Winnipeg at the west. The Oji-Cree pe ...

descent. He is best known for his role as Indigenous teenager Bear Smallhill in the

FX on Hulu FX Networks, LLC, commonly known as FX Networks, is an American media company built around FX, FXX, and FX Movie Channel, plus their associated production company, FX Productions, and is a subsidiary of Disney General Entertainment Content, th ...

comedy-drama series ''

Reservation Dogs ''Reservation Dogs'' is an American comedy-drama television series created by Sterlin Harjo and Taika Waititi for FX Productions. It follows the lives of Indigenous teenagers in rural Oklahoma, as they try to reconcile their heritage with the ...

'' (2021–2023), for which he received several accolades, including a nomination for a

Primetime Emmy Award The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Owned and operated by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the P ...

for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series.

Early life

Woon-A-Tai and his fraternal twin Mi'De Xxavier were born in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

. Born D'Pharaoh Miskwaatez Loescher McKay Woon-A-Tai, his name reflects his

, Guyanese, and German heritage. A black belt in

Shotokan is a style of karate, developed from various martial arts by Gichin Funakoshi (1868–1957) and his son Gigo (Yoshitaka) Funakoshi (1906–1945). Gichin Funakoshi was born in Okinawa and is widely credited with popularizing "karate do" thro ...

karate, he is the grandson of the notable Shotokan instructor Frank Woon-A-Tai on his mother's side. His paternal grandfather was Dr. Alex McKay, an Anishinaabemowin language professor at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

's Indigenous Studies department. Woon-A-Tai and his family visited their paternal family in the

Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug First Nation Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug (Oji-Cree language, Oji-Cree: ᑭᐦᒋᓇᒣᑯᐦᓯᑊ ᐃᓂᓂᐧᐊᐠ (''Gichi-namegosib ininiwag''); unpointed: ᑭᒋᓇᒣᑯᓯᑊ ᐃᓂᓂᐧᐊᐠ or ᑭᐦᒋᓇᒣᑯᐦᓯᐱᐎᓂᓂᐗᐠ (''Gichi- ...

Career

Woon-A-Tai began his career with a recurring role as Chase Whaley in season 1 of the 2018 Family Channel series '' Holly Hobbie''. In 2019, Woon-A-Tai played Tom Longboat in a two-episode arc of ''

Murdoch Mysteries ''Murdoch Mysteries'' is a Canadian television drama series that premiered on Citytv on January 20, 2008, and currently airs on CBC. The series is based on characters from the ''Detective Murdoch'' novels by Maureen Jennings and stars Yannick ...

'' season 12. He made guest appearances as Lucky in '' Creeped Out'' and Mikey in ''

Tribal The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide use of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. The definition is contested, in part due to conflict ...

''. Woon-A-Tai made his feature film debut as Hank in the film ''

Beans A bean is the seed of some plants in the legume family (Fabaceae) used as a vegetable for human consumption or animal feed. The seeds are often preserved through drying (a ''pulse''), but fresh beans are also sold. Dried beans are tradition ...

'' directed by

Tracey Deer Tracey Penelope ''Tekahentakwa'' Deer (born February 28, 1978) is a First Nations ( Mohawk) screenwriter, film director and newspaper publisher based in Kahnawake, Quebec. She has written and directed several award-winning documentaries for Rez ...

, which was a 2020

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the most prestigious and largest publicly attended film festivals in the world. Founded in 1976, the festival takes place every year in early September. The organi ...

selection and won

Best Motion Picture The Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards (also known as Oscars) presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) since the awards debuted in 1929. This award goes to the producers of the film an ...

at the

Canadian Screen Awards The Canadian Screen Awards () are awards given for artistic and technical merit in the film industry recognizing excellence in Canadian film, English-language television, and digital media ( web series) productions. Given annually by the Academy ...

. In December 2020, it was announced Woon-A-Tai would star as Bear Smallhill in the 2021

comedy-drama ''

'', "a slice-of-life triumph" from

Sterlin Harjo Sterlin Harjo (born November 14, 1979)Sam Lewin, , ''Native Times News'', reprinted in ''Canku Ota'', May 24, 2004 (article gives his age as 24 in 2004). is a Native Americans in the United States, Native American filmmaker from Oklahoma. He is ...

and

Taika Waititi Taika David Cohen (born 16 August 1975), known professionally as Taika Waititi ( ), is a New Zealand filmmaker, actor, and comedian. Known for quirky comedy films and expanding his career as a voice actor and producer on numerous projects, he ...

. Set and filmed in rural

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

, ''Reservation Dogs'' is a coming-of-age story that follows the antics of rebellious teenagers living on tribal land. The series' entire creative team, core cast, and crew consists of

Indigenous people There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

, with the addition of a few non-Native actors in supporting or guest roles. The ''Denver Gazette'' described Bear as "played spectacularly by D'Pharaoh, this series' breakout star." ''Reservation Dogs''' second season premiered on August 3, 2022, and the third and final season premiered on August 2, 2023. His performance in the final season made him the first Indigenous actor to receive a

nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series. He wore a red handprint at the

76th Primetime Emmy Awards The 76th Primetime Emmy Awards honored the best in American prime time television programming from June 1, 2023, until May 31, 2024, as chosen by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. The awards ceremony was held live on September 15, 202 ...

as a symbol of solidarity with

Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women are instances of violence against Indigenous women in Canada and the United States, notably those in the First Nations in Canada and Native American communities, but also amongst other Indigenous peoples s ...

. In 2022, it was announced that Woon-A-Tai would be joining

Finn Wolfhard Finn Michael Wolfhard (born December 23, 2002) is a Canadian actor, musician, and film director. He is known for playing Mike Wheeler on the Netflix series ''Stranger Things'' (2016–present). He also played Richie Tozier in the horror film ...

and Billy Bryk in the duo's

directorial debut This is a list of film directorial debuts in chronological order. The films and dates referred to are a director's first commercial cinematic release. Many filmmakers have directed works which were not commercially released, for example early work ...

'' Hell of a Summer'', which was released in 2023. Woon-A-Tai plays Adam in the 2023 film ''

Fitting In ''Fitting In'' is a 2023 Canadian coming-of-age comedy drama film written and directed by Molly McGlynn. It stars Maddie Ziegler, D'Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai, Djouliet Amara, and Emily Hampshire. The story centers around 16-year-old Lindy, who is diag ...

''. He also stars in the indie thriller film ''Only the Good Survive'', alongside Sidney Flanigan, Frederick Weller, and Will Ropp. The film was also released in 2023. In March 2024, it was announced that Woon-A-Tai would be playing Ray Mendoza in Mendoza's upcoming film ''

Warfare War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of State (polity), states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or betwe ...

'', alongside

Noah Centineo Noah Gregory Centineo ( ; born May 9, 1996) is an American actor. He began his career performing on television, featuring in ''Austin & Ally'' (2011–2012) on Disney Channel and had a main role in the television series '' The Fosters'' from 20 ...

, Charles Melton,

Will Poulter William Jack Poulter (born 28 January 1993) is an English actor. He first gained recognition in '' School of Comedy'' (2009) and then for his role as Eustace Scrubb in the adventure film '' The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Tread ...

, Joseph Quinn, and Kit Connor. The film is directed by both Mendoza and

Alex Garland Alexander Medawar Garland (born 26 May 1970) is an English author, screenwriter, and director. He rose to prominence with his novel '' The Beach'' (1996). He received praise for writing the Danny Boyle films '' 28 Days Later'' (2002) and '' Sun ...

who has directed notable films such as ''

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

'' and '' Ex Machina''. In April, the cast started military-style training in order to prepare for filming in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. In September 2024, it was announced that Woon-A-Tai would be joining

Darren Aronofsky Darren Aronofsky (born February 12, 1969) is an American Filmmaking, filmmaker. His films are noted for their surreal, dramatic, and often disturbing elements, frequently in the form of psychological realism. His accolades include a Golden Lion ...

's ''

Caught Stealing In baseball, a runner is charged, and the fielders involved are credited, with a time caught stealing when the runner attempts to advance or lead off from one base to another without the ball being batted and then is tagged out by a fielder wh ...

'' alongside

Bad Bunny Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio (; born March 10, 1994), better known by his stage name Bad Bunny, is a Puerto Rican rapper and singer. Known as the " King of Latin Trap", Bad Bunny is credited with helping Spanish-language rap music achieve m ...

, Zoe Kravitz,

Austin Butler Austin Robert Butler (born August 17, 1991) is an American actor, singer, and model. Butler began his career on television, first in roles on Disney Channel and Nickelodeon, most notably on ''Zoey 101'' (2007–2008), and later on teen dramas, ...

Regina King Regina Rene King (born January 15, 1971) is an American actress, director and producer. She has received various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and four Primetime Emmy Awards. In 2019, ''Time'' magazine named her o ...

, and

Matt Smith Matthew Robert Smith (born 28 October 1982) is an English actor. He is known for playing the Eleventh Doctor in the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' (2010–2013), Prince Philip in Netflix's historical series ''The Crown ( ...

Filmography

Film

Television

Videography

Music Videos

Short Films

Web Series

Speaking

Talks

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Woon-A-Tai, D'Pharaoh Living people 2001 births 21st-century First Nations people 21st-century Guyanese actors Canadian people of Chinese descent Canadian people of German descent Canadian people of Guyanese descent First Nations male actors Male actors from Toronto Oji-Cree people Fraternal twins Canadian twins