Introduction
DeObia Oparei (born 7 July 1971) is an English actor and playwright. He is best known for his roles as the Gunner in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011) and as Thundarian in Your Highness (2011).
Early life
Oparei was born in Hackney, London, England on 7 July 1971, to parents of Nigerian ancestry.
Career
Oparei began his career working for various British theatre companies, like The Royal Shakespeare Company and The National Youth Theatre. Oparei's film debut was a small supporting role in Alien 3. After playing the lead role of American playwright John Guare's Six Degrees of Separation, Oparei scored his next supporting film role, as "Le Chocolat", in the Baz Luhrmann film Moulin Rouge!. In 1993, he appeared in an episode of the popular British television series Minder as 'Winston', a worker for Arthur Daley
Oparei is also a playwright. His first play, Crazyblackmuthafuckin'self, a dramedy about race, sexuality and identity, opened to critical acclaim at the Royal Court Theatre. The Guardian's Michael Billington described the play as "wild, raunchy and funny".
In 2015, Oparei joined the cast of the HBO epic fantasy series Game of Thrones in its fifth season, portraying the character Areo Hotah.
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Alien 3 | Arthur | |
| 1998 | Dark City | Train Passenger | |
| 2001 | Moulin Rouge! | Le Chocolat | |
| 2002 | Dirty Pretty Things | Mini-Cab Driver | |
| 2002 | The Four Feathers | Idris-Es-Saier | |
| 2003 | The Foreigner | Richard | |
| 2004 | Thunderbirds | Mullion | |
| 2005 | 7 Seconds | Spanky | Direct-to-video Credited as Dhobi Oparei |
| 2005 | Doom | Sergeant Gannon "Destroyer" Roark | |
| 2009 | Thick as Thieves | Rawls | |
| 2009 | Green Street 2: Stand Your Ground | Derrick Jackson | Direct-to-video |
| 2010 | Mr. Nice | Tee Bone Taylor | |
| 2010 | Death Race 2 | Big Bill | |
| 2010 | The Presence | Woodsman | |
| 2011 | Your Highness | Thundarian | |
| 2011 | Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides | Gunner | |
| 2012 | Dredd | TJ the Paramedic | |
| 2013 | Tula: The Revolt | Hacha | |
| 2016 | Independence Day: Resurgence | Dikembe Umbutu | |
| 2019 | Dumbo | Rongo | |
| 2019 | Jumanji: The Next Level | Gromm | Credited as Deobia Oparei |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Blood Rights | Winston | |
| 1990 | Medics | King | Episode: "Iraj" |
| 1992 | Between the Lines | Ruby | Episode: "Nothing Personal" |
| 1993 | Minder | Winston | Episode: "Cars and Pints and Pains" |
| 1998 | Wildside | Bernice | |
| 1998 | Trial & Retribution | DC Palmer | |
| 2002 | Holby City | Dave Whellan | Episode: "Hearts and Minds" |
| 2015 | Proof | Mr. Oumandi | 2 episodes |
| 2015–2016 | Game of Thrones | Areo Hotah | 6 episodes |
| 2017 | Emerald City | Sullivan | Episode: "Mistress - New - Mistress" |
| 2017 | Santa Clarita Diet | Loki Hayes | 2 episodes |
| 2017 | The Orville | Captain Vorak | Episode: "About a Girl" |
| 2019 | Sex Education | Mr. Effiong |