Maisie Richardson-Sellers
English actress
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Maisie Richardson-Sellers is a British actress and director. She first gained recognition for her role as Rebekah Mikaelson / Eva Sinclair on The CW series The Originals. She has since gained wider recognition for her starring roles as Kathy Freeman in CH4/Peacock's The Undeclared War, Chloe Winthrop in Netflix's The Kissing Booth 2, as well as the third installment in the franchise. She also played both Amaya Jiwe / Vixen and Charlie on The CW superhero series DC's Legends of Tomorrow, and Korr Sella in Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
Maisie Richardson-Sellers | |
|---|---|
Richardson-Sellers in 2017 | |
| Born | London, England |
| Education | Hertford College, University of Oxford (2013) |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 2011–present |
Early life and education
Maisie Richardson-Sellers was born and raised in London. Her mother Joy Richardson is black Guyanese and her father is white British.[1][2] She comes from a family of stage actors.[3]
She grew up attending private schools through bursaries and scholarships.[4]
In 2013, Richardson-Sellers graduated, with a degree in archaeology and anthropology, from Hertford College, University of Oxford,[5] where she participated in and directed several plays, including Mephisto and There Will Be Red.[6]
Career
While studying at Oxford University, Richardson-Sellers began directing theatre, including a production of For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow Is Enuf.[7] After graduating, she started auditioning, and landed her debut feature film role in the Star Wars sequel Star Wars: The Force Awakens,[8][9] in the cameo role of Korr Sella.[10]
Richardson-Sellers was then cast as Rebekah Mikaelson in the CW series The Originals in 2014, where the character of Rebekah inhabits a different body after a spell gone wrong.[11] She later played the character of Eva Sinclair on The Originals.[12] Executive producer Michael Narducci praised her performance.[13]
In early March 2015, it was announced that she would play a starring role in Of Kings and Prophets, a short-lived ABC drama series that was filmed in South Africa.[14] In June 2016, it was reported that she would be playing Amaya Jiwe / Vixen on the second season of the CW series Legends of Tomorrow, who is the grandmother of the titular character in the CW Seed animated series Vixen.[15] Her mother guest starred as a distant ancestor of Jiwe on two episodes, "Zari" and "No Country for Old Dads".[2] After two seasons, she was cast in the new role of shapeshifter Charlie.[16][17] She exited Legends of Tomorrow in 2020 at the end of the series' fifth season.[18]
In 2018 she began shadowing directors on Legends of Tomorrow, and was accepted into the Warner Brothers Directors Program.[19] She then went on to direct two episodes of Legends of Tomorrow.
In May 2019, it was announced that Richardson-Sellers would star in The Kissing Booth 2 as Chloe, directed by Vince Marcello for Netflix.[20] In 2021, Richardson-Sellers then starred in the sequel, The Kissing Booth 3.
In 2021, she co-wrote and directed the short film, Sunday’s Child, which won acclaim at numerous film festivals. [21]
In 2022, Richardson-Sellers starred in the political drama The Undeclared War directed by Peter Kosminsky, opposite Mark Rylance and Simon Pegg.[22]
In June 2023, it was announced that she had been cast in the upcoming season 2 of Nine Perfect Strangers, starring opposite Nicole Kidman, Murray Bartlett, and Liv Ullmann.[23]
Production company
Richardson-Sellers is the founder of Barefaced Productions, a production company that seeks to tell the stories of, and provide a platform for, marginalised communities and individuals.[24]
Personal life
Richardson-Sellers is queer.[25][26]
In 2017, along with her Arrowverse co-stars Caity Lotz and Candice Patton, Richardson-Sellers co-founded Shethority ("She + Authority"), an online global collective described as "a positive place for women and the feminine to inspire, empower, and share."[27][26]
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Star Wars: The Force Awakens | Korr Sella | Cameo appearance[10] |
| 2020 | The Kissing Booth 2 | Chloe Winthrop | Streaming film |
| 2021 | The Kissing Booth 3 | ||
| 2023 | Jagged Mind | Billie | [28] |
| 2026 | Insidious: Out of the Further | TBA | Post-production[29] |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014–2015, 2017 | The Originals | Rebekah Mikaelson / Eva Sinclair | Recurring role, 15 episodes |
| 2016 | Of Kings and Prophets | Michal | Main role, 9 episodes |
| 2016–2020 | Legends of Tomorrow | Amaya Jiwe / Vixen | Main role (season 2–3) |
| Charlie / Clotho | Main role (season 4–5) | ||
| 2020 | Group Chat with Annie & Jayden | Herself | Episode: "Would You Rather Kiss" |
| 2022 | The Undeclared War | Kathy Freeman | Main role |
| 2024 | Wolf Hall - The Mirror and the Light | Bess Oughtred | Episode: "Defiance" (season 2) |
| 2025 | Talamasca: The Secret Order | Olive Farington | Main role[30] |
| Nine Perfect Strangers | Wolfie | Main cast (season 2) |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Sunday's Child | Director, Co-Writer, Producer | Short Film |
| DC's Legends of Tomorrow | Director | Season 6, EP 14 ‘There Will Be Brood’ | |
| 2022 | Season 7 EP 10 ‘The Fixed Point' | ||