Oluniké Adeliyi (born January 5, 1977[1]) is a Canadian actress. She appeared in the 2010 horror film Saw 3D and starred as Leah Kerns in the television series Flashpoint.
Oluniké Adeliyi | |
|---|---|
 Adeliyi in 2013 | |
| Born | January 5, 1977 |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1996–present |
Early life edit
Adeliyi was born in Brampton, Ontario, of Jamaican-Nigerian descent.[2][3] She frequently visited Brooklyn, New York to pursue acting. She graduated from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, performing in local theater, before returning to Toronto in 2008.[4]
Career edit
Adeliyi began acting when she was cast as the Artful Dodger in her middle school play Oliver Twist. After graduating high school, she went to the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City, and has since performed in theatres throughout Canada and the U.S. playing leading roles in Blue Window, A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Children's Hour, Jitney, and Michael Cristofer's play The Shadow Box.[4]
One of her earliest film roles was an uncredited bit part in the film John Q.; on set, she met Denzel Washington, who she said "inspired" her to continue pursuing acting.[5] In 2009 she starred as the lead in the AfriCan Theatre Ensemble production of Efua Sutherland's The Marriage of Anansewa.[6][7] Also that year, she starred in the Canadian TV series Flashpoint.[5] She was nominated for Best Performance by a Female – Film at the 2012 Canadian Comedy Awards for her performance in French Immersion.[4]
In 2014, Adeliyi was dubbed "Shakespeare’s First Jamaican-Nigerian Lady Macbeth" when she played the role at the Sterling Theatre in Toronto.[2]
As of 2017, Adeliyi stars on the CBC series Workin' Moms.[8]
In 2018 she received a Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress at the 6th Canadian Screen Awards, for her role in the film Boost.
Personal life edit
Controversy edit
In 2017, Adeliyi attracted media attention in Canada after an incident at Toronto's Kingsway Theatre. The establishment does not allow backpacks into its theatre, and Adeliyi would not leave her backpack for safekeeping with theatre staff. The theatre staff refused to sell her a ticket, and when she refused to leave, the police were called.[9] Adeliyi claimed she was discriminated against by the theatre staff, who filmed her,[10] while the theatre staff claim they were following protocol.[11][12] After police were called, Adeliyi was escorted out of the theatre.[13] Adeliyi described the experience as "dehumanizing," and in an interview with the Toronto Star, she spoke further of the experience, saying:
I take offence to being labelled dangerous and that is what happened . . . When things happen like that, it can go any way, and people can get hurt . . . it compromises the person who [is] accused of something, and that is not fair.[14]
Theatre owner Rui Pereira described Adeliyi as "abusive", saying she "slammed her bag on the counter and demanded a ticket", and then refused to leave when told to by staff.[14]
Filmography edit
Film edit
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | John Q | Insurance Rep | |
| Undercover Brother | Bank Patron | ||
| 2004 | New York Minute | Big Shirl's Beautician | |
| 2010 | Saw 3D | Sidney | |
| Book Club | Pattie | Short | |
| Two Cities | Mpumi | Short | |
| 2011 | French Immersion | Aretha | |
| 2013 | Three Days in Havana | Night | |
| The Returned | Return Unit Nurse | ||
| Half Way Home | (voice) | Short | |
| 2014 | Agape | Veronica | Short |
| 2015 | A Christmas Horror Story | Kim Peters | |
| 2016 | Boost | Amina Nour | |
| 2017 | The Drop In | Grace | Short |
| Darken | Kali | ||
| The Emissary | Ren | Short | |
| 2018 | GUION | Linda Bluford | Short |
| The Parting Glass | Sue | ||
| Deep Space | Julianna Black | ||
| 2019 | The Prodigy | Rebecca | |
| ShoeGazer | Wanda | Short | |
| Tammy's Always Dying | Pascal | ||
| She Never Died | Lacey | ||
| 2020 | Promise Me | Yolonda Thomas | Short |
| Akilla's Escape | Thetis | ||
| Sila | Yaz Haiti | Short | |
| 2021 | Chaos Walking | Piper | |
| Cinema of Sleep | Omoni | ||
| 2022 | Puppy | The Rescuer | Short |
| 2023 | Backspot | Denise | |
| 2024 | The Fire Inside | Jackie Shields |
Television edit
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Blue Murder | Hooker #2 | Episode: "Ambush" |
| DoUlike2watch.com | Charisma | TV movie | |
| 2008 | The Border | Aide | Episode: "Going Dark" |
| 2009–12 | Flashpoint | Cst. Leah Kerns | Recurring cast (seasons 2-3), main cast (season 5) |
| 2011 | Who Is Simon Miller? | Jasmine | TV movie |
| Combat Hospital | Yolanda Cullerne | Episode: "Brothers in Arms" | |
| 2012 | Being Human | Cecilia | Recurring cast (season 2) |
| The Listener | Rebecca Kalb | Episode: "Poisoned Minds" | |
| 2013 | Cracked | Solange Oowuszhu | Episode: "Faces" |
| Her Husband's Betrayal | Officer Bobby Lee | TV movie | |
| 2014 | Republic of Doyle | Harley Denief | Recurring cast (season 5) |
| Remedy | Gabby | Episode: "Bad Blood" | |
| Odd Squad | DJ K-Berg | Episode: "Blob on the Job/Party of 5,4,3,2,1" | |
| 2015 | Saving Hope | Tammy "Armageddon" Jenkins | Episode: "The Parent Trap" |
| A Wish Come True | Abby | TV movie | |
| Lost Girl | Suri Middleton | Episode: "Like Father, Like Daughter" | |
| 2016 | Killjoys | Artura Senbek | Episode: "Heart-Shaped Box" |
| Group Home | Mrs. Rice | TV movie | |
| 2017 | Taken Too Far | Officer Daniels | TV movie |
| The Girlfriend Experience | - | Episode: "Donors" | |
| 2017–21 | Workin' Moms | Giselle Bois | Recurring cast (seasons 1-5) |
| 2018 | Deep Six | Julianne | Main cast |
| 2019 | Little Dog | Phyllis Smallwood | Recurring cast: season 2 |
| Titans | Matti Matisse | Episode: "Bruce Wayne" | |
| Frankie Drake Mysteries | Etta Rose | Episode: "Ward of the Roses" | |
| 2019–21 | American Gods | Shadow's Mom | Recurring cast (season 2), guest (season 3) |
| 2020 | Coroner | Noor Armias | Main cast (season 2) |
| Transplant | Makayla | Episode: "Under Pressure" | |
| 2020–21 | The Expanse | Karal | Recurring cast (season 5) |
| 2021 | Guilty Party | Yvette | Episode: "A Denver Ten" |
| Revenge Delivered | Victoria Brooks | TV movie | |
| 2022 | Revenge of the Black Best Friend | Dr. Toni Shakur | Main cast |
| The Porter | Queenie | Main cast | |
| Mike | Lorna Mae | 3 episodes | |
| 2023 | Ruby and the Well | Henrietta Hartmaan | Episode: "I Wish He Knew the Whole Story" |
Video games edit
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Watch Dogs | Donna 'Poppy' Dean (voice) | |
| 2019 | Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Breakpoint | Cpt Maya Coleman (voice) | |
| 2020 | Hyper Scape | Ultimate Grace (voice) |
References edit
- ^ Oluniké Adeliyi's bio at www.northernstars.ca
- ^ a b "Olunike Adeliyi is Shakepeare's first black Lady Macbeth". thecaribbeancurrent.com. Retrieved 2017-03-14.
- ^ Monique Savin, "Keeping in fighting trim", The Globe and Mail, 6 June 2011, L3.
- ^ a b c "Video | 10 Questions with Wendy Olunike Adeliyi (Actress, Producer, Philanthropist)". eBOSS Canada. 2017-03-09. Retrieved 2017-03-14.
- ^ a b "New Flashpoint star fits role perfectly". sharenews.com. Share News. Archived from the original on 2017-03-15. Retrieved 2017-03-14.
- ^ AfriCan Theatre Ensemble
- ^ Harbourfront Centre.
- ^ "Workin' Moms: Frankie's Struggles Hit Close to Home for Juno Rinaldi - The TV Junkies". The TV Junkies. 2017-02-07. Retrieved 2017-03-14.
- ^ "The Kingsway Theatre dispute is a lesson in why we need to take claims of discrimination seriously". NOW Magazine. 2017-03-09. Retrieved 2017-03-14.
- ^ "Actress claims she was discriminated against by theatre — while going to see film about race". CBC News. Retrieved 2017-03-14.
- ^ "Actress at odds with Toronto movie theatre over discrimination case | Metro Toronto". metronews.ca. Retrieved 2017-03-14.
- ^ "Was Kingsway Theatre saga an act of racism or jerk-ism?: Paradkar | Toronto Star". thestar.com. 10 March 2017. Retrieved 2017-03-14.
- ^ ICI.Radio-Canada.ca, Zone Arts -. "L'actrice Oluniké Adeliyi expulsée du cinéma : un gest discriminatory, Selon elle". Radio-Canada.ca (in Canadian French). Retrieved 2017-03-14.
- ^ a b "Social media skirmish escalates over Toronto actress's discrimination claim | Toronto Star". thestar.com. 6 March 2017. Retrieved 2017-03-14.