Gbenga Akinnagbe

Early life

Akinnagbe was born in Washington, D.C., the son of Yoruba Nigerian parents, and was raised in Silver Spring, Maryland. He is the second oldest of six children, with one older sister and four younger brothers, and the first in his family to be born in the United States. He attended Colonel Zadok A. Magruder High School in Rockville, Maryland. He attended Bucknell University on a wrestling scholarship, and graduated in 2000 with a degree in Political Science and English. Akinnagbe's cousin is rapper Wale.

Career

Akinnagbe played Ben Ellis in the episode "Contenders" on the TV series Numb3rs. In the summer of 2006, Akinnagbe performed the role of "Zim" in the NYC Fringe Festival's "Outstanding Play" award-winning production of Modern Missionary. In 2003, Akinnagbe auditioned for the role of Chris Partlow on the HBO series The Wire and starting in 2004 began a frequent recurring role. In 2008, during the show's fifth and final season, he was promoted to a series regular.

In 2007, Akinnagbe appeared in the film The Savages with Philip Seymour Hoffman, Laura Linney, and Philip Bosco. He appeared in the remake of The Taking of Pelham One Two Three, which was released by Sony in June 2009. Akinnagbe made a guest appearance on a season 10 Law & Order: Special Victims Unit episode entitled Hell as Elijah Okello, a former Ugandan child soldier living in New York, facing deportation. Akinnagbe's former The Wire castmate Robert Wisdom also appeared in that episode as Father Theo Burdett. In 2010, in Seattle, Washington Akinnagbe starred in the world premiere play The Thin Place at The Intiman Theatre.

He was in the movie Lottery Ticket and appeared on The Good Wife as Pastor Isiah Easton. His former co-star from The Wire, Frankie Faison, portrayed his father on The Good Wife in several episodes. He also appeared as Kelly Slater, a nurse in the third season of the Showtime series Nurse Jackie.

He starred in leading roles in two independent films, as Jack in Home, directed by Jono Oliver, and as James in Big Words, directed by Neil Drumming. He appeared as a drug lord in the USA series Graceland and starred as Tom in The Following. He also starred as CIA Agent Erik Ritter in 24: Live Another Day. In October 2016, he began shooting the feature film Starbright.

In March 2020, Akinnagbe was cast in The Old Man.

Other ventures

Akinnagbe is the owner of Enitan, a Brooklyn-based furniture business, where he designs vintage furniture with Dutch wax-resist fabrics that are a fashion staple in West Africa.

Personal life

Gbenga has had two articles published in The New York Times, one detailing a trip to Nepal to climb the Himalayas, and the other outlining the medical procedures he underwent to correct his severely flat feet.

Akinnagbe filed a criminal complaint alleging that journalist Lola Adesioye grabbed his buttocks on two occasions in 2020. Adesioye was arrested on May 26, 2021, jailed for 28 hours, and charged with forcible touching, sexual abuse, and harassment. Her attorney described Akinnagbe's allegations as "a blatant, brazen lie". In October 2021, the case was dismissed.

Filmography

Film

Television

Theater

References

References

1. Bale, Miriam. (21 November 2013). "A Place, and Prescription, of One's Own". New York Times.
2. "Meet foreign celebrities with Nigerian heritage – Daily Trust".
3. Berkowitz, Joe. (15 September 2017). "Here's Everybody From 'The Wire' Who Now Works on 'The Deuce'".
4. Kim, Jae-Ha. (24 May 2011). "Celebrity Traveler: Nigeria to Mexico, actor finds charm". Chicago Tribune.
5. Lakin, Max. (March 19, 2019). "The 'Deuce' Actor Who Also Reupholsters Vintage Chairs". The New York Times.
6. Drake, David. (25 June 2013). "20 Things You Didn't Know About Wale". Complex Music.
7. He also featured in limitless [http://www.modernmissionary.net/ Modern Missionary]
8. Berson, Misha. (17 May 2010). "Actor Gbenga Akinnagbe stars in Intiman Theatre's 'The Thin Place'". The Seattle Times.
9. Ausiello, Michael. (21 October 2010). "Exclusive: 'The Wire' grad Gbenga Akinnagbe joins 'Nurse Jackie'". Entertainment Weekly.
10. Andreeva, Nellie. (20 December 2013). "24: Live Another Day Adds 2 New Regulars". Deadline.
11. Andreeva, Nellie. (March 7, 2020). "Gbenga Akinnagbe To Star In 'The Old Man'; Bill Heck Joins FX On Hulu Series In Recasting".
12. Owens, Mitchell. "Meet The Wire Star Turned Design Impresario".
13. Steed, Munson. (19 July 2013). "'Big Words' Actor Gbenga Akinnagbe finds comfort in the uncomfortable". Rolling Out.
14. https://archive.today/20250818130718/https://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/04/health/04case.html My Left Foot: The High Costs of Fallen Arches By Gbenga Akinnagbe May 3, 2010
15. https://archive.nytimes.com/well.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/05/03/when-flat-feet-require-surgery
16. (2021-07-20). "'The Wire' actor alleges sex abuse by journalist, who calls contact consensual".
17. Goldberg, Noah. (2021-07-19). "'The Wire' actor accuses NYC journalist of groping him — she says it happened during consensual relationship".
18. Adams, Biba. (November 19, 2021). "Lola Adesioye speaks after charges she sexually abused actor Gbenga Akinnagbe are dropped".
19. Wiseman, Andreas. (October 21, 2025). "Riele Downs, Keith David & Gbenga Akinnagbe Among Cast For Drama ‘Dreams Of The Moon’ With Filming In Canada & South Africa".