Bonisile John KaniOISOBE(born 30 August 1942) is a South African actor. He is known for portrayingT'Chakain theMarvel Cinematic UniversefilmsCaptain America: Civil War(2016) andBlack Panther(2018),RafikiinThe Lion King(2019) and Colonel Ulenga in theNetflixfilmsMurder Mystery(2019) andMurder Mystery 2(2023).
John Kani | |
|---|---|
 Kani in Rosebank, Johannesburg in 2023 | |
| Born | Bonisile John Kani 30 August 1942 New Brighton, Eastern Cape,South Africa |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1965–present |
| Children | Atandwa Kani |
| Honours | Order of Ikhamangain Silver[1] |
Early and personal life
editKani was born on 30 August 1942 inNew Brighton, Port ElizabethIn the Eastern Cape province of South Africa.[1]In 1975, after appearing inAthol Fugard's anti-apartheid playSizwe Banzi Is Dead,which he also co-wrote, in the United States, Kani returned to South Africa. There, he received a phone call saying that his father wanted to see him. On his way there, he was surrounded by police who beat him and left him for dead. His left eye was lost as a result of the incident, and he now wears aprosthesiswhich is technically a glass eye.[2]
His sonAtandwais also an actor, who made his debut on U.S. television on theCW seriesLife Is Wild,and played a younger version of Kani's character T'Chaka inBlack Panther.[3]
Career
editKani joinedThe Serpent Players(a group of actors whose first performance was in the former snake pit of the zoo, hence the name)[citation needed]inPort Elizabethin 1965 and helped to create many plays that went unpublished but were performed to a resounding reception.[4][5]
These were followed by the more famousSizwe Banzi is DeadandThe Island,co-written withAthol FugardandWinston Ntshona,in the early 1970s. Kani also received anOlivier Awardnomination for his role inMy Children! My Africa![6]
Kani's work has been widely performed around the world, includingNew York,where he and Winston Ntshona won aTony Awardin 1975 forSizwe Banzi Is Dead(which ran for 159 performances) andThe Island.'[7]These two plays were presented in repertory at theEdison Theatrefor a total of 52 performances.[citation needed]
In 1987 Kani playedOthelloin a performance ofWilliam Shakespeare's playof the same namein South Africa, which was still underapartheid."At least I'll be able to kissDesdemonawithout leaving a smudge, "he said then.[8]
Nothing but the Truth(2002) was his debut as sole playwright and was first performed in theMarket TheatreinJohannesburg.This play takes place in post-apartheid South Africa and does not concern the conflicts between whites and blacks, but the rift between blacks who stayed in South Africa to fight apartheid, and those who left only to return when the hated regime folded. It won the 2003Fleur du Cap Awardsfor the best actor and best new South African play.[9]In the same year, he was also awarded a specialObie Awardfor his extraordinary contribution to theatre in the United States.[10]
Kani is executive trustee of the John Kani Theatre Foundation, founder and director of the John Kani Theatre Laboratory and chairman of the National Arts Council of SA.[11]He starred as T'Chaka in theMarvel StudiosblockbustersCaptain America: Civil War(2016) andBlack Panther(2018). The fact that Kani was aXhosanative speaker ledChadwick Boseman,who played his onscreen sonT'Challa,to make that Wakanda's language, and to learn whole scenes in Xhosa, although he had never studied the language before.
In 2019, Kani appeared in the Netflix filmMurder Mysterywhere he played Colonel Ulenga. He then voicedRafikiinThe Lion King(the photorealistically animated remake of theDisney animated film).[12]
Kani's play,Kunene and the King,a co-production for theRoyal Shakespeare CompanyandFugard Theatre,played in theSwan TheatreinStratford-upon-Avonin 2019 before transferring back to Cape Town. He starred alongsideAntony Sher.[13]
Other recognition and awards
editOn 20 February 2010, Kani received aSAFTALifetime award.[14]He has also received the Avanti Hall of Fame Award from the South African film, television, and advertising industries, an M-Net Plum award and a Clio award in New York. Other awards include theHiroshima Peace Culture FoundationAward for the year 2000 and theOlive Schreiner Prizefor 2005. He was voted 51st in theTop 100 Great South Africansin 2004.[15]
In 2006, he was awarded anhonorary doctorateby theUniversity of Cape Town.[16]Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Universityappointed him an honorary Doctor ofPhilosophyin 2013.[17]
In 2016 Kani received the national honour of theOrder of Ikhamangain Silver, for his "Excellent contributions to theatre and, through this, the struggle for a non-racial, non-sexist and democratic South Africa".[1]
The main theatre of the Market Theatre complex inNewtown, Johannesburg,has been renamed TheJohn Kani Theatrein his honour.[18]
In 2020 he was awarded an honorary doctorate by theUniversity of the Witwatersrand[19]Recently, in 2021, John Kani has been conferred the Da Vinci Laureate by The Da Vinci Institute.
In 2023 he was awarded an HonoraryOBEfromBritish Governmentfor services to drama.[20]
Plays
edit- Sizwe Banzi is Dead(1972) (co-authored withAthol FugardandWinston Ntshona)
- The Island(1973) (co-authored with Athol Fugard and Winston Ntshona)
- Statements After an Arrest Under the Immorality Act(co-authored with Athol Fugard and Winston Ntshona)
- My Children My Africa!(actor)
- Nothing But the Truth(2002) (sole playwright)
- The Tempest(2008) (actor in the role ofCaliban,at the Baxter Theatre, Cape Town; Courtyard Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon; and tour of Richmond, Leeds, Bath, Nottingham, Sheffield)
- Missing(2014) (actor and sole playwright)
- Kunene and the King(2019) (actor and playwright)
Film and television
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | BBC2 Playhouse | Styles / Buntu | Episode: "Sizwe Bansi Is Dead" |
| 2nd House | Episode: "Athol Fugard" | ||
| 1978 | Play for Today | George O'Brien | Episode: "Victims of Apartheid" |
| 1985 | Master Harold...and the Boys | Willie | Television film |
| 1986 | Miss Julie | John | Television film |
| 1989 | Othello | Othello | Television film |
| 1997 | Kap der Rache | Inspektor Khumalo | Television film |
| 2006 | Hillside | Dr. Vincent Maloka | 1 episode |
| 2008 | The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency | Daddy Bapetsi | Episode: "Pilot" |
| Silent Witness | Dr. Phiri | 2 episode | |
| 2012 | iNkaba | Mkhuseli Mthetho | 1 episode |
| 2015 | Wallander | Max Khulu | Episode: "The White Lioness" |
| 2021 | What If...? | T'Chaka | Voice, 2 episodes: "What If... T'Challa Became a Star-Lord?","What If... Killmonger Rescued Tony Stark?" |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | The Wild Geese | Sgt. Jesse Link | |
| 1980 | Marigolds in August | Melton | |
| 1981 | Killing Heat | Moses | |
| 1987 | Saturday Night at the Palace | September | |
| An African Dream | Khatana | ||
| 1989 | Options | Jonas Mabote | |
| A Dry White Season | Julius | ||
| The Native Who Caused All the Trouble | Tselilo Mseme | ||
| 1992 | Sarafina! | School Principal | |
| 1995 | Soweto Green: This Is a 'Tree' Story | Dr. Curtis Tshabalala | |
| 1996 | The Ghost and the Darkness | Samuel | |
| 1997 | Kini and Adams | Ben | |
| 1998 | The Tichborne Claimant | Bogle | |
| 2001 | Final Solution | Rev. Peter Lekota | |
| 2007 | The Bird Can’t Fly | Stone | |
| 2008 | Nothing but the Truth | Sipho | Also director and writer |
| 2009 | Endgame | Oliver Tambo | |
| 2010 | White Lion | Old Gisani | |
| 2011 | Coriolanus | General Cominius | Tragedy / Drama / Thriller / War |
| Janapriyan | Drama / Family / Musical / Romance | ||
| How to Steal 2 Million | Julius Twala Snr. | Action / Drama | |
| 2012 | Jail Caesar | Marius | Drama / History |
| 2016 | The Suit | Mr. Maphikela | Short film |
| Captain America: Civil War | T'Chaka | Superhero / Action / Sci-Fi | |
| 2018 | Black Panther | T'Chaka | Superhero / Action / Adventure / Sci-Fi |
| 2019 | Murder Mystery | Colonel Ulenga | Cozy mystery / Action / Comedy / Crime / Romance |
| The Lion King | Rafiki | Voice | |
| 2021 | Seal Team | Brick | Voice |
| 2023 | Murder Mystery 2 | Colonel Ulenga | [21] |
| 2024 | Mufasa: The Lion King | Rafiki | Voice |
Drama
edit- Nothing But the Truth(2002)
References
edit- ^abc"Bonisile John Kani (1943–)".The Presidency. 30 August 1943. Archived fromthe originalon 4 June 2016.Retrieved11 May2016.
- ^Britt, Donna (26 September 1989)."Apartheid Through An Angry Lens".The Washington Post.Archivedfrom the original on 2 February 2023.Retrieved5 April2018.
Kani lost his eye when he returned to South Africa after appearing in Athol Fugard's anti-apartheid play, "Sizwe Banzi Is Dead," here and in New York. The actor was lured from his home by a telephone caller who said Kani was wanted at his father's home. On the way there, Kani says he was surrounded by police, who beat him and left him for dead.
- ^"John Kani on Black Panther premiere: 'I knew we would introduce a different African'".TimesLIVE.Archivedfrom the original on 17 November 2023.Retrieved19 February2018.
- ^Motswatswa, Kelebogile(24 May 2019)."John Kani, the king of South African theatre".Mail & Guardian.Archivedfrom the original on 2 January 2023.Retrieved23 February2024.
- ^Sandomir, Richard(5 August 2018)."Winston Ntshona, Tony-Winning South African Actor, Dies at 76".The New York Times.Archivedfrom the original on 5 April 2023.Retrieved23 February2024.
- ^"The big interview– DR John Kani".SA fm.Archivedfrom the original on 2 August 2020.Retrieved9 July2020.
- ^Hetrick, Adam."Tony Award-Winning South African Actor Winston Ntshona Dies at 76".Playbill.Archivedfrom the original on 31 October 2023.Retrieved9 July2020.
- ^"[From our archives] 20 bizarre apartheid moments | Opinion | Analysis | M&G".Mg.co.za.26 April 2014.Archivedfrom the original on 14 May 2016.Retrieved11 May2016.
- ^"Nothing But the Truth".Wits University Press.25 October 2011. Archived fromthe originalon 9 July 2020.Retrieved9 July2020.
- ^"Bonisile John Kani".South African History Online.Archivedfrom the original on 22 November 2023.Retrieved9 July2020.
- ^Cornwell, Gareth; Klopper, Dirk; MacKenzie, Craig (2010).The Columbia Guide to South African Literature in English Since 1945.USA: Columbia University Press. p. 114.ISBN978-0231130462.
- ^Gonzalez, Umberto; Verhoeven, Beatrice (7 August 2017)."'Lion King' Rafiki Casting: John Kani, 'Civil War' Star, to Play Wise Baboon (Exclusive) ".TheWrap.Archivedfrom the original on 8 August 2017.Retrieved7 August2017.
- ^"About the play | Kunene and the King | Royal Shakespeare Company".rsc.org.uk.Archivedfrom the original on 8 June 2024.Retrieved30 July2019.
- ^"All the 2010 SAFTAs winners".Bizcommunity.Archivedfrom the original on 10 July 2020.Retrieved9 July2020.
- ^"In Conversation with Dr John Kani, Author, Actor, Director, Playwright".Gordan Institute of Business Science University of Pretoria.Archivedfrom the original on 11 July 2020.Retrieved9 July2020.
- ^"Honorary doctorates for June graduation".Electronic Monday Paper.University of Cape Town.12 June 2006.Retrieved7 August2006.[dead link]Vol 25 No 14
- ^"NMMU to honour John Kani".Port Elizabeth Herald.10 April 2013. Archived fromthe originalon 4 March 2016.Retrieved17 April2013.
- ^"The Main Theatre is renamed to honour Dr. John Kani".Markettheatre.co.za.Archived fromthe originalon 10 June 2016.Retrieved11 May2016.
- ^Jordaan, Nomahlubi."Wits confers honorary doctorates on John Kani and Dr Isidor Segal".The Times.Archivedfrom the original on 9 July 2020.Retrieved9 July2020.
- ^"Honorary awards to foreign nationals in 2023".Gov.UK. 2023.Archivedfrom the original on 25 April 2023.Retrieved28 October2023.
- ^Galuppo, Mia (24 January 2022)."Jodie Turner-Smith, Mark Strong Join Netflix's 'Murder Mystery 2'".The Hollywood Reporter.Archivedfrom the original on 24 January 2022.Retrieved5 February2022.
External links
edit- John KaniatIMDb
- Bonisile John Kaniat SA History Online
- John Kaniat TVSA