Cliff Curtis
Born in New Zealand in 1968, of Maori descent, Cliff Curtis was a performer even before he started his formal training. He attended theater schools in his native New Zealand as well as the Teatro Dimitri Scuola in Switzerland. When he returned to New Zealand, he started out playing the classics on stage, but his heritage clearly played a part in the roles he earned, especially in his early work on screen. Not surprisingly, his first onscreen credits are for film and television from his native New Zealand. What is surprising is that many of these niche roles were giving Curtis international exposure. His first role was a supporting part in Jane Campion's Academy Award-nominated "The Piano" (1993). He had a larger role in another major export from New Zealand, "Once Were Warriors" (1994), where he played the brutal character Bully. The international appeal of this film provided an entrée into Hollywood, where he began to play supporting roles in major releases including the romantic comedy "Six Days, Seven Nights" (1998), political satire "The Insider" (1999), and cop thriller "Training Day" (2001). Curtis never forgot his roots, returning most notably in 2002's Oscar-nominated Whale Rider, in which he played a Maori father trying to understand his young daughter. He continued to play supporting roles in feature films, until he appeared in his first series regular role on "Trauma" (NBC, 2009-2010). Although the series lasted only one season, audiences continued to respond to his work. Curtis starred opposite Ashley Judd in the ABC series "Missing" (ABC, 2012) and in 2014, was a series regular on the Fox show "Gang Related" (Fox, 2014). In 2014, it was announced that Curtis would be the lead on AMC's first spinoff from its hugely successful series "The Walking Dead" (AMC, 2010- ).
Photos
Cliff Curtis
Filmography
Movies
Credit | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Avatar: Fire and Ash | Tonowari (Character) | - | 2025 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Last Breath | Unknown (Character) | - | 2025 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Ka Whawhai Tonu | Unknown (Character) | - | 2024 |
27% |
|
Meg 2: The Trench | James "Mac" Mackreides (Character) | $82.6M | 2023 |
74% |
|
True Spirit | Ben Bryant (Character) | - | 2023 |
76% |
|
Avatar: The Way of Water | Tonowari (Character) | $684.1M | 2022 |
92% | No Score Yet | Muru |
Sgt 'Taffy' Tawharau (Character), Executive Producer |
- | 2022 |
91% |
|
Murina | Javier (Character) | $55.8K | 2021 |
37% |
|
Reminiscence | Cyrus Boothe (Character) | $3.9M | 2021 |
78% |
|
Doctor Sleep | Billy Freeman (Character) | $31.6M | 2019 |
67% |
|
Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw | Jonah (Character) | $173.8M | 2019 |
92% |
|
Merata: How Mum Decolonised the Screen | Executive Producer | - | 2018 |
47% |
|
The Meg | Mac (Character) | $142.8M | 2018 |
53% |
|
Risen | Yeshua (Character) | $36.9M | 2016 |
16% |
|
Last Knights | Lt. Cortez (Character) | - | 2015 |
97% |
|
The Dark Horse |
Genesis (Character), Executive Producer |
$143.6K | 2014 |
No Score Yet |
|
Greencard Warriors | Executive Producer | - | 2013 |
68% |
|
Great Expectations | Executive Producer | $203.9K | 2012 |
0% |
|
A Thousand Words | Dr. Sinja (Character) | $18.4M | 2012 |
28% |
|
Colombiana | Emilio Restrepo (Character) | $36.7M | 2011 |
88% |
|
Boy | Producer | $255.2K | 2010 |
5% |
|
The Last Airbender | Fire Lord Ozai (Character) | $131.6M | 2010 |
15% |
|
Crossing Over | Hamid Baraheri (Character) | $454.1K | 2009 |
23% |
|
Push | Hook Waters (Character) | $31.8M | 2009 |
10% |
|
10,000 B.C. | Tic'Tic (Character) | $94.8M | 2008 |
76% |
|
Sunshine | Searle (Character) | $3.7M | 2007 |
82% |
|
Live Free or Die Hard | Bowman (Character) | $134.5M | 2007 |
56% |
|
Eagle vs. Shark | Producer | $221.8K | 2007 |
No Score Yet |
|
River Queen | Wiremu (Character) | - | 2005 |
No Score Yet |
|
Tama Tu | Producer | - | 2005 |
73% |
|
Runaway Jury | Frank Herrera (Character) | $49.4M | 2003 |
No Score Yet |
|
Point of Origin | Mike Camello (Character) | - | 2002 |
91% |
|
Whale Rider | Porourangi Apirana (Character) | $20.8M | 2002 |
19% |
|
Collateral Damage | Claudio "The Wolf" (Character) | - | 2002 |
42% |
|
The Majestic | The Evil But Handsome Prince Khalid (Character) | $27.8M | 2001 |
74% |
|
Training Day | Smiley (Character) | $76.3M | 2001 |
56% |
|
Blow | Escobar (Character) | $53.1M | 2001 |
96% |
|
The Insider | Sheikh Fadlallah (Character) | $29.0M | 1999 |
73% |
|
Bringing Out the Dead | Cy Coates (Character) | $16.6M | 1999 |
94% |
|
Three Kings | Amir Abdullah (Character) | $60.7M | 1999 |
12% |
|
Virus | Hiko (Character) | $14.0M | 1999 |
40% |
|
Six Days, Seven Nights | Kip (Character) | $74.3M | 1998 |
36% |
|
Deep Rising | Mamooli (Character) | $11.2M | 1998 |
93% |
|
Once Were Warriors | Bully (Character) | $1.3M | 1994 |
No Score Yet |
|
Hercules in the Underworld | Nessus (Character) | - | 1994 |
90% |
|
The Piano | Mana (Character) | $39.3M | 1993 |
TV
Credit | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
73% | 57% | Fear the Walking Dead | Travis (Character) | 2015-2017 |
41% | 90% | Gang Related | Javier Acosta (Character) | 2014 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Missing | Dax Miller (Character) | 2012 |
76% | 61% | Body of Proof | Unknown (Guest Star) | 2011 |
25% | 80% | Trauma | Reuben "Rabbit" Palchuk (Character) | 2009-2010 |
No Score Yet | No Score Yet | Traffic | Unknown (Character) | 2004 |
No Score Yet | 72% | Hercules: The Legendary Journeys | Unknown (Guest Star) | 1995 |