Critically acclaimed artist DeWanda Wise is a graduate of New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, training primarily at the Atlantic Theatre Company Acting School. While training at Tisch, DeWanda began her professional career with roles in many award-winning shorts and independent features including "Spinning into Butter," and "Precious" among others.
Adept in theater and film, acting, writing, and producing, DeWanda is an artist with some serious promise. She stars in Fox event series "Shots Fired," alongside Sanaa Lathan, Helen Hunt, and Richard Dreyfuss. Additionally, her first pass at screenwriting "Where You Go," premieres at Cannes in the Short Film Corner. DeWanda also stars as Rochelle Marseilles in the Sundance hit "How To Tell You're a Douchebag", a romantic comedy she executive produced. Indiewire described her performance in Tahir Jetter's debut as, "Sensational, commanding, profound, and dope."
Previous credits include a host of theater roles, notably originating the role of Nina in acclaimed playwright Dominique Morisseau's "Sunset Baby." Ben Brantley of The New York Times stated,"...it's the woman who's the toughest of them all. Ms. Wise, a beauty, makes us see and feel just how ugly Nina is...she also insists we understand why." The Village Voice called her Nina, "commanding and severe," while The New Yorker described her performance as "Brutal and riveting." Other praised performances include her work as Susan in the west coast premiere of David Mamet's "Race" with Center Theater Group, Mercy in "Flight," at City Theatre, and Abigail, a Zimbabwean wife grappling with an HIV diagnosis, in Danai Gurira's heartbreaking first play, "In the Continuum" at Playmakers, Chapel Hill.
Other TV credits including staring as Terry in movie of the week "Firelight," with Cuba Gooding Jr. where critics called her "touching," "exceptional," and, "the heart of the film." Additional guest turns include "Boardwalk Empire," "The Good Wife," "The Mentalist," and the Law and Order franchise.
DeWanda graduated with honors with a dual degree in Drama and Urban Social and Cultural Analysis with a minor in Community-based Theater and Performance. Ms. Wise is a Tisch Scholar Award recipient, the Atlantic Achievement in Studio Award recipient, and the BFA Representative of her graduating class of NYU's Tisch School of the Arts.
A native of Baltimore, Maryland, DeWanda currently resides in California with her husband actor/producer, Alano Miller.
