Djimon Hounsou

Djimon Gaston Hounsou (; French: [dʒimɔ̃ unsu]; born April 24, 1964) is a Beninese-American actor and model. Hounsou began his career appearing in music videos. He made his film debut in the Sandra Bernhard film Without You I'm Nothing (1990) and gained widespread recognition for his role as Cinqué in the Steven Spielberg film Amistad (1997). He gained further recognition for his roles in Gladiator (2000), In America (2003), and Blood Diamond (2006), receiving Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor nominations for both the latter films. More recently, Hounsou had minor roles in both Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) and Furious 7 (2015). He has been nominated for a Golden Globe Award and three Screen Actors Guild Awards. 2Early life Hounsou was born in Cotonou, Benin, to Albertine and Pierre Hounsou, a cook. He immigrated to Lyon in France at the age of twelve with his brother, Edmond. Soon after arriving in France, Hounsou dropped out of school and became homeless for a time. A chance meeting with a photographer led to Hounsou being introduced to fashion designer Thierry Mugler, who encouraged Hounsou to pursue a modeling caree