Devon Terrell (born 23 October 1992) is an Australian actor, best known for playing a young

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

in the 2016 biographical film '' Barry'' and

Arthur Arthur is a masculine given name of uncertain etymology. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. A common spelling variant used in many Slavic, Romance, and Germanic languages is Artur. In Spanish and Ital ...

in the Netflix original series '' Cursed.''

Early life and education

Terrell was born in

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a coastal city in southeastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is the list of United States cities by population, 44th-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 451,307 as of 2022. A charter ci ...

, US, to an

African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...

father and an

Anglo-Indian Anglo-Indian people are a distinct minority group, minority community of mixed-race British and Indian ancestry. During the colonial period, their ancestry was defined as British paternal and Indian maternal heritage; post-independence, "Angl ...

mother. At age five, he moved to

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

, growing up in the Forest Lakes estate in Thornlie. After finishing his secondary education at Lynwood Senior High School, he attended

Edith Cowan University Edith Cowan University (ECU) is a public research university in Western Australia. It is named in honour of the first woman to be elected to an Parliaments of the Australian states and territories, Australian parliament, Edith Cowan, and is, , t ...

, specialising in drama education. He graduated from the

National Institute of Dramatic Art The National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) is an Australian educational institution for the performing arts based in Sydney, New South Wales. Founded in 1958, it offers bachelor's, master's and vocational degrees in subjects including acting ...

in 2013.

Career

Terrell's first role was in

Steve McQueen Terrence Stephen McQueen (March 24, 1930November 7, 1980) was an American actor. His antihero persona, emphasized during the height of counterculture of the 1960s, 1960s counterculture, made him a top box office draw for his films of the late ...

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...

miniseries ''Codes of Conduct'', which was cancelled after the pilot was filmed. He then starred in the

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

film '' Barry'', a biopic about the college years of future US president

. Terrell said that he felt an affinity for Obama and that the president had been his dream role since the age of 19. To prepare for the role, Terrell worked with a dialect coach and watched Obama's speeches to master his accent and manner of speaking. He was offered the part after one audition. He also trained himself to portray the left-handed Obama, including learning how to write and play basketball with his left hand. He read Obama's book ''

Dreams from My Father ''Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance'' (1995) is a memoir by Barack Obama that explores the events of his early years in Honolulu and Chicago until his entry into Harvard Law School in 1988. Obama originally published his mem ...

'' three times to get into his mindset, and he received praise for his portrayal when the film was released. Later, he portrayed

in the Netflix original series '' Cursed''. The first season was released on 17 July 2020. Terrell played the role of Cliff in

Issa Rae Jo-Issa Rae Diop (born January 12, 1985), known professionally as Issa Rae, is an American actress, writer, and producer. She achieved recognition as the co-creator, co-writer, and star of the HBO comedy series '' Insecure'' (2016–2021), for ...

's comedy television series '' Rap Sh!t'', which premiered on 21 July 2022 on

HBO Max Max (known in other countries as, and soon to be reverted globally to HBO Max) is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. It is a proprietary unit of Warner Bros. Discovery Streaming on behalf of Home Box Of ...

. In August 2024, it was reported that Terrell had joined the cast of the crime thriller television series '' The Assassin''.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Terrell, Devon 1992 births Living people Male actors from Long Beach, California Male actors from Perth, Western Australia 21st-century Australian male actors American emigrants to Australia Australian people of African-American descent Australian people of Anglo-Indian descent National Institute of Dramatic Art alumni Edith Cowan University alumni