Sonja Sohn

Sonja Denise Plack (' Williams), known professionally as Sonja Sohn, (born May 9, 1964) is an American actress, filmmaker, and activist, best known for portraying Baltimore detective Kima Greggs in the HBO drama ''The Wire'' (2002–2008). She is also known for having starred in the 1998 independent film '' Slam'', which she co-wrote, and appearing as Samantha Baker in the ABC series ''Body of Proof''. She is also the founder and CEO of the Baltimore-based outreach program, reWIRED for Change, which focuses on the rehabilitation of at-risk youth who have engaged in criminal behavior.

Early life and education

Sohn was born Sonja Denise Williams in Fort Benning, Georgia. Her mother was Korean and her father was Black. Her parents met when her father was stationed in South Korea after the Korean War.

She attended and graduated from Warwick High School in Newport News, Virginia.

Career

Williams became professionally known as Sonja Sohn. Before she was an actress, Sohn was a slam poet. While performing her work on stage, she was spotted by Marc Levin who offered her a role in his film '' Slam''. She also wrote lyrics and co-wrote the script for the film. It went on to win the Grand Jury Prize for Dramatic Film at the Sundance Film Festival. After debuting in ''Slam'', Sohn appeared in minor roles in films such as '' Shaft'' and ''Bringing Out the Dead''. She also starred in independent films ''Perfume'', '' G'' and '' The Killing Zone''.

Through the five seasons of the HBO series ''The Wire'', she held a starring role as Detective Kima Greggs.
She struggled during the first season of ''The Wire'' and considered quitting as she had trouble recalling her lines. She also guest-starred on many episodes of ''Cold Case'' as "Toni Halstead". She won the supporting television actress award at the 2008 Asian Excellence Awards for her character on ''The Wire''.

She had a supporting role in the Hollywood film '' Step Up 2: The Streets''. In 2008-09, she was a guest star in the ABC series '' Brothers & Sisters'', and in 2010 she appeared in an episode of CBS series ''The Good Wife''. In 2011, she was a guest star on the show '' Bar Karma''. She played Detective Samantha Baker in the first two seasons of the medical drama television series ''Body of Proof'' with Dana Delany and Jeri Ryan, which premiered on ABC on March 29, 2011.

Sohn joined season 2 of '' The Originals'' in a recurring role as the witch Lenore a.k.a. Esther Mikaelson.

Sohn made her directorial debut with the 2017 HBO documentary '' Baltimore Rising'' about the 2015 Baltimore protests and community organizing that arose in response to police violence. In 2021, Sohn directed ''The Slow Hustle,'' a documentary about the death of Baltimore Homicide Detective Sean Suiter, which was fictionally portrayed in the HBO miniseries '' We Own This City.''

Sohn was cast as a series regular in ABC's police drama '' Will Trent''. Sohn plays Amanda, the head of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and Trent's (Ramón Rodríguez) boss. The pilot episode aired January 3, 2023.

Activism

Previously involved in political activism (she campaigned in North Carolina in support of Barack Obama's 2008 presidential bid), Sohn took a break from acting in 2009 to concentrate on social issues. She is the founder and CEO of the Baltimore-based reWIRED for Change, an outreach program intended to communicate with (and ultimately rehabilitate) at-risk youth involved in criminal activity.

The program is run out of the University of Maryland School of Social Work and uses episodes of ''The Wire'' as a teaching tool, encouraging the participants to examine and query their lives and past actions. Other actors and writers involved with ''The Wire'' serve as board members.

In 2011, she was presented with the Woman of the Year award from the Harvard Black Men's Forum.

Personal life

Sohn has two daughters with her first husband, photographer Harvey Wang. In 2003, Sohn married didgeridoo player Adam Plack. , Sohn and Plack are divorced.

On July 21, 2019, Sohn was arrested in North Carolina and charged with felony possession of cocaine.

Filmography

Film

Television

Director

Awards and nominations

References

External links

*
reWIRED for Change homepage
rewiredforchange.org; accessed December 8, 2014.

liverpoolphil.com; accessed December 8, 2014.
ReWired and Reading The Reader Organisation
thereaderonline.co.uk; accessed December 8, 2014.
*

C-SPAN ''Q&A'' interview with Sohn
c-span.org; accessed December 8, 2014.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sohn, Sonja
1964 births
African-American poets
American writers of Korean descent
American film actresses
American television actresses
African-American activists
American activists
American actresses of Korean descent
Korean people of African-American descent
Slam poets
Living people
People from Newport News, Virginia
American women poets
Actresses from Baltimore
21st-century American poets
21st-century African-American actresses
21st-century American actresses
21st-century African-American women writers
21st-century American women writers
21st-century African-American writers
20th-century African-American people
20th-century African-American women