Sonja Sohn
Sonja Sohn | |
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Born | Sonja Denise Williams Fort Benning, Georgia, U.S. |
Occupations |
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Years active | 1996–present |
Spouse | |
Children | 2 |
Sonja Sohn | |
Hangul | 손 손자 |
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Revised Romanization | Son Sonja |
McCune–Reischauer | Son Sonja |
Sonja Denise Plack (née Williams), known professionally as Sonja Sohn, 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 behaviour.
Early life and education
[edit]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.[1]
She attended and graduated from Warwick High School in Newport News, Virginia.[2]
Career
[edit]Williams became professionally known as Sonja Sohn. Before she was an actress, Sohn was a slam poet.[3] 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.[citation needed]
Through the five seasons of the HBO series The Wire, she held a starring role as Detective Kima Greggs.[4] She struggled during the first season of The Wire and considered quitting as she had trouble recalling her lines. She has 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.[citation needed]
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.[5] 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.[6]
On May 30, 2014, it was announced that Sohn would be joining season 2 of The Originals, in a recurring role as the witch Lenore a.k.a. Esther Mikaelson.[7]
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.[8] 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.
It was announced in May 2022 that Sohn had signed on to ABC's police drama Will Trent as Amanda, the head of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and Trent's (Ramón Rodríguez) boss. The pilot episode aired January 3, 2023.[9]
Activism
[edit]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.[10][11]
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.[12] Other actors and writers involved with The Wire serve as board members.[13]
In 2011, she was presented with the Woman of the Year award from the Harvard Black Men's Forum.[14]
Personal life
[edit]Sohn has two daughters, Sophia and Sakira.[15] In 2003, Sohn married didgeridoo player Adam Plack. As of 2019[update] Sohn and Plack are divorced.[16]
On July 21, 2019, Sohn was arrested in North Carolina and charged with felony possession of cocaine.[17]
Filmography
[edit]Film
[edit]Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1996 | Work | June | |
1998 | Slam | Lauren Bell | |
1999 | Getting to Know You | Lynn | |
Bringing Out the Dead | Kanita | ||
2000 | Shaft | Alice | |
2001 | Perfume | Dandy | |
2002 | G | Shelly | |
2003 | The Killing Zone | Jennifer | |
2004 | The Industry | Narrator (voice) | Video |
2008 | Step Up 2: The Streets | Sarah | |
2012 | The Wire: The Musical | Shakima 'Kima' Greggs | Short |
2015 | The Missing Girl | Franny | |
2016 | Domain | Atlanta | |
2019 | High Flying Bird | Myra | |
2023 | Big George Foreman | Nancy Foreman | |
Breakwater | Bonnie | [18][19] |
Television
[edit]Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2002–08 | The Wire | Shakima 'Kima' Greggs | Main Cast |
2006–07 | Cold Case | Toni Halstead | Recurring Cast: Season 4, Guest: Season 5 |
2008–09 | Brothers & Sisters | Trish Evans | Recurring Cast: Season 3 |
2010–13 | The Good Wife | Sonya Rucker | Guest Cast: Season 1 & 5 |
2011 | Bar Karma | Lucy Borden | Episode: "An Open Mind" |
2011–12 | Body of Proof | Samantha Baker | Main Cast: Season 1-2 |
2012 | Drop Dead Diva | Judge Vivian Holston | Episode: "Jane's Getting Married" |
Burn Notice | Agent Olivia Riley | Recurring Cast: Season 6 | |
2013 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Lisa Carter | Episode: "American Tragedy" |
2014–15 | The Originals | Lenore Shaw | Recurring Cast: Season 2 |
2015 | Last Week Tonight with John Oliver | Police Officer | Episode: "Public Defenders" |
2016 | Luke Cage | Captain Betty Audrey | Recurring Cast: Season 1 |
Shut Eye | Detective Gabriella | Recurring Cast: Season 1 | |
2017 | Incorporated | Chairman Fisher | Recurring Cast |
2018–21 | The Chi | Laverne Johnson | Recurring Cast: Season 1, Guest: Season 3-4 |
2019 | Godfather of Harlem | Nell | Episode: "Rent Strike Blues" |
2019–21 | Star Trek: Discovery | Dr. Gabrielle Burnham | Recurring Cast: Season 2, Guest: Season 3-4 |
2020 | Interrogation | Marjorie Thompson | Episode: "L.A. County Psychologist Marjorie Thompson vs. Eric Fisher 1984" |
Utopia | Agent Katherine Milner | Recurring Cast | |
2023 | See It Loud: The History of Black Television | Herself | Recurring Guest |
2023– | Will Trent | Amanda Wagner | Main Cast |
Director
[edit]Year | Title |
---|---|
2017 | Baltimore Rising |
Awards and nominations
[edit]Year | Award | Category | Film or series | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
1998 | Gotham Awards | Breakthrough Actor | Slam | Won |
1998 | Sundance Film Festival | Grand Jury Prize | Slam | Won |
1998 | Independent Spirit Awards | Best Debut Performance | Slam | Nominated |
2005 | Image Awards | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series | The Wire | Nominated |
2008 | Asian Excellence Awards | Outstanding Television Actress | The Wire | Won |
2009 | Image Awards | Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series | The Wire | Nominated |
References
[edit]- ^ Gross, Terry (March 15, 2012). "Sonja Sohn: Changing Baltimore Long After 'The Wire '". Fresh Air. NPR. Retrieved April 17, 2012.
- ^ Life Servers Sohn Well; Actress Graduated from Newport News School, Richmond Times-Dispatch, November 7, 1998, B4, by Mike Holtzclaw
- ^ Holtzclaw, Mike (October 25, 1999). "Local Actress Now Working With Big Stars". Daily Press. Archived from the original on September 17, 2016. Retrieved April 17, 2012.
- ^ "Character profile - Detective Shakima "Kima" Greggs". HBO. 2004. Retrieved July 22, 2006.
- ^ Bargiel, Nina (February 22, 2011). "Episode 103: "An Open Mind" with Sonja Sohn!". Current TV. Archived from the original on March 12, 2011. Retrieved April 16, 2012.
- ^ "ABC Adds "Body of Proof", "Off the Map" to Roster". The Futon Critic. May 14, 2010. Retrieved May 18, 2010.
- ^ Tierney Bricker (May 30, 2014). "The Originals Casts The Wire Star in Witchy Season 2 Role". E!. Retrieved September 5, 2014.
- ^ Cohen, Sandy (July 28, 2017). "'Baltimore Rising' explores life after Freddie Gray". The Detroit News. Associated Press.
- ^ Petski, Denise (May 10, 2022). "Sonja Sohn Joins ABC Drama Pilot 'Will Trent'". Deadline. Retrieved January 5, 2023.
- ^ Phil Zabriskie, "After 'The Wire' ended, actress Sonja Sohn couldn't leave Baltimore's troubled streets behind", Washington Post, January 27, 2012.
- ^ "After 'The Wire', Sonja Sohn couldn’t leave Baltimore’s troubled streets behind" Archived 2010-04-10 at the Wayback Machine Article, ReWired for Change web site
- ^ Sonja Sohn's Road to Redemption Archived 2009-09-07 at the Wayback Machine - story on Sohn's community activism with reWIRED for Change in B (Baltimore online newspaper), accessed January 1, 2010
- ^ Members page reWIRED for Change, accessed January 1, 2010
- ^ "Sohn honored". Boston Globe. March 29, 2011. p. G14.
"The Wire" actress Sonja Sohn receives the Woman of the Year award at the Harvard Black Men's Forum 17th Annual Celebration of Black Women
- ^ "A night for guys to be bad for good". Baltimore Sun. November 5, 2006. Retrieved April 19, 2023.
- ^ Price, Mark (July 22, 2019). "Actress known for HBO's 'The Wire' faces cocaine charge on Outer Banks, NC police say". Charlotte Observer. Retrieved July 7, 2023. (subscription required)
- ^ "Actress charged with drug possession in North Carolina". Associated Press. July 22, 2019. Retrieved June 24, 2020.
- ^ Lang, Brent (October 4, 2021). "Darren Mann, Alyssa Goss, Sonja Sohn, Celia Rose Gooding Join Crime Thriller 'Breakwater' (Exclusive)". Variety. Retrieved February 2, 2023.
- ^ Grobar, Matt (May 5, 2023). "Ryan Phillippe, Emile Hirsch & Mena Suvari Set For Vertical's Action Thriller 'Kalahari' From Writer-Director Mukunda Michael Dewil; Voltage Pictures To Handle Sales At Cannes". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 7, 2023.
Suvari's… other upcoming projects… James Rowe's thriller Breakwater with Dermot Mulroney.
External links
[edit]- Sonja Sohn at IMDb
- reWIRED for Change homepage, rewiredforchange.org; accessed December 8, 2014.
- ReWired and Reading Liverpool Philharmonic, liverpoolphil.com; accessed December 8, 2014.
- ReWired and Reading The Reader Organisation, thereaderonline.co.uk; accessed December 8, 2014.
- Appearances on C-SPAN
- C-SPAN Q&A interview with Sohn, c-span.org; accessed December 8, 2014.
- 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