André Holland

André Holland is an American actor known for his work across film, television, and theater. He achieved widespread recognition for his portrayal of Kevin in the 2016 drama Moonlight, which won the Academy Award for Best Picture. Throughout his career, he has performed in historical feature films, prominent television series, and acclaimed stage productions.

Holland was born on December 28, 1979, and was raised in Bessemer, Alabama. He attended John Carroll Catholic High School in Birmingham. His interest in acting began early, making his initial stage performance at eleven years old in a Birmingham Summerfest Theatre production of Oliver!. He later attended Florida State University, studying abroad at its London study centre, before receiving a Master of Fine Arts degree from New York University in 2006.

Holland made his on-screen debut in a 2006 episode of Law & Order and landed his first film role in the 2008 sports drama Sugar. During this period, he established himself on stage, appearing in plays such as Blue Door, Wig Out!, and The Brother/Sister Plays. In 2010, his performance in Matthew Lopez's play The Whipping Man earned him the Vivian Robinson/Audelco Award for Best Supporting Actor. On television, he appeared in the sitcom Friends with Benefits in 2011 and starred as Dr. Algernon Edwards in the drama series The Knick from 2014 to 2015. On film, he portrayed sportswriter Wendell Smith in 42 in 2013 and politician Andrew Young in Ava DuVernay's 2014 drama Selma, earning an NAACP Image Award nomination for the latter.

In 2016, Holland gained major critical acclaim for his performance as Kevin in Barry Jenkins' Moonlight. His work earned individual supporting actor nominations from the Florida Film Critics Circle and the Black Reel Awards. In addition, he was nominated alongside his castmates for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture at the 23rd Screen Actors Guild Awards.

Following Moonlight, Holland returned to Broadway in 2017 to play Youngblood in August Wilson's Jitney. In 2018, he starred in a production of Othello at Shakespeare's Globe opposite Mark Rylance and made his Off Off Broadway directorial debut with Greg Keller's play Dutch Masters.

Holland's subsequent screen projects include Ava DuVernay's 2018 fantasy film A Wrinkle in Time and the Hulu mystery series Castle Rock, where he played lead character Henry Matthew Deaver. He also starred as Matt Miller in American Horror Story: Roanoke, took a lead role in Damien Chazelle's 2020 Netflix musical series The Eddy, and was cast as the lead in Duke Johnson's 2025 film adaptation The Actor.