Djimon Hounsou

Born: April 24 1964
Where: Benin, West Africa

The former model first came to the attention of audiences when he was cast by Steven Spielberg in the slave drama Amistad.

He received a Golden Globe nomination for his performance as a rebellious slave in the otherwise disappointing movie.

More notably he has achieved great success in the shape of an Oscar nod for Best Supporting Actor for his role in the Irish American drama In America.

Since Amistad he has proved himself a shrewd judge of roles with appearances in Gladiator and Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life.

After arriving in Paris from Benin aged 13, he lived as a vagrant sleeping under bridges until fashion designer Thierry Mugler discovered him.

Following a stint as a model he relocated to LA and appeared in music videos for the likes of Madonna and Steve Winwood.

On the big screen, he landed small roles in the likes of Without You I'm Nothing, Unlawful Entry and Stargate.

Following Amistad, Hounsou became a regular in the hospital drama ER as well as appearing in the horror yarn Deep Rising and the Oscar-winning Gladiator.

He went on to star in the 2002 French movie Dead Weight, boys own caper The Four Feathers and "the screaming man" in Jim Sheridan's In America with Samantha Morton.

He can also be seen in Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life and the action drama Biker Boyz.

In 2005, he starred alongside Keanu Reeves and Rachel Weisz as Midnite in the sci-fi thriller Constantine and also starred in Michael Bay's The Island.

Recent work includes the Africa-set thriller Blood Diamond alongside Leonardo DiCaprio.