Amber Midthunder
Midthunder in 2019
Born (1997-04-26) April 26, 1997 (age 26)
Shiprock, New Mexico, U.S.[1]
OccupationActress
Years active2001–present

Amber Midthunder (born April 26, 1997)[2] is an American actress. She is known for her regular roles in the FX series Legion and The CW series Roswell, New Mexico, as well as appearances on Longmire, Banshee, and Reservation Dogs.[3][4][5] She starred as Naru in Prey, the fifth installment of the Predator franchise.[6]

Early life

Midthunder's mother Angelique, who is originally from Thailand and of Thai-Chinese ancestry,[7] is a casting director and stunt performer, and her father David is an actor of Native American Assiniboine descent; Angelique and David met while working on the 1995 Japanese film East Meets West.[8]

Midthunder is a citizen of the Fort Peck Assiniboine and Sioux Tribe.[9][10][11] She was born on the Navajo Nation in Shiprock, New Mexico, and eventually returned there after spending much of her childhood in Santa Fe where she attended the Academy for Technology and the Classics and where her mother worked in a casting firm.[8][12]

Career

This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (August 2022)

Midthunder developed an interest in acting as a child, where she would memorize and recite lines from her favorite shows, but disliked her first experience in the job,[13][14] leading her to take some time before another performance, even considering a career in make-up, where she worked as an intern, or mixed martial arts, having trained and taught Brazilian jiu-jitsu.[15][16] Her first credit was in 2008's Sunshine Cleaning.[12] Midthunder proceeded to work in various productions filmed in New Mexico, before moving to Los Angeles at the age of 17 to pursue more acting opportunities.[15] She starred as Naru in Prey, the fifth installment of the Predator franchise.[6] She was widely praised for her performance.[17]

Awards

In 2022, Midthunder received the Breakthrough Performance Award as part of the Saturn Awards[18] and a Critics' Choice Awards nomination for Best Actress in a Limited Series or Movie Made for Television.[19]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes Ref(s)
2001 The Homecoming of Jimmy Whitecloud Little Girl [citation needed]
2002 Deadly Species Calusa Tribe Direct-to-video film [citation needed]
2008 Sunshine Cleaning Candy Store Girl [12]
Swing Vote Female Student #3 [20]
2009 Not Forgotten Amaya Bishop (young) [citation needed]
2014 Drunktown's Finest Model #1 [21][22]
2015 Spare Parts Nikki [citation needed]
Bare Malya Uncredited [citation needed]
2016 Hell or High Water Nicole Martinez (Vernon Teller) [23][24]
Priceless Maria [25]
2018 14 Cameras Danielle [26][27]
2019 Only Mine Julie Dillon Direct-to-video film [28][29][30]
She's Missing Honey [citation needed]
2020 Centurion: The Dancing Stallion Elissa Hall [31]
2021 The Marksman Gas Station Clerk [citation needed]
The Ice Road Tantoo [32][33]
The Wheel Albee Co-producer [1]
2022 Prey Naru [34][35]
2023 Dream Scenario Haley
2024 Rez Ball TBA post-production [36]
TBA Opus TBA Post-production [37]

Television

Year Title Role Notes Ref(s)
2012–2014 Longmire Lilly Stillwater Episodes: "Pilot", "Miss Cheyenne" [12]
2014 Banshee Lana Cleary Episodes: "The Warrior Class", "Bloodlines" [citation needed]
2015 Dig Starlet Episode: "Emma Wilson's Father" [citation needed]
2016 The Originals Kayla Episode: "Alone with Everybody" [citation needed]
2017–2019 Legion Kerry Loudermilk Main role [38][39][40]
2018 The Misadventures of Psyche & Me Lizzie Television miniseries [citation needed]
2019–2022 Roswell, New Mexico Rosa Ortecho Recurring role (season 1); main role (seasons 2–4) [41][42][43][44]
2021 Long Gone Gulch BW Voice role [45]
2022 Reservation Dogs MissMa8riarch Episode: "Decolonativization" [5]
2024 Avatar: The Last Airbender Princess Yue Post-production; recurring role [46]

References

  1. ^ a b Young, Allie (August 4, 2022). "Prey's Amber Midthunder Is the Action Star We've Been Waiting For". Retrieved August 7, 2022.
  2. ^ "22, what a year you were. I'll miss you (and having a @taylorswift song titled after my age). Hello 👋🏼 23. Thank you for all the birthday wishes💖". Amber Midthunder on Instagram. April 27, 2020.
  3. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (February 22, 2016). "'Legion' FX Pilot Casts Amber Midthunder". Deadline.
  4. ^ "Amber Midthunder's blossoming career with Marvel Studios". Tworowtimes. March 1, 2017.
  5. ^ a b Radish, Christina (August 31, 2022). "Amber Midthunder on Her 'Reservation Dogs' Character and the Positive Reaction to 'Prey'". Collider. Retrieved August 31, 2022.
  6. ^ a b Villei, Matt (June 7, 2022). "Prey Poster Shows Amber Midthunder in the Predator's Crosshairs". Collider. Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  7. ^ "'Roswell, New Mexico' star Amber Midthunder walks us through Season 2". New York Post. March 27, 2020. Retrieved October 6, 2022.
  8. ^ a b Stelnicki, Tripp (February 7, 2017). "Santa Fe actress stars on much-hyped Marvel X-Men series 'Legion'". The Santa Fe New Mexican. Retrieved September 13, 2020.
  9. ^ "Amber Midthunder Kicks Butt as a Native Woman Superhero on FX Network's 'Legion'". Indian Country Media Network. Archived from the original on December 1, 2017. Retrieved November 20, 2017.
  10. ^ "Amber Midthunder in X-Men TV Pilot "Legion" - PowWows.com - Native American Pow Wows". PowWows.com - Native American Pow Wows. February 25, 2016. Retrieved November 20, 2017.
  11. ^ "Goddess Strides". natalienoel.com. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  12. ^ a b c d June 2017 - Cover Story: Amber Midthunder , New Mexico Entertainment
  13. ^ 'Prey' breakout Amber Midthunder talks axe throwing, outwitting the Predator and representation, USA Today
  14. ^ Transcript: Race in America: Giving Voice with Amber Midthunder
  15. ^ a b Galuppo, Mia (August 4, 2022). "Next Big Thing: 'Prey' Star Amber Midthunder on Bringing an Indigenous Action Hero Into 'Predator' Franchise". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
  16. ^ Hewitt, Chris (August 8, 2022). "Prey's Amber Midthunder Talks MMA, Native American Culture, And Meeting The Predator Prey".
  17. ^ "Prey's Amber Midthunder Didn't Know If She Would Make It Through the Grueling Shoot". CBR. September 2, 2022. Retrieved August 14, 2023.
  18. ^ Dick, Jeremy (October 21, 2022). "Prey Star Amber Midthunder Honored with Saturn Award for Breakthrough Performance". MovieWeb.
  19. ^ Nordyke, Kimberly (January 15, 2023). "Critics Choice Awards: Full List of Winners". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on January 16, 2023. Retrieved January 16, 2023.
  20. ^ "Swing Vote cast". TV Guide. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  21. ^ "Drunktown's Finest". North Coast Journal. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  22. ^ "Drunktown's Finest (2014)". Letterboxd. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  23. ^ Bassett, Shane (January 9, 2017). "DVD Review - Hell Or High Water (2016)". thepeoplesmovies.com. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  24. ^ Cline, Rich (September 1, 2016). "Hell or High Water". Contactmusic.com. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  25. ^ Leydon, Joe (October 14, 2016). "Film Review: 'Priceless'". Variety. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  26. ^ "'14 Cameras': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. July 26, 2018. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  27. ^ Graham, Adam. "Review: Send exploitative '14 Cameras' to trash bin". The Detroit News. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  28. ^ Adelgaard, Karina (January 15, 2019). "Only Mine (2018) – Review". Heaven of Horror. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  29. ^ White, Brett (January 22, 2019). "Is 'Only Mine' on Netflix Based on a True Story?". Decider. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  30. ^ "Only Mine – cast and crew". Radio Times. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  31. ^ "Amber Midthunder Grabs Lead in Drama 'Centurion the Dancing Stallion' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. May 24, 2019. Retrieved May 28, 2019.
  32. ^ Wiseman, Andreas (February 20, 2020). "'The Ice Road': First Look At Liam Neeson In Action Rescue Mission Movie Currently Shooting In Canada – EFM". Deadline. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  33. ^ "Laurence Fishburne set for role in The Ice Road". MSN. February 12, 2020. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  34. ^ Fisher, Jacob (May 21, 2021). "Amber Midthunder Cast in Lead Role of New 'Predator' Film (EXCLUSIVE)". Discussing Film. Retrieved May 21, 2021.
  35. ^ "Exclusive: New 'Predator' Movie Title, Plot Details, and Timeline Revealed by Producers John Davis and John Fox". Collider. July 27, 2021. Retrieved July 27, 2021.
  36. ^ Grobar, Matt (April 17, 2023). "'Rez Ball': Netflix Sets Jessica Matten, Julia Jones, Amber Midthunder, Kiowa Gordon & More For Sydney Freeland's Native American Basketball Underdog Pic". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved April 18, 2023.
  37. ^ Grobar, Matt (November 8, 2023). "Ayo Edebiri & John Malkovich To Topline A24 Horror Opus; Murray Bartlett, Amber Midthunder & Others Also Aboard, With Juliette Lewis In Talks". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  38. ^ August, Alexandra (April 3, 2018). "Legion: Amber Midthunder Promises Lots of New Turmoil in Season 2". CBR.com. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  39. ^ Radish, Christina (August 12, 2019). "'Legion': Amber Midthunder, Bill Irwin and Jeremie Harris on Bringing the Show to an End". Collider. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  40. ^ Travers, Ben (June 24, 2019). "'Legion' Review: Season 3 Takes an Exciting Approach to Time Travel, Even If It Gets a Bit Lost". IndieWire. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  41. ^ "TV Review: 'Roswell, New Mexico'". Variety. January 14, 2019. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  42. ^ Petski, Denise (April 25, 2019). "'Roswell, New Mexico': Amber Midthunder Upped To Series Regular for Season 2 Of CW Drama Series". Deadline. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  43. ^ Swift, Andy (April 25, 2019). "Roswell Promotes Amber Midthunder to Series Regular for Season 2". TVLine. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
  44. ^ Cordero, Rosy (May 12, 2022). "The CW's 'Roswell, New Mexico' Canceled After Four Seasons". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved September 13, 2022.
  45. ^ "Long Gone Gulch". January 11, 2021. Retrieved January 11, 2021 – via YouTube.
  46. ^ "Netflix's Avatar: The Last Airbender Has Reportedly Found Its Princess Yue". Comic Book. Retrieved June 27, 2022.

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