Emayatzy Corinealdi

Emayatzy Corinealdi
Corinealdi in June 2012
Born	(1980-01-14) 14 January 1980 (age 37) Fort Knox, Kentucky, U.S.
Occupation	Actress
Years active	2008–present

Emayatzy Evett Corinealdi (/ɛmeɪˈjɑːtsi/ /kɔːriˈnɑːldi/; born January 14, 1980) is an American actress. She is best known for her leading role in the Ava DuVernay film Middle of Nowhere (2012).

Corinealdi was born in Fort Knox, Kentucky, the daughter of Rosemarie Hilton and Edward Corinealdi. Her father is a Panamanian, while her mother is an African-American from Ohio. As a member of a military family, she was raised between Germany and the U.S. states of Ohio, Kansas, and New Jersey. She studied in New Jersey at the Actor's Training Studio, then at the William Esper Studio in New York City, then at Playhouse West.

In early career, Corinealdi co-starred in a number of independent and short films, had the recurring role on the CBS daytime soap opera, The Young and the Restless, and appeared in the Hallmark television film, The Nanny Express (2008). In 2012, she made her feature film debut as the lead in the drama Middle of Nowhere. Corinealdi won the 14th Annual American Black Film Festival Star Project, an international acting competition for emerging multicultural artists. Later that year, she won a Gotham Award for Breakthrough Actor for the film. She was also nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead.