Into the Badlands

Babou Ceesay

Babou Ceesay recently starred as Marcus opposite Freida Pinto in Showtime and Sky’s series Guerrilla, from creator-writer-producer John Ridley and executive producer Idris Elba. Ceesay was nominated for a BAFTA for his portrayal of Richard Taylor in BBC One’s feature-length drama Damilola, Our Loved Boy (2016), alongside Wunmi Mosaku. Ceesay will next be seen in the upcoming film Best of Enemies, alongside Sam Rockwell, Taraji P. Henson, and Anne Heche. Ceesay’s other recent work includes Ben Wheatley’s Free Fire (2017), alongside Brie Larson, Armie Hammer, and Cillian Murphy; Eye in the Sky (2016), opposite Helen Mirren; Jack Throne’s mini-series National Treasure (2016), alongside Robbie Coltrane, Julie Walters, and Andrea Riseborough; BAFTA-nominated feature ’71 (2014), where he appeared alongside Jack O’Connell; and Half of a Yellow Sun (2013), with Chiwetel Ejiofor and Thandie Newton. In 2015 Ceesay landed the pivotal role of John in the Mark Burnett- and Roma Downey-produced television series A.D. The Bible Continues, which aired on NBC. His TV career has included guest roles in Luther, Law & Order, Silent Witness, Getting On, and HBO’s Strikeback, as well as TV films such as the BAFTA award-winning dramas Shirley and Stolen. He also caused a stir playing the new sidekick for ITV’s Lewis in 2013. Ceesay trained at the highly respected Oxford School of Drama. He has been involved in many significant projects on stage, including The Overwhelming opposite Andrew Garfield and A Midsummer Night’s Dream, directed by Ed Hall, where he “created a strikingly original interpretation” of Shakespeare’s Helena. Ceesay is a dual national, born in Britain to Gambian parents. Before he became an actor, he studied microbiology at Imperial College London and worked as an internal auditor at accounting firm Deloitte. But he followed his dream and has never looked back. He lives in London with his wife, daughter, and son.