Joey Ansah

Last updated

Joey Ansah
Born (1982-11-24) 24 November 1982 (age 42)
London, England
Occupations
  • Actor
  • martial artist
  • stuntman
  • fight choreographer
  • producer
  • director
Parent Kofi Ansah (father)

Joey Ansah (born 24 November 1982) is an English actor, martial artist, stuntman and director best known for his roles in The Bourne Ultimatum (2007), Street Fighter: Assassin's Fist (2014) and The Old Guard (2020). [1]

Contents

Early life and education

Joey Ansah was born in the borough of Hackney, London, England, of mixed ethnicity, the second son of Ghanaian fashion designer Kofi Ansah and his Devon-born wife Nicola. Between the ages of 10 and 15, he lived in Ghana and studied Tae Kwon Do for four years. [1] Upon returning to England, Ansah began to audition for stunt roles in films, drawing inspiration from Ray Park's performance as Darth Maul in 1999. [2]

Career

Ansah's first important role as an actor was in the UK indie film Love Struck (2005). Notable appearances on British TV followed in episodes of BBC productions Spooks (2005) and Timewatch (2006).

Ansah went on to play a minor role as one of the Shadow Warriors in Batman Begins (2005). However, his most noteworthy role to date came in 2007, when he appeared in The Bourne Ultimatum as Desh Bouksani, an assassin tracking down Jason Bourne. Ansah's performance was notable for an extended set-piece fight scene between himself and Matt Damon, regarded by one reviewer as one of the best ever filmed, [3] in which Ansah performed all of his own stunts. In 2008 he was nominated for an MTV Film Award in the "Best Fight" category.

Ansah has also acted in British independent martial arts films, such as Left for Dead (2004) and Underground (2007).

He choreographed, co-wrote and directed the 2010 short film Street Fighter: Legacy . A self-proclaimed fan of the video game series, Ansah wanted the short to be the most accurate depiction of the series, different from the two theatrically released films. He and collaborator Christian Howard, with whom he worked on SFL, worked on the live-action Street Fighter series Street Fighter: Assassin's Fist , and they are developing a second season titled Street Fighter: World Warrior and Street Fighter: Resurrection . [4]

Filmography

Film

YearTitleRoleNotes
2004 Creep Marcus [5]
2005 Left for Dead Kickboxer 1
2005 Love Struck Mango
2005 Batman Begins League of Shadows member
2007Voyage: Killing Brigitte NielsenJoeyTV film
2007 The Bourne Ultimatum Desh Bouksani
2007UndergroundJoey, The Model
2009Ghost TownBoneseraTV film
2009Hit GirlsJames
2010 Street Fighter: Legacy Akuma Co-writer and co-director [6]
2010 Knock Out Fighter
2011 Attack the Block Policeman 1
2012 Snow White and the Huntsman Aldan
2012 I, Anna Bull [5]
2013 UFO Police officer / Black-ops soldier
2013 Green Street 3: Never Back Down Victor
2013 The Numbers Station Derne
2017 How to Talk to Girls at Parties (film) PT Bob
2018 Mission: Impossible – Fallout Henchman
2019 The Kid Who Would Be King Police officer
2019 Aladdin Jafar's guard (uncredited) / stunt performer
2020 The Old Guard Keane

Series

YearTitleRole
2004 Starhyke Fight coordinator and cameo [5]
2005 Spooks (MI-5)Abbud
2006 Gideon's Daughter Diesel
2006 Timewatch Emperor Geta
2014 Street Fighter: Assassin's Fist Akuma, co-writer, co-director
2016 Street Fighter: Resurrection Writer, director
2020 The Stranger Stuart Hope
2023 Who Is Erin Carter? Alec Fenwick [7]

Awards and nominations

YearAwardCategoryNominated workResult
2008 17th MTV Movie Awards Best Fight (shared with Matt Damon) The Bourne Ultimatum Nominated

References

  1. 1 2 "Kofi Ansah's Son Produce Hollywood Movie", Peace FM Online, 5 June 2014.
  2. ↑ Joey Ansah, Scott Adkins (2021). The Art of Action — Episode 26 . Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  3. ↑ Bourne Ultimatum: Review, Rolling Stone. Retrieved 28 May 2012.
  4. ↑ Gooch, Bryony (8 October 2009). "Joey Ansah - Biography". Hello Magazine. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  5. 1 2 3 "Joey Ansah CV". Curtis Brown. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  6. ↑ "This Could Be The Best Street Fighter Film Ever Created". Kotaku, Australia (May 2010). Retrieved 28 May 2012.
  7. ↑ "Who is Erin Carter? Lands on Netflix". Curtis Brown. 24 August 2023. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
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