Cliff Curtis

Clifford Vivian Devon Curtis (born July 27, 1968) is a New Zealand actor and film producer. After working in theatre, he made his film debut in Jane Campion's Oscar-winning film The Piano (1993), followed by a breakout role in the drama Once Were Warriors (1994). He has won four New Zealand Film Awards, Best Actor for Jubilee (2000) and The Dark Horse (2014) - which also earned him the Asia Pacific Screen Award - and Best Supporting Actor for Desperate Remedies (1993) and Whale Rider (2002).

Curtis' international film credits include Three Kings, Bringing Out the Dead (both 1999), Blow, Training Day (both 2001), Collateral Damage (2002), Sunshine, Live Free or Die Hard (both 2007), Push, Crossing Over (both 2009), Colombiana (2011), Hobbs & Shaw, and Doctor Sleep (both 2019), also portraying James "Mac" Mackreides in The Meg (2018) and Meg 2: The Trench (2023) and Tonowari in the Avatar series (2022–present).

He had television series roles on NBC's Trauma and ABC's Body of Proof and Missing. From 2015 to 2017, he portrayed Travis Manawa on the AMC horror drama series Fear the Walking Dead. Curtis is also the co-owner of the independent New Zealand production company Whenua Films.

Early life and education

Clifford Vivian Devon Curtis was born in Rotorua in 1968. He is one of eight children born to George Curtis, an amateur dancer. He is of Māori descent; his tribal affiliations are Te Arawa and Ngāti Hauiti. His uncle was Toby Curtis, a prominent Māori educator and leader.