Amir Wilson is an English-Sudanese actor who is well known for starring in the musical play The Lion King (2015), the American-British television series His Dark Materials (2019), and British-Dutch the web series The Letter for the King (2020).
Wiki/Biography
Amir Wilson was born on Friday, February 6, 2004 (age 17 years; as of 2021), in Shrewsbury in the West Midlands, England.
Childhood picture of Amir Wilson
He attended St. Giles’ C of E Primary School in South Mimms, England. After he secured himself the role of Simba in the 2015 musical play ‘The Lion King,’ he moved to London to stay with his elder sister Moya Wilson. Thereafter, he enrolled himself in a film school [1]Boys By Girls.
Physical Appearance
Hair Color: Dark Brown
Eye Color: Brown
Family & Ethnicity
His father, Paul Wilson, is English, and his mother, Nagla Wilson, is Sudanese. [3]Boys By Girls While talking about his ethnicity in an interview, he said,
My mum is Sudanese and my dad’s English. I can understand Arabic more than I can speak it. Apparently, when I was younger I refused to learn it and I really hate myself for that. I wish I was fluently bilingual.”
His father passed away in 2018 due to a heart attack caused by an un-diagnosed asymptomatic coronary heart disease. He has two elder sisters, Moya Wilson and Imaan Wilson.
Amir Wilson with his father and his sister Imaan
Imaan Wilson and Nagla Wilson
Career
Theater
He first got interested in acting during his school days when he was cast for the role of Munchkins in the 2012 play ‘Wizard of Oz’ for the local theater group Get Your Wiggle On (GYWO). In an interview, while talking about the onset of his acting journey, he said,
A teaching assistant for my school said, “Kids, do any of you want to play Munchkins in the Wizard of Oz for the local theatre group?”. I was like, nah, I don’t want to do that but I gave the leaflet to my sister. We went to the auditions that weekend…I ended up doing it, I got in and stayed with the company for two years.”
At GYWO, Amir starred as Mr. Mayor in the theatrical production ‘Seussical’ (2014), staged at Theatre Severn in Shrewsbury, England. In the play, Mr. and Mrs. Mayor are Jojo’s parents who try hard to raise their troubled child in a difficult world.
Amir Wilson in Seussical (2014)
Thereafter, he played the role of Chip, the teacup, in the theatrical production of ‘Beauty and the Beast.’ In the play, Chip is a seven-year-old boy who, like the other inhabitants of the castle, was cursed by the enchantress after which he transformed into a teacup. Later, Amir was cast in GYWO’s 2014 production of Oliver in the role of The Artful Dodger, but his name was dropped from the play when he landed the role of Simba in ‘The Lion King.’ Amir Wilson came into the limelight when he played the younger version of the protagonist Simba in the 2015 musical play ‘The Lion King,’ staged at Lyceum Theatre, London. The play was based on the 1994 Walt Disney Animation Studios’ animated feature film of the same name. According to the narrative, Simba is a young lion prince, who flees his kingdom after the murder of his father, Mufasa.
Amir Wilson in the musical play The Lion King (2015)
In 2017, he played the role of Nigel in the musical play ‘The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13¾.’ The play showcases an eventful year of a teenager named Adrian during which issues arise in his parents’ marriage and a lavish dream girl named Pandora transfers to his school. In the play, Nigel and Adrian are best friends who attend the same high school and youth club, share various musical and literary tastes, and even date the same girl, Pandora. Later, in the narrative, Nigel turns out to be a homosexual.
Amir Wilson in The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13¾ (2017)
Short Films
In 2018, he made his short film debut with ‘Special Delivery’ in which he played the role of Josh. The film is about a broke university student who unexpectedly meets a street smart 13-year-old kid named Josh while covertly delivering cocaine.
Amir Wilson in Special Delivery (2018)
Feature Films
In 2019, he made a brief appearance in the fantasy action-adventure film ‘The Kid Who Would Be King’ as a boy.
In 2020, he played the role of Dickon in the British fantasy drama film ‘The Secret Garden.’ The series follows an orphaned girl who discovers a magical garden hidden at her uncle’s estate. In the film, Dickon teams up with Mary to aid an injured dog and Mary’s bedridden cousin in the secret garden.
Amir Wilson in The Secret Garden (2020)
Later, he was cast in the 2022 German musical film ‘The Magic Flute’ for the role of Anton Milanesi. The film centers around a 17-year-old boy named Tim Walker who discovers a centuries-old forgotten passageway to a fantasy world.
Television
He came into the limelight when he played the role of Will Parry in the 2019 fantasy drama series ‘His Dark Materials.’ Set in a multi-world reality, the series follows a girl named Lyra who, according to a prophecy, is destined to change the world by picking up the correct magical cloud-pine branch. The witches’ prophecy also links Lyra’s destiny to a teenager from our world named Will, whose father vanished thirteen years ago. Amir’s character Will Parry emerged as a pivotal figure in the second season of the series.
![#his dark materials from [yelling at marvin]](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==)
Amir Wilson in His Dark Materials (2019)
OTT/Web Series
In 2020, Amir Wilson struck stardom with his digital debut series ‘The Letter for the King’ in which he played the protagonist Tiuri, a young aspiring knight who assumes a dangerous mission to deliver a secret letter to the King living across the Great Mountains. He was nominated in the category of ‘Outstanding Younger Performer in a Daytime Fiction Program’ at the Daytime Emmy Awards (2021) for playing the role of Tiuri.
Amir Wilson in The Letter for the King (2020)
Favorite Things
- Fast Food Company: Nando’s
- Food: Chicken, Halloumi fries
- Actor: Matthew McConaughey
- Film: Interstellar (2014)
- Sport: Football
Facts/Trivia
- The Shrewsbury-born actor is deeply attached to his peaceful Shropshire hometown. In an interview, while talking about Shrewsbury, he said,
I grew up there, I spent all my childhood there. I started acting there…I know I spent a lot of time at Sundorne Skatepark, I’ve got a lot of friends still. I used to go to Shrewsbury Town games and scream ‘Salop!’ from the stands…My father sadly passed away three years ago and he’s buried there. It’s nostalgic, I get to go there and be with him.”
- Apart from being a proficient actor, Amir is also a skillful football player. In his leisure time, he loves to go rock climbing.
- He can speak Arabic.
- As a tribute to his father, who unexpectedly died in 2018 due to a heart attack, in 2019, Amir joined the British Heart Foundation, an organization that aims at helping people suffering from heart and circulatory disease in the UK.
- In 2020, while mentioning something interesting about himself in an interview, he said,
I have never broken a bone.”
- He is a non-vegetarian. [4]Boys By Girls
- He holds dual citizenship of Sudan and the UK.