Kingsley Ben-Adir’s best films and shows show a man on the rise. The Bob Marley: One Love and Secret Invasion star is building on strong ground. Born in London in 1986, he stepped onto screens in 2013 with small roles in World War Z and Agatha Christie’s Marple.
He worked steady in crime dramas—Midsomer Murders, Vera—before Peaky Blinders in 2017 changed things. That was the break. Since then, he has kept climbing, kept proving himself. His best work shows a talent with more to give. The road ahead looks good.
Kingsley Ben-Adir’s Top 10 Must-Watch Movies and TV Shows
10. Noelle (2019)
Noelle (2019) is a Christmas comedy by writer-director Mark Lawrence. Kingsley Ben-Adir does not lead the story—Anna Kendrick and Bill Hader do—but he stands out as Jake Hapman. Jake is a private detective, recently divorced. Noelle hires him to find her missing father, Santa Claus.
The film does not change the Christmas movie formula, but it does what it must. It works. Ben-Adir makes it better. His performance has weight, especially when Jake speaks of Christmas as a man no longer with his family. If nothing else, Noelle proves he can hold his own in a Disney holiday film.
9. King Arthur: Legend Of The Sword (2017)
There have been many films about King Arthur. Few are as rough and modern as King Arthur: Legend of the Sword (2017). British director Guy Ritchie, known for Snatch and RocknRolla, made it his own. Charlie Hunnam played Arthur. Kingsley Ben-Adir joined the cast as Wet Stick, also known as Sir Tristan.
Critics did not like the film. It was not the success people expected from Ritchie. But Ben-Adir made the most of it. He worked with what he had. In a cast with Jude Law, Djimon Hounsou, Eric Bana, and Hunnam, he still managed to stand out.
8. Soulmates (2020)
Soulmates (2020) was a sci-fi romance anthology on AMC. It had promise. It was canceled in 2023, though season two had been planned. Still, it found an audience. The premise was strong. The cast was good. Kingsley Ben-Adir starred in episode one as Franklin, with Sarah Snook as his wife, Nikki.
The show takes place in the near future. A new technology finds a person’s perfect match with total accuracy. Franklin knows his real soulmate. But he is married. He tries to stay. To make it work. It is complicated. Ben-Adir plays it well. He was in only one episode, but his role made an impact.
7. The Comey Rule (2020)
The political drama The Comey Rule is based on A Higher Loyalty, a book by former FBI director James Comey. It tells his story from Trump’s first term. Jeff Daniels plays Comey. Brendan Gleeson plays Trump.
The show is a heavy one. It needed a sharp cast. They played real people. Kingsley Ben-Adir stood out as Barack Obama. He was convincing. Critics had issues with parts of the series, but not with him. He did the job well. For those who follow his work, The Comey Rule is worth watching.
6. Secret Invasion (2023)
Secret Invasion may not be Kingsley Ben-Adir’s best work, but it put him on the map for many. He played Gravik, a renegade Skrull. The show, part of the MCU, focused on Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury. Fans were eager for it. It arrived in 2023 with high expectations.
Ben-Adir delivered. He made Gravik a strong enemy, one worthy of facing Jackson’s tough, battle-worn Fury. But Gravik was more than a villain. He had reasons. He had depth. Ben-Adir showed this with ease. He made the character real.
5. The OA (2016-2019)
The Netflix mystery-drama The OA launched in 2016 and ran for two seasons. Kingsley Ben-Adir joined in season two as Karim Washington, a private investigator. He was in only six episodes before Netflix canceled the show. Still, it remains one of his best.
Ben-Adir was sharp in The OA. The show itself was gripping. It ended too soon. But it mattered. After The OA, his career moved fast. Bigger roles came. Secret Invasion. Noelle, where he played another detective. The OA was a turning point.
4. High Fidelity (2020)
High Fidelity (2020) is a fresh take on Nick Hornby’s 1995 novel. It also draws from the 2000 film with John Cusack. This time, the story follows Rob Brooks (Zoë Kravitz), a record store owner, as she walks viewers through her messy love life.
Kingsley Ben-Adir plays Mac, her most recent lover. The one who hurt her most. He makes the role real. The love, the break-up—it all feels true. The show was short-lived, canceled after one season. But critics liked it. It still holds strong with an 82% on Rotten Tomatoes.
3. Peaky Blinders (2013-2022)
Most of the Peaky Blinders cast were already big names. If they weren’t, they became so after. Cillian Murphy. Tom Hardy. The show was one of the best of the 2010s and early 2020s. It still has a loyal following.
For Kingsley Ben-Adir, it was a key role early in his career. He played Col. Ben Younger. He was in only five episodes, but they mattered. He first appeared in season 4. By season 5, he was in some of the show’s most thrilling moments. From the start, he made an impact.
2. One Night In Miami (2020)
The best Kingsley Ben-Adir films and shows are hard to rank. At the top, the fight is close. In both, he plays famous men from history. One is One Night in Miami (2020), directed by Regina King. Ben-Adir plays Malcolm X. The film imagines a meeting with Muhammad Ali, Jim Brown, and Sam Cooke.
The role brought him more awards than any other. He won Breakthrough Actor at the Gotham Awards. He was nominated for a Satellite Award. If One Night in Miami had reached more people, it might have been his biggest success yet.
1. Bob Marley: One Love (2024)
Kingsley Ben-Adir’s finest work is Bob Marley: One Love, the 2024 film by Reinaldo Marcus Green. He plays Marley with heart and truth, showing the rise, the struggle, and the end. His performance is honest. It is real.
The story itself is simple. Critics found it lacking. But none doubted Ben-Adir. He carries the film, embodying Marley’s spirit with care and precision. It is a tribute—one that feels right. The film moves. It sings. It honors the man and his music.
Ben-Adir has never been better. No other role of his comes close. This is his best.
Conclusion
From portraying an alien in Secret Invasion to portraying the great Bob Marley, Kingsley Ben-Adir’s career path is far from typical. Although he began his career with small roles running from zombies in World War Z, he now commands blockbusters and breathing life into characters on the big screen. Ben-Adir is not just another British actor with a great scope – he is a chameleon who can easily wear dreadlocks as well as the aura of a president.
FAQs
Q1: What was Kingsley Ben-Adir’s breakthrough role?
A: Although he has been consistently employed in British television, the role of Col. Ben Younger in Peaky Blinders (2017) can be considered as a breakthrough. It is a kind of ‘I have arrived’ moment – but with more gangsters and British accents than are usual in career defining moments. It paved way to more significant roles, thus, establishing the fact that all one needs is a great run in a show about sharp dressing gentlemen of the wrong side of the law.
Q2: How does Ben-Adir approach playing real-life figures?
A: Ben-Adir has turned into an expert in portraying historical figures as he has played Malcolm X, Barack Obama, and Bob Marley. He performs each role with utmost professionalism, although I am sure that he did not have to learn how to transform his shape for any of them (as in the case of Gravik in Secret Invasion). He has received much appreciation for his acting skills, especially for his portrayal of Malcolm X in One Night in Miami for which he was nominated for a Gotham Award.
Q3: What types of roles does Ben-Adir excel in?
A: Ben-Adir has portrayed various characters, from a private detective in High Fidelity and Noelle to a world leader in The Comey Rule and a reggae icon in Bob Marley: One Love. He is equally versatile in period dramas, superhero shows and biopics. It is like a man who has all the tools in his pocket to work on a particular job – that is the kind of acting he has. One thing he has not done yet is a musical comedy, though after playing Bob Marley who knows.
Q4: What makes Ben-Adir’s portrayal of Bob Marley stand out?
A: In Bob Marley: One Love (2024), he gave what is regarded as his best performance to date. While some critics were not so sure about the movie’s story, most of them were impressed by the performance of Ben-Adir. He succeeded in portraying Marley in a way that did not simply mimic the man, which is not an easy task when portraying such a legend as the Jamaican singer. It is like he was able to capture the essence of the original and yet make it new at the same time.
