Cara Gee
Cara Gee (born July 18, 1983[2][3]) is a Canadian film, television, and stage actress. She is known for her roles in the television series Strange Empire and The Expanse. She is described by Forbes as "one of the most prominent indigenous women in the entertainment industry".[4]
Cara Gee | |
---|---|
Born | |
Occupation | Actress |
Years active | 2011–present |
Spouse | [1] |
Career
Gee is primarily known as a stage actress in Toronto, Ontario, where her acting credits have included productions of Margaret Atwood's The Penelopiad,[5] Daniel MacIvor's Arigato, Tokyo,[6] Tomson Highway's The Rez Sisters[5] Cliff Cardinal's Stitch,[7] Birdtown and Swanville's 36 Little Plays About Hopeless Girls[7] and Louise Dupré's Tout comme elle.[7]
She made her feature film debut in Empire of Dirt for which she was nominated for a Canadian Screen Award.[6] For this role, she also won a Special Jury award at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival as well as an award for Best Actress at the American Indian Film Festival. In 2013, at TIFF, Gee was named one of the festival's annual Rising Stars.[3]
Gee began work on television playing guest roles in the television series King and Republic of Doyle. In 2014, she starred as one of the lead characters in the Western drama series Strange Empire on CBC Television, for one season until it was cancelled in 2015.[8][9] As of 2016, Gee stars in the 33-episode web series Inhuman Condition, which airs on the KindaTV YouTube channel.[10][11]
From 2017 to 2022 she played the role of Camina Drummer on the Syfy/Amazon television series The Expanse.[12] Her indigenous origin has attracted media attention repeatedly around matters of representation of minorities,[13][14] especially with narratives in The Expanse regarding cultural assimilation.[15][16]
Personal life
Gee is Ojibwe, one of the largest indigenous populations in Canada.[7][17] She was born in Calgary, Alberta, and raised in Aurora, Ontario.[6][18] She married Richard de Klerk in 2019.[1] Gee was eight months pregnant while filming the fifth season of The Expanse.[19]
Filmography
Films
Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2010 | Gingerlip Kids | Sharon Taylor | Short film | [20] |
2013 | The Cycle of Broken Grace | Prostitute | ||
Empire of Dirt | Lena Mahikan | |||
2015 | We Think it Belongs In The Sea | Lynne Ann | Short film | |
2016 | Anne Darling | Charlie | ||
2017 | Sundowners | Jenny | ||
The Carmilla Movie | Emily Brontë | |||
We Forgot to Break Up | Isis Wong | Short film | ||
2018 | Birdland | Hazel James | ||
Trouble in the Garden | Raven | |||
Pippa | ||||
Red Rover | Phoebe | |||
Wynter | Coyote | TV film | ||
2019 | Home in Time | Skylar | Short film | |
Bitter Smoke | Opichi | |||
EXT | Aegis Minamoto | |||
It's Nothing | The Girl | |||
2020 | Alone Wolf | Town Monroe | ||
The Call of the Wild | Françoise | |||
2022 | Bones of Crows | Percy Whallach | ||
Television series
Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2012 | King | Alicia Pratta | Episode: "Alicia Pratta" (no. 18) | [20] |
2013 | Republic of Doyle | Sydney Morrison | Episode: "Brothers in Arms" (no. 61) | |
2014 | Darknet | Gemma | Episode: "Darknet 4" (no. 4) | |
2014–2015 | Strange Empire | Kat Loving | Leading role; 13 episodes | |
2016 | Inhuman Condition | Tamar | Main role; web series; 11 episodes | |
2017 | The Neddeaus of Duqesne Island | Web series; episode: "The Mainland" (no. 10) | ||
Letterkenny | Shyla | Episode: "Way to a Man's Heart" (no. 23) | ||
2017–2022 | The Expanse | Camina Drummer | Recurring role (seasons 2–3); main role (seasons 4–6); 42 episodes | |
2021 | The Expanse: One Ship | Episode: "Ankawala" (no. 1) | ||
2023 | Extrapolations | Freda | Episode: "2037: A Raven Story" (no. 1) | |
Video games
Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2023 | The Expanse: A Telltale Series | Camina Drummer | Voice | [20] |
Awards and nominations
Gee garnered a Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Actress at the 2nd Canadian Screen Awards for her performance in Empire of Dirt.[6][21] For this role, she also won a Special Jury Award at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival as well as an award for Best Actress at the American Indian Film Festival.
References
- Cara Gee [@CaraGeeeee] (April 3, 2019). "I married my sweet love Richard de Klerk..." (Tweet). Retrieved 2020-01-11 – via Twitter.
- Cara Gee [@CaraGeeeee] (July 14, 2017). "July 18th happens to be my birthday so this is just perfect 💙 #TheExpanse" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 2020-09-02. Retrieved 2022-06-29 – via Twitter.
- Marsha Lederman (September 5, 2014). "Actress Cara Gee: Making it big and keeping it real". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on 2017-04-20. Retrieved 2016-08-25.
- Rob Salkowitz (December 31, 2021). "The Expanse's Cara Gee Adds A Unique Perspective To The Show's Diverse Cast". Forbes. Retrieved 2022-01-16.
- "People to Watch in 2012". Torontoist. January 3, 2012. Archived from the original on 2014-01-15.
- Linda Barnard (December 30, 2012). "People to watch: Cara Gee". Toronto Star. Archived from the original on 2019-05-08. Retrieved 2022-06-29.
- Glenn Sumi (September 5, 2013). "Golly Gee – Stage star Cara Gee burns bright in big-screen debut". NOW. Archived from the original on 2014-10-20. Retrieved 2014-01-14.
- Etan Vlessing (August 4, 2014). "DRG to Sell Dark Canadian Drama 'Strange Empire' at MIPCOM". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 2019-05-08.
- Duncan McCue (October 3, 2014). "Q&A: Cara Gee plays "dream role" as gun-toting Métis cowgirl". CBC News. Archived from the original on 2016-04-15. Retrieved 2016-08-25.
- "Inhuman Condition Is a Step Forward for the Medium". Bloody Disgusting. July 5, 2016. Archived from the original on 2016-08-11. Retrieved 2016-08-25.
- "Shaftesbury | Inhuman Condition". Shaftesbury. Archived from the original on 2016-10-13. Retrieved 2016-08-25.
- Mia Galuppo (November 7, 2018). "Expanse Actress Cara Gee Joins Call of the Wild at Fox". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 2020-06-18. Retrieved 2019-07-02.
- Victoria Ahearn (February 19, 2020). "Calgary-born actress talks Indigenous pride and her digital dog co-star in The Call of the Wild". CBC News. Retrieved 2022-01-16.
- Dino-Ray Ramos (November 16, 2020). "'The Expanse's Cara Gee And 'Falling Skies' Actor Mpho Koaho Join Sci-Fi Thriller 'Levels'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 2022-01-16.
- "The Expanse's Focus On Cultural Assimilation Hits Close To Home For Cara Gee". ScreenRant. December 6, 2019. Retrieved 2022-01-16.
- "The Expanse's Cara Gee Talks Indigenous Representation". Den of Geek. November 16, 2019. Retrieved 2022-01-16.
- Jeff Spry (December 15, 2020). "Beltalowda! Cara Gee opens up about Drummer's emotional odyssey in 'The Expanse' season 5". Archived from the original on 2021-01-29. Retrieved 2022-06-29.
- Victoria Ahearn (February 19, 2020). "Calgary-born actress talks Indigenous pride and her digital dog co-star in The Call of the Wild". CBC News. Archived from the original on 2020-02-25. Retrieved 2022-06-29.
- "The Expanse Drummer Actor Filmed Emotional Scenes 8 Months Pregnant". ScreenRant. January 26, 2021. Archived from the original on 2021-02-13.
- "Cara Gee". imdb.com.
- "Canadian Screen Awards: Orphan Black, Less Than Kind, Enemy nominated". CBC News. January 13, 2014. Archived from the original on 2018-03-31. Retrieved 2014-01-14.