Zachari Bankolé (born 12 August 1957 in Abidjan, Ivory Coast), better known as Isaach de Bankolé, is an Ivorian-French-American actor.
He was born in Ivory Coast to Yoruba parents from Benin, and his grandparents are from Nigeria. He moved to France in 1975 for his last year of lycée (high school), and pursued a master's degree in physics and mathematics. He then earned a pilot licence and intended to work in airlines, but a chance encounter with French director Gérard Vergez led him to instead enroll in the Cours Simon, a prestigious Parisian drama school, and he made his film debut in 1986 with Black Mic-Mac. He has notably become a regular of Jim Jarmusch's films since.
He settled in the USA in 1997 and was married to singer-songwriter Cassandra Wilson from 2000 to 2003.
Selected filmography:
Film:
- Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999) as Raymond
- Coffee and Cigarettes (2003) as Isaach
- Manderlay (2005) as Timothy
- Miami Vice (2005) as Neptune
- Casino Royale (2006) as Steven Obanno
- The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007) as Laurent
- The Last Witch Hunter (2015) as Max Schlesinger
- Marvel Cinematic Universe as the Elder of Wakanda's River Tribe
- Black Panther (2018)
- Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022)
- Shaft (2019) as Pierro "Gordito" Carrera
Television:
- The Sopranos (2001) as Father Obosi
- The Unit (2006) as General Togar
- 24 (2008-2009) as Ule Matobo
- The Good Wife (2015) as Larry Oliver
- S.W.A.T. (2019) as Ayden Sayed
- Godfather of Harlem (2021-2023) as Jean Cesar/Monsieur 98
