Wagner Moura

Early life

Wagner Moura was born in Salvador and raised in Rodelas, 540 km from the capital. His father was in the military so the family, including his mother and his younger sister Lediane (who now works as a pediatrician), became used to moving around. His relationship with acting started thanks to a schoolmate who had a passion for the arts.

He became best friends with Emmy-nominated actor Lázaro Ramos during their teenage years in Bahia. Ramos reported that his friend was a great supporter of his career since their youth.

Career

Early career (1996–2005)

Moura took acting classes in his teens, and started working in professional theater in 1996. Later, he graduated in journalism at the Federal University of Bahia. He had a small PR company that worked for other local actors and theater companies but the business soon went bankrupt. In the early 2000s, he was a reporter for an interview program on TV Bahia – an affiliate of Rede Globo – and covered high society parties interviewing businessmen and celebrities.

During this time Moura continued going to auditions because he aspired to become an actor. He found some success with the play A Máquina. Receiving critical and public acclaim, the show left Bahia and went on the road to Pernambuco, São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro where it continued to succeed. The hit show boosted the careers of Moura and his colleagues, now-successful Brazilian actors Lázaro Ramos and Vladimir Brichta.

In cinema, he started with the shorts Pop Killer, by Victor Mascarenhas, and Rádio Gogó, by José Araripe Jr. His first feature was Woman on Top, by the Venezuelan director Fina Torres, in which he had a small role with Ramos, whom he helped with the tests in English, since Ramos did not speak the language.

With the resumption of Brazilian cinema opening up to new faces, he got roles in several productions with important names, such as Behind the Sun, by Walter Salles; The Three Marias, by Aluizio Abranches; God Is Brazilian, by Cacá Diegues; Nina, by Heitor Dhalia; The Man of the Year, by José Henrique Fonseca; The Middle of the World, by Vicente Amorim. In Recife, during the filming of God Is Brazilian, Moura was reading the book Carandiru Station by Drauzio Varella when he found out about the auditions for the film Carandiru. Because he was busy with the recordings and unable to appear in the face-to-face auditions in another state, he asked the person in charge of the making to help him record a tape that would be sent to the production. The material was very dark, and it was only possible to hear the actor reading excerpts from the book. Some time later, Héctor Babenco would call him for a meeting in São Paulo, curious to meet the owner of the voice. The actor ended up joining the cast as the prisoner, dealer and drug addict Zico.

He debuted on television after famous Brazilian actor and his costar in God Is Brazilian, Antônio Fagundes, invited him for a small role in the popular series Carga Pesada on Rede Globo. Then came the series Sexo Frágil, which entered the network's Friday night schedule after its success as a sketch on the TV show Fantástico.

The play Dilúvio em Tempos de Seca was shown in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, and ended its season at the Curitiba Theater Festival at Teatro Guaíra before an audience of more than four thousand people in the two days it was presented. With the end of the work, the actor would turn to television and cinema.

In 2005, he debuted in telenovelas with A Lua Me Disse as Gustavo Bogari Prado, the comic role was a contrast to the other characters he had played before. He also portrayed a young version of Brazil's former president Juscelino Kubitschek in the limited series JK (2006).

Breakout in Brazilian cinema and TV (2007–2012)

In 2007, Moura starred as police officer Captain Nascimento in José Padilha's Elite Squad. The film won the Golden Bear at the 58th Berlin International Film Festival and was a box office hit in Brazil, but generated controversy for its portrayal of police brutality and urban violence in Rio de Janeiro. He also had lead roles in Ó Paí, Ó, Saneamento Básico, A Máquina and Romance. He also portrayed the corrupt businessman Olavo Novaes in TV Globo's Paraíso Tropical. For his cinema and television roles, he was named "Man of the Year" in 2007 by Vogue Brazil.

In 2008, he returned to theater with Hamlet by William Shakespeare. The theatrical process was recorded by his wife, Sandra, and became a documentary. He also starred in three short films: Desejo, Ópera do Mallandro and Blackout, which premiered at the Festival de Gramado. He also resumed concert performances with his band Sua Mãe.

In 2010, he portrayed Nascimento once again in Elite Squad: The Enemy Within. Like its predecessor, the film was met with critical acclaim and became the largest box office ticket seller and highest-grossing film of all time in Brazil.

In 2011, he was honored at the Braskem Theater Award. In 2012, he was a guest vocalist for the "MTV Live: Tribute to Legião Urbana" held in São Paulo and broadcast by MTV Brasil. Moura was a big fan of the band, which disbanded in 1996. In 2013, he was elected Man of the Year by GQ Brazil in the cinema category and honored at the Gramado Film Festival.

Hollywood and directorial debut (2013–present)

The film Elysium (2013) marked his Hollywood debut, portraying Spider. Moura got the role after his agents showed his work in Elite Squad 2 to the producers.

In 2014, he starred in Karim Aïnouz's Futuro Beach as a gay lifeguard from Recife who travels to Germany after falling in love with a tourist. He also starred in the anthology film Rio, I Love You, in the segment directed by José Padilha. As a director, he worked on the music video for the song "Te Amo" from the album Bicicletas, Bolos e Outras Alegrias by Brazilian singer Vanessa da Mata.[[File:CDH - Comissão de Direitos Humanos e Legislação Participativa (23742606876).jpg|thumb|Moura in 2015]] In 2015, Moura starred as Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar in Narcos. Moura learned to speak Spanish while preparing for his role. He also had to gain over 18 kilograms (40 pounds). After the second season, he decided to lose the weight through an all-vegan diet. His performance was praised by critics. For the role, Moura was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Drama.

In 2019, he starred as Juan Pablo Roque in Wasp Network by Olivier Assayas. His feature directing debut, Marighella, had its world premiere at the 69th Berlin International Film Festival. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil, the film was released in Brazil in 2022. At the 2022 Grande Prêmio do Cinema Brasileiro (Brazilian Film Grand Prix), won eight awards, including Best Film, Best First Director and Best Adapted Screenplay for Moura.

In 2020, he signed with WME. He was a part of the official international fiction jury of the Sundance Film Festival. He also produced and starred as the title character in the Netflix drama Sergio, about Brazilian diplomat Sérgio Vieira de Mello.

In 2021, he joined the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Hollywood. He also directed two episodes of Narcos: Mexico's third season.

In 2022, he starred in the Apple TV+ series Shining Girls, in the role of journalist Dan Velásquez. He starred in Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, voicing the Wolf. He also starred in Netflix's The Gray Man, directed by the Russo Brothers, as Laszlo Sosa, for which he lost twenty kilos.

In 2024, he played a recurring role as John Smith's agent in the Prime Video series Mr. & Mrs. Smith.

In 2025, he starred as Marcelo in Kleber Mendonça Filho's The Secret Agent. For the role he became the first South American actor to ever win the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor, the first Latin-American actor to win the NYFCC for Best Actor, and received his first Golden Globe, as well as becoming the first Brazilian actor to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor.

Personal life

Moura's native language is Portuguese, but he also speaks English and Spanish fluently. He practices Transcendental Meditation, Muay Thai and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. In December 2023, Moura was promoted to brown belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu by Rigan Machado.

He has three sons with journalist and photographer Sandra Delgado. Moura and Delgado met at university but only got involved after they graduated. At the time, he was moving to Rio and invited her to go with him. She accepted, despite the fact that they had only been dating for a short time. The couple has not formally married. The family has residences in Salvador, Los Angeles, and Rio de Janeiro.

Acting credits

Film

Television

Theater

Accolades

Film

Television

Theater

References

References

1. Müller, Marcelo. (17 April 2020). "Wagner Moura fala sobre combater estereótipos latinos em Hollywood".
2. ESPM, Cintia Azuma, Aluna Do 2o Semestre Do Curso De Jornalismo Da. "Atores brasileiros em hollywood".
3. "Wagner Moura rouba cena como coadjuvante em ficção científica "Elysium"".
4. HOLLYWOOD INSIDER. (2022-12-18). "Wagner Moura 'Puss in Boots: The Last Wish' {{!}} Red Carpet Revelations".
5. (2025-05-24). "Wagner Moura vence prêmio de melhor ator em Cannes por 'O Agente Secreto'".
6. Almeida, Clécio de. (5 June 2009). "Wagner Moura: somos respeitados nos festivais internacionais".
7. (4 November 2021). "Mano a Mano {{!}} Mano Brown recebe Taís Araújo e Lázaro Ramos".
8. (14 August 2014). "Relembre 10 famosos que fazem questão de esquecer o passado".
9. (2 December 2021). "Wagner Moura e Selton Mello falam sobre "Tropa de Elite" {{!}} Tarja Preta".
10. "FOTOS - Em 2003, Wagner Moura viveu o presidiário, traficante e viciado em drogas Zico no longa 'Carandirú'".
11. "a-lua-me-disse".
12. "Wagner Moura diz que não pode fazer um JK baixo-astral; leia entrevista - 30/12/2005 - UOL Televisão".
13. "Há 10 anos "Tropa de Elite" enfrentava tráfico, polícia e pirataria".
14. "o-auge-de-wagner-moura-na-novela-paraiso-tropical".
15. Cunha, Gabriela. (11 June 2021). "Troca da protagonista, coadjuvantes inesquecíveis, bordões: relembre os bastidores de 'Paraíso Tropical'".
16. "Há 10 anos "Tropa de Elite" enfrentava tráfico, polícia e pirataria".
17. (17 December 2007). "Wagner Moura é escolhido 'Homem Vogue do ano'".
18. (21 June 2008). "Wagner Moura estréia a peça 'Hamlet' em São Paulo".
19. (28 December 2010). "'Tropa de elite 2' é a maior bilheteria da história no Brasil".
20. (15 April 2011). "Wagner Moura emociona público de premiação ao receber homenagem em Salvador".
21. terra. "Wagner Moura é homenageado em Gramado: "filmes têm algo a dizer"".
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24. (19 September 2013). "Wagner Moura revela fatos inéditos de 'Elysium', filme que estreia na sexta (20)".
25. (9 January 2016). "Wagner Moura Went Back to College to Learn Spanish for Narcos".
26. (9 July 2012). "Meditação transcendental: a técnica de David Lynch e Wagner Moura".
27. Rocha, Pedro. (10 December 2015). "Globo de Ouro 2016: Lady Gaga, Wagner Moura e filme "Carol" estão entre os indicados".
28. BRANDÃO, Myrna Silveir. (11 November 2022). "'Marighella' ganha elogios do 'The New York Times'".
29. Reis, Vitória Campos. (1 July 2021). "Wagner Moura e outros 7 brasileiros são convidados para Academia do Oscar, veja lista".
30. Amendola, Beatriz. (29 April 2022). "Iluminadas {{!}} Wagner Moura pediu para falar português em nova série da Apple".
31. HOLLYWOOD INSIDER. (2022-12-18). "Wagner Moura 'Puss in Boots: The Last Wish' {{!}} Red Carpet Revelations".
32. "'Gato de Botas 2': Wagner Moura integra elenco de dubladores; veja trailer".
33. "Wagner Moura perdeu quase 20kg para filme da Netflix, diz diretor".
34. Otterson, Joe. (22 September 2022). "'Mr. and Mrs. Smith' Amazon Series Casts Parker Posey, Wagner Moura (Exclusive)".
35. Davis, Clayton. (22 January 2026). "‘The Secret Agent’ Star Wagner Moura Becomes First Brazilian Nominated for Best Actor Oscar".
36. (6 December 2023). "Narcos Star Wagner Moura Promoted To Brown Belt In BJJ".
37. (27 June 2014). "Wagner Moura completa 38 anos com papel desafiador no filme 'Praia do futuro'".
38. Alencar, Marilia. (13 June 2012). "Nasce o terceiro filho de Wagner Moura".
39. (1 January 2021). "Wagner Moura mora hoje em Los Angeles, mas considera a Bahia sua casa".
40. Cordero, Rosy. (14 March 2022). "'Puss In Boots: The Last Wish' Sets Salma Hayek Pinault Return; Harvey Guillén, Florence Pugh & Olivia Colman Among New Cast". Deadline Hollywood.
41. Rosario, Alexandra Del. (25 September 2020). "Imagen Awards Winners List: 'Dora And The Lost City Of Gold,' 'Los Espookys' Among Honorees".
42. Giardina, Carolyn. (26 February 2023). "'Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio' Wins Five Trophies Including the Top Prize at the 50th Annie Awards".
43. (December 10, 2025). "Austin Film Critics Association (AFCA) Nominations: ‘One Battle After Another,’ ‘Sinners’ Lead with 11".
44. (December 9, 2025). "Chicago Film Critics Association (CFCA) Nominations: 'One Battle After Another,' 'Sinners' Lead with 12; Eva Victor Lands Most Individual Nods".
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51. Anderson, Erik. (2025-12-08). "Toronto Film Critics Association (TFCA) Go For 'One Battle After Another,' Rose Byrne, Ethan Hawke and More".
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