Top 7 Black Actors & Actresses Whose Careers Are Heating Up

Rutina Wesley

She slays vampires, battles witches and falls in love with killers; Rutina Wesley is no one’s shrinking violet.  This highly trained actress studied with the best at one of the best:  the Juilliard school of acting.  After graduating in 2005, Wesley performed opposite Julianne Moore in David Hare’s “The Vertical Hour” on Broadway.  Continuing in the theater world, she made her way to the Public Theater, the same venue where Meryl Streep cut her teeth, to star in “In Darfur.”  Her big break came with her casting in the sometimes campy, always entertaining HBO hit, “True Blood.” Mr. VanDerWerff said of Ms. Wesley, “She’s not always well-served, but she’s always fun to watch.  She does a very good job of keeping her character from becoming annoying.  I think she could have a movie career.”   Ms. Wesley can currently be seen in the off-Broadway production of “The Submission.”