D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai

About

D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai (born September 19, 2001) is a Canadian actor of Oji-Cree descent. He is best known for his role as Indigenous teenager Bear Smallhill in the FX on Hulu comedy-drama series Reservation Dogs (2021–2023), for which he received several accolades, including a nomination for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series.

Woon-A-Tai and his fraternal twin Mi’De Xxavier were born in Toronto. His name reflects his Oji-Cree and Chinese-Guyanese heritage. His paternal grandfather was Alex McKay, an Anishinaabemowin language professor at the University of Toronto’s Indigenous Studies department. Woon-A-Tai and his family visited their paternal family in the Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug First Nation.

Woon-A-Tai began his career with a recurring role as Chase Whaley in season 1 of the 2018 Family Channel series Holly Hobbie. In 2019, Woon-A-Tai played Tom Longboat in a two-episode arc of Murdoch Mysteries season 12. He made guest appearances as Lucky in Creeped Out and Mikey in Tribal.
Woon-A-Tai made his feature film debut as Hank in the film Beans directed by Tracey Deer, which was a 2020 Toronto…