Michaela Coel

Michaela Ewuraba Boakye-Collinson — Michaela Coel — created, wrote, co-directed, and starred in I May Destroy You, a limited series about sexual assault and its aftermath that was hailed as one of the greatest television achievements of the twenty-first century. She turned down a $1 million deal from Netflix because the streamer wouldn't give her ownership of her work, eventually taking the series to HBO/BBC, where she retained her rights.

Born in London in 1987 to Ghanaian parents, Coel grew up in a council estate in Tower Hamlets. She attended Guildhall School of Music & Drama and first gained attention with her one-woman show Chewing Gum Dreams, which she adapted into the Channel 4 series Chewing Gum — a sharp, funny, and sexually frank comedy that won a BAFTA.

I May Destroy You, based in part on Coel's own experience of being drugged and sexually assaulted, was a revelation. It explored consent, trauma, and recovery with a nuance and complexity that television had never achieved. The series won multiple BAFTAs and an Emmy for writing, and Coel delivered a legendary Emmy speech about the creative process. She has since appeared in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and continues to choose projects that prioritize artistic integrity over commercial pressure.