Danai Gurira

Danai Gurira is an American actress who was cast in the spring of 2012. In order to portray Michonne's katana skills, Danai had to train with a sword for several weeks.

She was born in Grinnell, Iowa to parents from Zimbabwe, when her father was teaching Chemistry at Grinnell College. When she was 5, the family moved back to Zimbabwe. Gurira studied social psychology at Macalaster College, and received an MFA from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. She is the co-author of the play "In the Continuum" with Nikkole Salter. She was nominated for a 2007 Joseph Jefferson Award for Actress in a Principal Role in a Play for "In the Continuum" at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago, Illinois.

Danai has made appearances on shows such as "Treme," Law & Order," "Lie to Me," "American Experience," and "Life on Mars."

She has played a role in movies such as The Visitor (for which she won the 2008 Best Supporting Actress award at the Method Fest), My Soul to Take, Restless City, and Ma' George.