Who is Sonja Sohn?
American actress, moviemaker and activist Sonja Denise Plack (nee Williams) was born in Fort Benning, Georgia USA on 9 May 1964, making Taurus her zodiac sign. She’s appeared in 36 movies and TV series, but is perhaps still known best for starring as Lauren Bell in the 1998 drama movie “Slam”, which also starred Saul Williams and Bonz Malone, and was written and directed by Marc Levin. It follows a talented young man who’s competing in poetry slams, and the film won four of its seven award nominations.
There’s no specific information why and when she adopted ‘Sohn’ as her professional name, but Sonja’s still today highly active in the film industry, and is currently shooting for the upcoming movie “Breakwater”.
Education and early life
Sonja was raised in Newport News, Virginia by her black father and Korean mother, who met while her father fought in the Korean War and was stationed in South Korea. Sonja hasn’t mentioned the siblings whom she might have, which is why she’s believed to be an only child.
She studied at Warwick High School, and was into a number of activities during her time there, including taking creative writing classes, appearing in school plays and running track.
She matriculated in 1982, but didn’t immediately enroll at college; Sonja eventually attended Brooklyn College, from which she graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in 1988. For the following eight years, prior to becoming an actress, Sonja was a slam poet.
Roles in movies
Sonja’s debut film role was playing June in the 1996 drama “Work”, and the year 1999 saw her play Kanita in the critically acclaimed thriller “Bringing Out the Dead”, which starred Patricia Arquette and Nicolas Cage, and was directed by Martin Scorsese. It follows a Manhattan ambulance paramedic who’s just failed to save several patients, and is thus fighting to maintain his sanity; the movie won two of its seven award nominations.
Some of Sonja’s following roles were in the 2001 drama “Perfume”, the 2002 romantic drama “G”, and the 2003 thriller “The Killing Zone”. In 2008, she portrayed Sarah in the popular romantic musical “Step Up 2: The Streets”, which starred Briana Evigan and Robert Hoffman, and was directed by Jon M. Chu. It follows two dance students attending the Maryland School of the Arts who’ve fallen in love, and the film won two of its five award nominations.
The Missing Girl has been selected to play at the Ridgefield Independent Film Festival. details & schedule to follow. 😷https://www.riffct.org/post/the-missing-girl
Posted by The Missing Girl on Monday, September 14, 2020
The year 2012 saw Sonja play Detective Shakima ‘Kima’ Greggs in the short comedy “The Wire: The Musical”, while she was then cast to play Franny in the 2015 mystery comedy “The Missing Girl”, written and directed by A. D. Calvo, and which starred Robert Longstreet, Alexia Rasmussen and Eric Ladin. It follows the owner of a comic book shop who’s fallen for a graphic novelist whom he’s hired, and the film won two of its three award nominations.
Sonja’s three most recent movie roles have been in the 2016 science fiction thriller “Domain”, the 2019 sports drama “High Flying Bird” and the 2023 biographical sports drama “Big George Foreman”.
Roles in TV series
Sonja’s debut TV series role was starring as Detective Shakima ‘Kima’ Greggs in 60 episodes (2002-2008) of the crime thriller “The Wire”, which also starred Lance Reddick and Dominic West, and was created by David Simon. It follows drug dealers from Baltimore, and the detectives who are trying to bring them to justice; the series won 16 of the 70 awards for which it was nominated.
In 2006 and 2007, Sonja appeared in five episodes of the crime mystery “Cold Case”, and the years 2008 and 2009 saw her play Trish Evans in four episodes of the drama “Brothers & Sisters”.
In 2011 and 2012, she portrayed Samantha Baker in the popular crime comedy “Body of Proof”, which starred Jeri Ryan and Dana Delany, and was created by Christopher Murphey. It follows the life of medical examiner Megan Hunt, and the series won two of its four award nominations. Some of Sonja’s following appearances were in an episode of the comedy “Drop Dead Diva”, the crime action “Burn Notice” and the crime mystery “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit”.
In 2014 and 2015, she played both Lenore and Esther Mikaelson in eight episodes of the fantasy horror “The Originals”, which starred Daniel Gillies and Joseph Morgan, and was created by Julie Plec. It follows a family of thousand-year-old vampires, the series aired from 2013 through 2018, and was nominated for 14 awards.
Some of Sonja’s most recent TV series roles have been in 11 episodes of the 2021 drama “The Chi”, five episodes of the 2021 action adventure “Star Trek: Discovery”, and all the 14 episodes of the 2023 crime mini-series “Will Trent”.
Look who plays the lead (not Sonja Sohn) in the new ABC series Will Trent. “They don’t have the Honey Nut?” pic.twitter.com/iufEMG6kRQ
— Ziggy_Sobotka (@Ziggys_Duck) January 2, 2023
Other credits
Sonja produced and directed the 2017 documentary movie “Baltimore Rising”, and the 2021 crime documentary film “The Slow Hustle”.
Some of her TV special appearances have been in “2008 Asian Excellence Awards”, the 2009 “The 40th NAACP Image Awards”, and the 2021 “42nd News & Documentary Emmy Awards”.
Awards and nominations
Sonja’s won two of her seven award nominations: a 1998 Gotham Breakthrough Award for her performance in “Slam”, and a 2019 Cinema Eye Honors Award for Outstanding Achievement in Broadcast Nonfiction Filmmaking, for “Baltimore Rising”.
Some of her nominations include a 2003 NAMIC Vision Award for Best Performance – Drama and two Image Awards for Outstanding Supporting actress in a Drama Series in 2005 and 2009, all three for her performance in “The Wire”.
Love life and relationships
Even though Sonja avoids sharing the details of her love life with her fans, it’s still known that she was a married woman, and is today a mother of two.
She and Australian-born American didgeridoo player, producer and composer Adam Plack exchanged vows in 2003; their divorce was finalized in 2011.
Sonja has two daughters, Sakira and Sophia, but their birthdates haven’t been disclosed. It’s widely believed that the girls’ father is Adam Plack, but Sonja hasn’t addressed the matter.
She seems to be unattached as of May 2023, was married to Adam Plack and has two daughters.
Interesting facts and hobbies
Sonja was arrested in North Carolina on 21 July 2019, and charged with possession of cocaine.
She was a cheerleader while attending Warwick High School, and was voted both ‘most school-spirited’ and ‘most popular’ by her peers.
Her daughter Sophia was featured in a 2002 and a 2008 episode of the series “The Wire”.
Sonja’s followed by more than 35,000 people on Instagram, and has posted over 1,000 pictures and videos onto the network; most of her content shows her spending time with her friends and children.
She’s passionate about travelling and has been to a number of countries around the world.
Sonja’s a philanthropist and often volunteers with charity organizations.
She’s a dog-lover, and has featured her pet dog in some of her Instagram pictures.
Sonja’s favorite actress is Rosario Dawson, and some of her favorite movies include “A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints”, “Shattered Glass” and “The Captive”.
Height, eyes and wealth
Sonja’s age is 59. Her hair’s black and eyes are brown, she’s 5ft 5ins (1.65m) tall and weighs around 135lbs (61kgs).
Sonja’s net worth’s been estimated at over $1.5 million, as of May 2023.
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