Beginnings In 2006, Coel began performing at poetry open mics in
Ealing. As she continued to do open mics, she was encouraged to apply to Guildhall by director and actor
Ché Walker, who saw her perform at the
Hackney Empire. Coel joined the
Talawa Theatre Company summer school program TYPT in 2009. During her time at Talawa, Coel was in the TYPT 2009 production of
Krunch, directed by Amani Naphtali. That same year, Coel released an album entitled
Fixing Barbie, which featured her work as a poet and musician. In 2011, Coel released the record ''We're the Losers''. Coel's play
Chewing Gum Dreams was her senior graduation project at Guildhall in 2012. The play was first produced at
The Yard Theatre in Hackney Wick. The play featured Coel in a one-woman show telling the dramatic story of a 14-year-old girl named Tracey. The play was next produced by the
Bush Theatre (2012), Royal Theatre Holland (2012),
Royal Exchange Theatre (2013) and the National Theatre (2014). It received positive reviews.
Early work and breakthrough (2013–2019) In 2013, Coel appeared in the
Channel 4 drama
Top Boy. She has had leading roles at the
National Theatre, including the award-nominated
Home and the critically acclaimed
Medea.
Channel 4 announced in August 2014 that Coel would write and star in a new sitcom called
Chewing Gum, inspired by her play
Chewing Gum Dreams. "C4 Comedy Blaps" were released as teasers in September 2014, and the series began on
E4 in October 2015.
Chewing Gum received overwhelmingly positive reviews. In 2015, Coel appeared in
BBC One drama
London Spy. The following year, she played Lilyhot in the E4 sci-fi comedy-drama
The Aliens, which was filmed in Bulgaria.
Chewing Gum returned for a second series in January 2017. She also appeared in both the "
Nosedive" and "
USS Callister" episodes of
Charlie Brooker's series
Black Mirror. Coel also had a small role in the 2017 film
Star Wars: The Last Jedi. In 2018, Coel starred in
Black Earth Rising, a co-production between
BBC Two and
Netflix, where she played Kate, the main character. She also starred as Simone in the musical-drama film
Been So Long, by Che Walker, based on his own stage play, which was released on Netflix to positive reviews in October 2018.
Critical acclaim (2020–present) Coel created, wrote, produced, co-directed and starred in the comedy-drama series
I May Destroy You, inspired by her own experience of sexual assault. The show launched on
BBC One in the UK and
HBO in the US in June 2020 to widespread acclaim. She acknowledged refusing $1 million from Netflix after the streaming service declined to offer her intellectual property ownership of her show. In 2020, Coel was included in
Times 100 Most Influential People. She was also named as one of the breakout stars of 2020 for film. Coel also appeared in
British Vogue's 2020 list of influential women. Furthermore, in the
15th annual Powerlist of the most influential people of African or African-Caribbean heritage in the United Kingdom, Coel was ranked fourth for the impact of her work
I May Destroy You. In July 2021, Coel was cast in
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever which was released on November 11, 2022. She plays the role of
Aneka, a member of the Dora Milaje. Coel's first book,
Misfits: a Personal Manifesto, was published simultaneously in the UK and the USA on 7 September 2021 by Ebury Press. Based on her MacTaggart lecture at 2018's
Edinburgh Festival, which touches on Coel's experiences with racism and
misogyny, her publisher described the book as "a powerful manifesto on how speaking your truth and owning your differences can transform your life". Coel was elected a Fellow of the
Royal Society of Literature in 2022. She will next star in
David Lowery's
Mother Mary. On 19 August 2024 Coel announced her first TV show in four years. Coel will write, star in and executive produce
First Day On Earth, a 10-part series for the BBC, which will begin filming in 2025. In March 2026, it was announced that Coel will write and direct a reimagining of the 1988 film
Bloodsport with
A24 producing. ==Personal life==