EDI GATHEGI :: BIOGRAPHY
Edi Mue Gathegi, known most for his role as “Laurent” in Twilight, was born on March 10, 1979 in Nairobi, Kenya. However, he, his parents, his older brother and younger sister moved to California when he was young. As a kid, he had big dreams of being a basketball star, but these dreams sadly ended after a bad knee injury while at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Edi decided that instead of playing basketball, he’d enroll in a fun, easy course in college, so he enrolled in an acting class. Immediately, Edi fell in love and realized he had potential. He changed his major to acting and decided to pursue a career. Following graduation, Edi did not feel he was prepared enough to go into the acting business, and instead applied to graduate schools for acting, landing in the Tisch School of Arts Graduate program at New York University (NYU), the most prestigious of all acting programs. Following graduation, Edi appeared in multiple theater productions, including Two Trains Running at the prestigious Old Globe Theatre in San Diego, King Hedley II, Blues for an Alabama Sky, Golden Boy, As You Like It, Twelfth Night, The Crucible, Fade, A Maiden’s Prayer, A Raisin in the Sun, Othello, a Midsummer Night’s Dream, Cyrano, Dutchman, and Joe Turner's Come and Gone. In addition to plays, Edi has appeared in many television shows and movies. His first film role was in the 2006 film Crank. Edi auditioned for the role of Kaylo (which went to Efren Ramirez), but landed the role of the Haitian cabbie. To prepare for this role, Edi had an accent coach to teach him to speak with a Haitian accent. Following Edi’s appearance on Crank, he guest starred on several different popular shows. He appeared on 3 episodes of Lincoln Heights, 1 episode of Veronica Mars, 7 episodes of House, where he played Mormon doctor Jeffery Cole, 1 episode of CSI Miami, 1 episode1 of CSI, and 1 episode of Life on Mars. He described his role on house as “the most fun I’ve had on a job.” In addition to his TV appearances, Edi has appeared in several movies, including Bodie in Death Sentence, Darudi in The Fifth Patient and Cheese in Gone Baby Gone. His first breakthrough role came when he was cast as Laurent in Twilight, a role was reluctant to audition for at first. During his audition, he was asked to say lines such as “What’s your hunting range?“ and other strange lines. However, upon meeting the director Catherine Hardwicke, he was so impressed by her energy and dedication that he desperately wanted the role. He read all of the Twilight books and fell in love with the series. Following his role in Twilight, Edi appeared in as Deputy Martin in the remake of the 1981 slash movie My Bloody Valentine. Edi has recently filmed New Moon, where he will play the evil vampire Laurent. As of June 2009, Edi is currently working on the Shakespearean play A Midsummer Night’s Dream, where he will be playing multiple characters.