Jacky Ido

Whether he was playing the Massai warrior Lemalian in his first major film "Die Weisse Massai" (2005) or an executioner in Quentin Tarantino's "Inglourious Basterds" (2009), Jacky Ido had a presence few could match. Equally at home in European and American films, he was an intriguing actor with international appeal. Jacky Ido was born in the African nation of Burkina Faso. Although primarily known as an actor, he actually had his start in slam poetry in 2004 when he teamed up with the French slam poet Fabien Marsaud under the name John Pucc'Chocolat, doing a monthly feature at the Cafe Culturel de Saint-Denis in Paris. As an actor, his first big break came when he took on the role of Maasai warrior Lemalian in German director Hermine Huntgeburth's "Die Weisse Massai" in 2005. After a few small television roles, he landed a role in the 18th Century romance miniseries "Bitter Tropics" (2007), which led to more television work and a larger role in the award-winning French short film "Bunker"(2008). His first taste of Hollywood came with "Inglourious Basterds"(2009), the off-beat World War II action drama by Quentin Tarantino. Ido's role as Marcel, the intense projectionist who swears to assassinate Hitler, introduced him to America. The next few years would see Ido continue to do work in Europe with such films as "What War May Bring"(2010) and the French comedy "Radiostars"(2012). His first American television role came with the role of street-smart immigrant taxi driver Leo Ramba in the television series "Taxi Brooklyn" (NBC 2014), based on Luc Besson's action comedy "Taxi" (1998), which had previously been adapted into the Jimmy Fallon and Queen Latifah bomb "Taxi" (2004).