Career
In 2012, Joivan Wade had his screen debut in a season-26 episode of ‘Casualty’, portraying a character named Jacob. Later that year, he played Ellis in Michael van der Put’s drama short ‘Callum’. He was part of the main cast of the first season of the BBC One sitcom ‘Big School’, in which he got the chance work alongside industry veterans David Walliams, Catherine Tate, Steve Speirs, and Frances de la Tour. Wade’s character, Manyou, is a student at the fictional Greybridge Secondary School, where the story is set. After appearing in all six episodes of the first season, Wade did not return for the show’s second season, which aired in 2014.
Between 2013 and 2014, he appeared in all 16 episodes of the E4 comedy-drama series ‘Youngers’, which revolves around a group of teenagers from South East London who hope for success in the urban music scene.
Wade formed the comedy group Mandem on the Wall with fellow aspiring actor Percelle Ascott and stand-up comedian Dee Kaate. They found considerable success, which led to the creation of their YouTube channel, Wall of Comedy, on October 26, 2011. They have released a variety of content through it, including the sketch comedy web series ‘Mandem on the Wall’. Both Ascott and Kaate also played important roles in ‘Youngers’. Later, the three of them made a pilot for BBC Three and starred in the 2016 comedy film ‘The Weekend’. Directed by Sheridan De Myers, the film revolves around three friends, Derrick (Wade), Malcolm (Ascott), and Tyler (Kaate), who, after finding £100,000, use it to shop and organize a huge party, not realizing that it belongs to a gangster.
Between 2014 and 2015, he played Rigsy, a graffiti artist and associate of the Doctor, in two episodes of the long-running BBC series ‘Doctor Who’. He also appeared in an episode of the miniseries ‘The Interceptor’ (2015). In 2016, he joined the cast of another long-running BBC series, the soap opera ‘EastEnders’. He portrayed Jordan Johnson in 13 episodes of the show. Before him, Michael-Joel David Stuart played the role between 2008 and 2010.
In 2017, Wade guest-starred in an episode of ‘The Break’, which is the British adaptation of Netflix’s French-language Belgian crime-drama series ‘La Trêve’. In 2018, he appeared in ‘Shiro’s Story’ short-film trilogy as well as produced the last two instalments.
Wade was cast as Isaiah, a drug dealer, in the action-horror film ‘The First Purge’ (2018). Although it is the fourth entry in the Purge franchise, the movie serves as a prequel to the entire series, as it shows what happened during the first annual purge. The movie garnered mixed reviews, but it was a commercial success, earning $137 million at the box office against its $13 million budget.
In Ed Lilly’s musical drama ‘VS.’ (2018), he shared screen space with Ruth Sheen, Connor Swindells, and Nicholas Pinnock. In 2019, he played the titular character in the drama short ‘Amani’, which was based on the true story of knife-attack survivor Amani Simpson. Wade was cast in August 2018 as Victor Stone / Cyborg in the DC Universe web series ‘Doom Patrol’. Based on the DC Comics superhero team of the same name, the series also stars Timothy Dalton, Brendan Fraser, Matt Bomer, Diane Guerrero, and April
Bowlby. The first season aired from February 15, 2019, to May 24, 2019. Due to widespread positive response, the series has been renewed for a second season.
Wade played a supporting character in the 2019 horror-thriller film ‘The Dare’. He is set to star in the upcoming comedy film ‘Inner Bull’ along with Ascott and Kaate.
Family & Personal Life
Wade was born on July 23, 1993, in Downham, South London, United Kingdom. He is the middle child of his parents. He has an older brother named Romayle and a younger brother named Jerome. Having been interested in performing since he was very young, Wade attended the renowned BRIT School in London. For a considerable period, he was part of the National Youth Theatre. Deeply religious, Wade has spoken about his faith, justifying the risks he has taken in his career as the proofs of his faith in God.
