Dominique Fishback Biography: Age, Height, Husband, Actress Career, Judas and the Black Messiah, Swarm, Transformers & 2026 Update

Dominique Fishback is an American actress, playwright, and producer best known for playing Deborah Johnson in Judas and the Black Messiah, Dre Greene in Amazon’s Swarm, and Elena Wallace in Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. Born March 22, 1991 in Brooklyn, she rose from writing poetry in East New York to earning a BAFTA nomination, an Emmy nomination, and two Black Reel wins. In 2026 she joined Range Media Partners and returned to stage as Blonde Girl in The Whoopi Monologues with Kerry Washington.

Quick Facts

Related names: Daniel Kaluuya (Judas and the Black Messiah co-star), LaKeith Stanfield (Judas and the Black Messiah co-star), Donald Glover (Swarm co-creator), Janine Nabers (Swarm co-creator), Anthony Ramos (Transformers: Rise of the Beasts co-star and friend), Jamie Foxx (Project Power co-star), Samuel L. Jackson (The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey co-star), David Simon (Show Me a Hero, The Deuce creator), Maggie Gyllenhaal (The Deuce co-star), Kerry Washington and Kara Young (The Whoopi Monologues 2026 co-stars).

Early Life & Education

Dominique Fishback was born March 22, 1991, in Brooklyn, New York City, and grew up in East New York, Brooklyn. She became interested in acting around age 10. At 12 she started writing poetry after her mother noticed her talent and encouraged her. At 15 she found a free theater program through an internet search and joined MCC Theater’s Youth Company, where she saw her first one-woman show, No Child, and decided she wanted to write and perform her own work.

Fishback attended Pace University in Manhattan and graduated in 2013 with a B.A. in Theater. While in college she often found herself as the only Black student in class, an experience that later shaped her play Subverted. She also learned American Sign Language in college to better connect with people and empower herself as a storyteller. Her senior thesis became the base for her Off-Off-Broadway solo play where she played more than 20 characters moving between slavery-era and modern life.

Career Journey

Stage Roots and Subverted (2013–2014)

Right after Pace, Fishback premiered her Off-Off-Broadway play Subverted in 2014. She wrote and starred in it, playing 22 characters alone on stage. The story follows a young Black woman unpacking identity, police stops, history, and family, cutting back and forth between past and present. The show earned a 2015 New York Innovative Theatre Award nomination for Outstanding Solo Performance and got her noticed as a writer-performer, not just an actress. In 2016 the Abingdon Theatre Company picked her for its inaugural residency program for playwrights.

HBO Breakthrough – Show Me a Hero and The Deuce (2014–2019)

Fishback started on TV with small guest spots on The Knick (2013), The Affair (2014), The Americans (2015), Blue Bloods (2015), and Royal Pains (2015). Her first major recurring role was Billie Rowan, a young single mother, in HBO’s Yonkers housing miniseries Show Me a Hero (2015) opposite Oscar Isaac. Creator David Simon then cast her again as series regular Darlene in HBO’s 1970s Times Square drama The Deuce (2017–2019) with James Franco and Maggie Gyllenhaal. As Darlene, a sweet and smart sex worker trying to get out, critics called her sweetly vulnerable and a standout. USA Today listed her in 2017 as one of 5 faces to watch on fall TV. She also recurred as Najja in HBO’s Random Acts of Flyness (2018) and played young Gloria Carter, Jay-Z’s mother, in his Smile music video (2017).

Indie Films to Judas and the Black Messiah (2018–2021)

Her first film, Night Comes On (2018), premiered at Sundance and holds 98% on Rotten Tomatoes. She played Kenya in The Hate U Give (2018), then street-smart teen Robin in Netflix sci-fi Project Power (2020) with Jamie Foxx and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. The turning point was Judas and the Black Messiah (2021) as Deborah Johnson, partner of Black Panther chairman Fred Hampton (Daniel Kaluuya). Her quiet, strong performance earned a BAFTA nomination for Best Supporting Actress, a Critics’ Choice ensemble nomination, and wins for Best Supporting Actress from the African-American Film Critics Association and Black Reel Awards. She also starred as Robyn opposite Samuel L. Jackson in Apple TV+’s The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey (2022), earning a Critics’ Choice limited-series acting nomination.

Swarm and Transformers – Global Breakout (2023)

In 2023 Fishback carried two very different projects in the same year. She led Donald Glover and Janine Nabers’ Amazon Prime Video psychological horror series Swarm as Andrea “Dre” Greene, a Houston superfan of fictional pop star Ni’jah whose grief turns violent. She also served as producer. Critics praised her fully committed, heartbreaking turn, and she earned an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series, plus Black Reel TV and NAACP Image and Independent Spirit nominations. The same year she entered blockbuster world as museum researcher Elena Wallace in Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (2023) opposite Anthony Ramos, which grossed over $400 million worldwide. The range – intimate horror lead one month, global action franchise the next – made her one of Hollywood’s most versatile young actresses.

Prestige Run to Stage Return (2024–Present)

After Swarm, Fishback won Outstanding Lead Performance at the 2024 Black Reel TV Awards and stayed selective. On June 11, 2026, Deadline reported she signed with Range Media Partners for management while staying with UTA, marking a new business chapter. On June 16, 2026, Lincoln Center Theater announced the full cast for the Off-Broadway revival of Whoopi Goldberg’s The Whoopi Monologues, directed by Whitney White. Fishback plays Blonde Girl alongside Kerry Washington (Surfer Girl), Kara Young (Fontaine), Danielle Pinnock and Kecia Lewis. Previews start July 7, 2026 at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater, opening July 13 through August 30. The move brings her career full circle – back to solo-stage storytelling where she started.

Career Stats

• Feature Films: She has 5 lead and supporting credits including Night Comes On (2018), The Hate U Give (2018), Project Power (2020), Judas and the Black Messiah (2021) and Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (2023).
• TV Series: She earned 11 main, recurring and guest credits including The Knick, The Affair, The Americans, Blue Bloods, Royal Pains, Show Me a Hero, The Deuce as a series regular for 25 episodes, Random Acts of Flyness, Modern Love, The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey as a lead, and Swarm as lead plus producer.
• Stage: She wrote and performed 22 roles in Subverted (2014), earned the Abingdon Residency (2016), and returns in The Whoopi Monologues (2026).
• Emmy Nominations: She earned 1 nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series for Swarm at the 75th Emmys.
• BAFTA Nominations: She earned 1 nomination for Best Supporting Actress for Judas and the Black Messiah (2021).
• Black Reel Wins: She won 2 awards for Film Supporting Actress (2021) and TV Lead Performance (2024).
• Critics’ Choice Nominations: She earned 2 nominations for Ensemble (2021) and Limited Actress (2022).
• Years Active: She has worked 13 years from 2013 to present.

Personal Life

• Parents: Her mother is private but very supportive, drove her to theater programs as a teen and praised her early poetry, while her father stays private.
• Siblings: She has a younger sister, and she has said she thinks about what she leaves behind for her teen sister in a 2023 interview.
• Relationship Status: She is single with no husband and no confirmed boyfriend as of 2026.
• Children: She has no children.
• Residence: She keeps Brooklyn roots and splits time between New York and Los Angeles for filming and stage work.
• Faith: She speaks openly about God, manifestation and self-love through journaling since 2017.

Dating History and Affairs

• Current (2026): She is single and private while focusing on acting, writing and stage, and she has said she is reading Calling in “The One” to work on herself before love.
• Anthony Ramos rumor (2023–2025): The marriage rumor is false because they co-starred in Transformers: Rise of the Beasts as friends, and viral Facebook posts claiming marriage are untrue.
• Past: She has no confirmed public exes, and in April 2023 she tweeted she loved Tiff and Brett on Love Is Blind and hoped to find her husband one day, which showed she was single and open.

Controversies

Swarm representation debate (2023): Some viewers debated how the show portrays Black women, stan culture, and violence, since Dre kills people who insult her idol Ni’jah. Co-creators Donald Glover and Janine Nabers said it was satire about fandom and trauma, not a statement on all Black women. Fishback said she played Dre from love and humanity, not as a monster, and critics widely praised her performance even when they argued about the story.

None through 2026 regarding arrests, lawsuits, feuds, or professional misconduct. She is known as collaborative and outspoken about caring for projects and co-workers.

Awards & Achievements

• 2021: She won Best Supporting Actress for Judas and the Black Messiah from the African-American Film Critics Association.
• 2021: She won Outstanding Supporting Actress for Judas and the Black Messiah at the Black Reel Awards.
• 2021: She earned a BAFTA nomination for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Judas and the Black Messiah.
• 2021: She earned a Critics’ Choice nomination for Best Acting Ensemble for Judas and the Black Messiah.
• 2022: She earned a Critics’ Choice TV nomination for Best Actress in a Limited Series for The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey.
• 2023: She earned a Primetime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series for Swarm.
• 2023: She earned a TCA Awards nomination for Individual Achievement in Drama for Swarm.
• 2024: She won Outstanding Lead Performance for Swarm at the Black Reel TV Awards.
• 2024: She earned an Independent Spirit nomination for Best Lead Performance in a New Scripted Series for Swarm.
• 2024: She earned an NAACP Image nomination for Outstanding Actress in a TV Movie / Limited for Swarm.
• 2015: She earned a NY Innovative Theatre Award nomination for Outstanding Solo Performance for Subverted.
• 2017: USA Today named her one of 5 Faces to Watch on Fall TV for The Deuce.

Physical Statistics

• Height: She stands 5 ft 2 in (157 cm).
• Weight: She weighs around 121 lbs (55 kg).
• Build: She has a slim, petite build.
• Hair: She has black, natural hair and wears curls, braids and straight styles.
• Eyes: She has dark brown eyes.
• Distinctive: She is known for her warm smile, expressive eyes and youthful look.

Quotes

“I approach all my characters the same way. And it’s heart first.”

— Dominique Fishback, Deadline interview, June 20, 2023

“I saw that 11 years ago on Facebook, I wrote this post saying, ‘I heard six shots outside my window while I’m trying to sleep.’ Because I knew I wanted to act. And now, seeing my face on one of the biggest billboards on Sunset Boulevard for Swarm is amazing. Manifestation is real.”

— Dominique Fishback, Deadline interview, June 20, 2023

Favorites

• Show: She loves New Girl, calls herself the Black Jessica Day, and names the Nick-and-Jess first kiss as her favorite episode.
• Acting inspirations: She cites Heath Ledger as Joker in The Dark Knight, Charlize Theron in Monster and Hilary Swank in Boys Don’t Cry.
• Music video moment: She played young Gloria Carter in Jay-Z’s Smile (2017).
• Creative habit: She has journaled since her teens and still re-reads her 2017–2019 entries about self-love.
• Skill: She learned American Sign Language in college to empower others.
• Food vibe: She loves Brooklyn home cooking with family.
• Dream genres to try: She wants to try romantic comedy, music, poetic memoir and a reworked Subverted one-woman show.

Earnings

Estimated Net Worth (2026): ~$3 million. Sources: lead and supporting fees from Swarm (also producer), Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, Judas and the Black Messiah, Project Power, The Deuce and The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey, plus stage pay for The Whoopi Monologues (2026), residuals, brand appearances, and development deals after signing with Range Media Partners. She keeps a low-key lifestyle and reinvests in writing and producing her own stories.

Interesting Facts

• She found free acting classes by searching online at age 15 and joined MCC Youth Company on her own.
• She started writing poetry at 12 after her mom praised her early work and pushed her to keep going.
• She turned her college thesis into Subverted, where she played 22 different people.
• She drew on a sociology class debate about policing to write stories from her own neighborhood view.
• She does not stay in character between takes — she jokes around, then drops straight back in.
• She asked Donald Glover to let her play Dre instead of Marissa in Swarm, and he said yes without a new audition.
• She loves New Girl so much she models her rom-com dream on Jessica Day.
• She keeps old journals from 2017 that say “I really want to love myself.”
• She learned ASL in college and spoke in 2023 about using it to empower others.
• She manifested her career — from hearing shots in Brooklyn to seeing her face on Sunset Boulevard for Swarm.

Did You Know Already?

• Her Night Comes On debut holds 98% on Rotten Tomatoes, which beats most star debuts.
• David Simon cast her twice — first in Show Me a Hero, then as a lead in The Deuce.
• She played a younger Gloria Carter in Jay-Z’s Smile video before her film breakout.
• In Swarm she shifts into Tony, a swaggy silent persona in Atlanta, which nods to her one-woman-show shape-shifting.
• She starred opposite Samuel L. Jackson as his caretaker Robyn in The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey.
• Her 2026 stage role as Blonde Girl puts her on stage with Kerry Washington and Kara Young, both powerhouse theater names.
• She signed with Range Media Partners in June 2026 while staying with UTA, which gives her a rare dual-team setup for film, TV and stage.

Social Media Links

• Instagram: @domfishback (300K+ followers – active, behind-the-scenes and poetry)
• Twitter / X: @domfishback
• IMDb: imdb.com/name/nm6195774
• Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dominique_Fishback

Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion

Dominique Fishback built her career piece by piece – from East New York poetry to Pace thesis to HBO regular to BAFTA and Emmy nominee. In 2026 she is betting on stage and ownership, producing and choosing roles with heart first. If you found this biography helpful, please share it with Dominique Fishback fans!