Devery Jacobs

Kawennáhere Devery Jacobs was born on August 8, 1993, and raised in Kahnawa:ke Mohawk Territory. She is an award-winning actress and filmmaker, identifying as Kanienʼkehá:ka (Mohawk) and a member of the Bear Clan. Jacobs began her acting career in the late 2000s, appearing in television series such as “The Dead Zone” (2007) and “Assassin’s Creed: Lineage” (2009). Her breakout role came in 2013 as the lead in “Rhymes for Young Ghouls,” which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and earned her a nomination for a Canadian Screen Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role. Her early work established her as a notable talent in Canadian film.

Jacobs achieved broader recognition with her performances in several major television productions. From 2019 to 2021, she played Sam Blackcrow in Amazon Prime Video/STARZ’s “American Gods,” a role for which author Neil Gaiman actively advocated. During this period, she also had a recurring role as Lilith Bathory in Netflix’s “The Order” (2019-2020) and appeared in CTV’s “Cardinal” (2018) and the Amazon Prime thriller “The Lie” (2020). Her notable film credits include “Blood Quantum” (2019) and “Rustic Oracle” (2019). Throughout her career, Jacobs has been recognized by the industry, being named one of Canada’s Rising Breakout Stars by The Hollywood Reporter and honored by Telefilm Canada at the 2017 Birks Diamond Tribute.

A significant turning point in Jacobs’ career was her leading role as Elora Danan Postoak in Taika Waititi’s FX series “Reservation Dogs” (2021-2023), a role for which she received Critics’ Choice Television Award nominations for Best Actress in a Comedy Series in both 2023 and 2024. Beyond acting, Jacobs is an accomplished filmmaker; her short film “Rae” (2017) was an official selection of the 2018 Palm Springs Shortfest and won Best Youth Work at the 2017 imagineNATIVE Film Festival. She also joined the writer’s room for “Reservation Dogs” in its second season and directed an episode in season three. Her recent roles include voice work as Kahhori in “What If…?” (2023-2024) and Alasie in “Ark: The Animated Series” (2024), and live-action role as Bonnie in the Marvel miniseries “Echo” (2024). Jacobs was a TIFF Rising Star at the 2018 Toronto International Film Festival and in 2024, she was co-recipient of the Radius Award at the 12th Canadian Screen Awards.