Maryland Teen Actor Earns Emmy Nomination for Role in Central Park Five Film

Asante Blackk, a recent high school graduate, may win an Emmy for his very first role

A teen actor from Maryland is up for an Emmy for his very first role.

Asante Blackk, a 17-year-old recent graduate of North Point High School in Waldorf, was nominated Tuesday for his role in "When They See Us," the Ava DuVernay-directed Netflix series on the Central Park Five.

Blackk was nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie for his powerful depiction of Kevin Richardson, one of five black and Hispanic teens convicted of a brutal 1989 attack on a jogger in New York's Central Park. The men were exonerated in 2002, after evidence linked a serial rapist to the crime.

On social media, Blackk seemed stunned by the honor.

https://twitter.com/AsanteBlackk/status/1151193955389730816

"Life crazy," he wrote. "Woke up to find out i’m nominated for an emmy. for my first ever project. at 17 years old. wow. i love y’all. thank you so much."

Blackk, the oldest of five siblings, acted in school productions as a child and was particularly inspired by a children's theater workshop at Howard University, he told News4 earlier this year. He said being an actor is his dream.

"I just love being in the space of acting — just being able to transform into a character and tell stories that people need to hear," he said.

Photos: Famous Howard University Alumni and Former Students

Blackk said he plans to take a year off from school and then study acting at Rutgers University.

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