Biography

Marama was born and raised on the island of Malta and speaks the Maltese language which is a unique Semitic language derived from Arabic or Sicilian Arabic. Marama grew up in a cult know as the Moonies. Marama's mother is Maltese and her father is from New Zealand. She began her performing career as a ballet dancer with Ballet Russ de Malt in Malta before earning a scholarship to The Urdang Academy in London's Covent Garden. Although Marama never had any formal acting training she was street cast by Casting Director Edward Said for New Zealand director Lee Tamahori in The Devil's Double, a film shot in Malta. This small role secured her acting representation in London and marked the beginning of her journey in the industry. Marama's acting career gained momentum with her West End debut in The Children's Hour, a play by Lillian Hellman directed by Ian Rickson. She performed alongside acclaimed actors Keira Knightley, Ellen Burstyn, Carol Kane and Elisabeth Moss. In 2017, she played Betty Parris in The Crucible at The Old Vic Theatre, directed by Yaël Farber, where she starred alongside Richard Armitage and Adrian Schiller. Since her debut in The Devil's Double, Marama has appeared in a wide range of film and television productions. Her credits include James Gunn's Guardians of the Galaxy, SKY 1's Sick of It (Season 2) with British comedian and actor Karl Pilkington, and Netflix/Sky's Sick Note, in which she portrayed Linda. Marama can also be seen playing the role of Katja Sirkka on HBO's His Dark Materials and starred as Angua, the lead role in BBC America's The Watch, inspired by Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels. Her additional credits include SYFY's Blood Drive and the feature films Desert Dancer with Freida Pinto and The Goob with Sean Harris. Most recently, Marama appeared in Season 6 of Netflix's critically acclaimed series Black Mirror.

- IMDb mini biography by: Edward Said