Scene Stealer: ‘Queen Sugar’ and ‘Girls Trip’ Star Kofi Siriboe

He Plays
Harried single dad Ralph Angel Bordelon, who is fresh from four years in the slammer and determined to stay on the right side of the law—no matter how much his racist neighbors piss him off. The guy has big family woes too: For months he’s neglected to tell his two sisters that he’s the sole owner of their late father’s sugarcane farm. The fallout airs July 26. “If Ralph Angel had been honest as soon as he found his father’s revised will, there would have been fireworks,” Siriboe says. “Now, because he held out, the fireworks are even bigger. But the Queen Sugar fans are messy. They’ve been dying to see it all hit the fan!”

Where You’ve Seen Him
After a stint as a Wilhelmina model, Siriboe booked his first series gig as Tyler Miller in the aptly named Awkward. His storyline begged the question: Is it sort of maybe incest if a girl hooks up with her adopted brother? He can also be seen at the multiplex these days making hot, bathroom-sink love to Jada Pinkett Smith in Girls Trip.

Related

'Queen Sugar' Returns For More Family Drama: 'The Suspense is Huge'

Why We Love Him
The 23-year-old Siriboe must own stock in Kleenex because there isn’t an episode where he doesn’t find a way to infiltrate our hearts and make us sob like fools. “Kofi is an actor of incredible passion,” says series creator Ava ­DuVernay. “He’s become quite the heartthrob. At the recent Essence Festival in New Orleans we couldn’t even walk a foot without him being mobbed! But during his audition it was his work ethic and sensitivity that impressed me—especially for one so young. I was drawn to the light in him.”

Toy Story
Ralph Angel’s spirited little boy, Blue (Ethan Hutchison, above, with Siriboe), prefers to play with a Barbie doll. That’s had some of the locals—and Blue’s mom, Darla (Bianca Lawson)—freaking out. But Dad’s totally cool with it. “He doesn’t lay any of that hypermasculinity stuff on his kid,” says Siriboe. “It goes beyond nonjudgment. Ralph Angel is haunted by the years that he spent confined in jail. He wants his son, the love of his life, to live in freedom.”

Queen Sugar, Wednesdays, 9/8c, OWN