
Acting
Apr 7, 1982
Gisborne, New Zealand
Te Kohe Tuhaka
Acting
Biography
Te Kohe Tuhaka is an acclaimed New Zealand actor, producer, and director of Ngāti Porou and Ngāi Tūhoe descent. Raised in a proud te reo Māori-speaking family, he trained at New Zealand's premier drama school, Toi Whakaari. He rose to prominence starring in the Taika Waititi short film Tama Tū and playing the ruthless warrior Wirepa in the hit action film The Dead Lands (as well as its AMC Shudder television adaptation). His diverse career spans Hollywood and Kiwi productions alike, with notable roles in Love and Monsters, The Convert (which he also co-produced), and starring alongside Jason Momoa in the series Chief of War.
Feature Films (17)

A Māori warrior, an Italian deserter and a scrawny rooster are trapped behind enemy lines. What could possibly go wrong?
Maunga Cassino

Hongi, a Maori chieftain’s teenage son, must avenge his father’s murder in order to bring peace and honour to the souls of his loved ones after his tribe is slaughtered through an act of treachery. Vastly outnumbered by a band of villains led by Wirepa, Hongi’s only hope is to pass through the feared and forbidden “Dead Lands” and forge an uneasy alliance with a mysterious warrior, a ruthless fighter who has ruled the area for years.
The Dead Lands

Inspired by an ancient Māori story in which nature intermingles with a child’s love, Washday depicts – with tremendous sensitivity and compassion – a grieving father and daughter coming to terms with a significant death in 1960s New Zealand.
Washday

Munro, a soldier turned lay preacher, comes to New Zealand to minister to the first British colonists, but he is converted by the powerful chief Maianui to serve a different purpose.
The Convert

Six Māori Battalion soldiers camped in Italian ruins wait for night to fall. In the silence, the bros-in-arms distract themselves with jokes. A tohu (sign) brings them back to reality, and they gather to say a karakia before returning to the fray. Director Taika Waititi describes the soldiers as young men with "a special bond, strengthened by their character, their culture and each other.
Tama Tū

This docudrama follows an imaginary news reporter who travels back in time to cover the days leading up to the Treaty of Waitangi's signing on 6 February 1840. Dropping the usual solemnity surrounding Aotearoa's founding document, it uses humour and asides to camera to evoke the chaos and motives behind the treaty. This clip features a confrontation between Hone Heke and representatives of the Crown.
Waitangi Day: What Really Happened

Madison has the chance to pursue her love of event management when her two best friends announce their engagement. Finding a pre-planned wedding package on a remote island vineyard in New Zealand, Madison teams up with David, the handsome vineyard owner, to re-imagine the event for her friends.
Destination Love

Under the celestial guidance of Matariki, Māori elder Hamo and local delinquent Jo form an unlikely bond on a road trip. As they confront past traumas and each face their demons, their shared path becomes a journey of healing, community, and reconciliation.
Kōkā

London, England, April 1980. Six terrorists assault the Embassy of Iran and take hostages. For six days, tense negotiations are held while the authorities decide whether a military squad should intervene.
6 Days

In Dark Places is the gripping story of an innocent man, imprisoned for two decades for a crime he did not commit, and an ex-cop's heroic battle to win him his freedom.
In Dark Places

A sea plane is destroyed in a freak accident, five people find themselves drifting on a raft. At the mercy of the tide and with no hope of rescue, the helpless situation takes a horrifying turn when they are terrorized by a ravenous great white.
Great White

Seven years since the Monsterpocalypse began, Joel Dawson has been living underground in order to survive. But after reconnecting over radio with his high school girlfriend Aimee, Joel decides to venture out to reunite with her, despite all the dangerous monsters that stand in his way.
Love and Monsters
Television & Series (9)

A business owner is thrust into New Zealand's dark underbelly after a million-dollar drug deal goes wrong on a blood-stained night, setting off a chain of events between dangerous factions.
Vegas

Find me a Māori Bride follows the comic misadventures of Tama Bradley, and his cousin George Alpert, a pair of successful, metrosexual Māori men, whose lives are turned upside down, when presented with a wero (challenge), by their late grandmother – find a Māori wife within 6 months, or lose out on inheriting the whānau farm, worth a whopping $47,000,000.
Find Me a Māori Bride

Follow a teenage girl and a trio of fallen gods on a perilous journey as they attempt to bring an end to a demonic reign of chaos and restore balance to their world. Inspired by the 16th Century Chinese fable “Journey to the West.”
The New Legends of Monkey

In a seemingly quiet country town the newest resident, Detective Inspector Mike Shepherd, finds that murder lurks in even the most homely location.
The Brokenwood Mysteries

Investigator Alexa Crowe, cannot help fighting the good fight – whether it is solving murders or combatting the small frustrations of everyday life. Fearless and unapologetic, Alexa's unique skills and insights into the darker quirks of human nature, allows her to provoke, comfort and push the right buttons as she unravels the truth behind the most baffling of crimes.




