Date of birth: 1990 (London)
Occupation: Actor, martial artist, fight choreographer.
Style: Taekwondo
Biography: Katrina Durden was born in London into a family of writers, journalists and filmmakers. Her uncle is the British TV and film actor, Richard Durden. Discovering a passion for performance as a child, she studied acting as a teenager at various institutions, including the Sylvia Young Theatre School in London, and also, in 2007, a placement at the Moscow Arts Theatre. In 2008, she trained at the Lyric Theatre and studied performing arts at St Charles Catholic College. Inspired by strong female characters in films, video games and comic books, she studied martial arts as a teenager. She also has a background in dance, equestrianism and languages (she speaks English, Spanish and Russian).
In 2014, Katrina graduated from Brunel University with a degree in Sports Sciences and Human Performance. Upon graduating, Katrina concentrated on her acting career, undertaking private coaching and mentorship, as well as guidance from her uncle. She has appeared in short films, music videos, feature films and TV productions, and worked as a fight choreographer. She was assistant fight co-ordinator for the short films Chameleon (2014), Kung Fu Darling (2015), Cible (2016), and The Academy (2017). Working alongside UK writer, director, actor and fight choreographer, Joey Ansah, she was cast as the villain Decapre in the web series, Street Fighter: Resurrection (2015) – the follow-up to Ansah’s 2014 series, Street Fighter: Assassin’s Fist. In 2016, Katrina appeared in the Marvel comic book adaptation, Doctor Strange, in the role of the Blonde Zealot. She fought alongside Tilda Swinton, Mads Mikkelsen and Benedict Cumberbatch. The film also featured a number of leading UK action stars, including Scott Adkins and Zara Phythian.
Speech! “There are more girls (now) in martial arts class… You end up seeing a lot more kids wanting to be tougher and stronger. I love it when a girl comes into class and says, ‘what you do is cool! I want to be tough. I want to learn to be strong as well’.” Interview with Kung Fu Movie Guide.
Click here to listen to KFMG Podcast S02 Episode 12 with Katrina Durden.
Filmography (as actor): 2006 One Road (short); 2010 London Boulevard; 2013 Kick-Ass 2; 2015 Deep Pan Fury (short); Vicious (TV); 2016 Fighting Talk/Finding Driscoll; Knock Out (short); Street Fighter: Resurrection; Doctor Strange.
Filmography (as assistant fight co-ordinator): 2014 Chameleon (short); 2015 Kung Fu Darling; 2016 Cible; 2017 The Academy (short).