Marlon S. Kazadi (born November 16, 2004) is a Canadian actor and music artist. He is best known for the role of Mike Broadstreet in the film Zombie Town (2023), a zombie thriller based on a book of the same name by author R. L. Stine. Kazadi's first lead role was in the independent film Chained for which he won "Best Young Actor" from the New York International Film Awards, and nominations for Best Actor for a Canadian Film at the Vancouver Film Critics Circle Awards, as well as Best Lead Performance, Male at the UBCP/ACTRA Awards.
Contents
Early life
Marlon S. Kazadi moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, from the Democratic Republic of Congo at the age of 7, along with his mother, personal career manager and executive coach, Fatima Kazadi. She later remarried to producer Kayvon Sarfehjooy. Kazadi attended French-speaking schools – École Anne Hébert and École des Pionniers, before continuing his education in English.
Career
Kazadi made his acting debut at 9 years old, on the ABC series The Whispers. He decided to respond to an open call after his mother suggested that he may take a liking to acting, as she noticed his talent from him replaying movie characters that he watched as a child.
He then took a three-year hiatus from acting to pursue a career as a professional soccer player, which was his first dream. One day during his soccer training, Kazadi had an epiphany and realized that acting was his true calling. In 2018, he landed the supporting role of Omar in the film Child's Play, a remake of the original classic horror film featuring the infamous Chucky doll. That same year, Kazadi was cast in two popular series: first as Young James (Jimmy) Olsen in Supergirl, and then in a recurring role as Malcolm in Riverdale.
By the age of 15, Kazadi had landed his first lead role as Taylor in the feature film Chained (2020), a crime thriller by Titus Heckel. Kazadi was nominated for multiple awards based on his performance, and won Best Young Lead Actor in the New York International Film Awards.
His work in Chained caught the eyes of various producers, which eventually landed him the lead role of Mike Broadstreet in Zombie Town, based on author R.L. Stine's book of the same name.