Mahershala Ali is a proud father to his daughter, Bari Najma Ali, whom he shares with his wife, Amatus Sami-Karim.
The former basketball player crossed paths with Amatus at New York University‘s Tisch School of the Arts in 1997.
During their very first meeting, Amatus, now an artist who works as a sound designer, actress, and filmmaker, was an undergraduate in the Experimental Theatre Wing.
She was studying on a full scholarship after a year at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London.
Whereas he was in graduate school, working on his MFA in acting.
Reportedly, to make his move, Mahershala wrote a short poem on a postcard and carried it in his bag for about a month.
When the moment felt right, he handed it to her. She didn’t respond at first, which left him a bit embarrassed. However, everything fell into its proper place and all worked out in the end.
Sadly, after school, they lost contact for about 12 years as Mahershala moved to Los Angeles and Amatus stayed in New York.
It was around 2009 or 2010 when they reconnected, as Mahershala reached out to her while he was in L.A., and she was still in New York.
They didn’t jump straight into dating after reconnecting, but it grew naturally.
Eventually, Mahershala and Amatus tied the knot in 2013, after nearly 16 years of knowing each other on and off.
After four years of their marriage, Mahershala and Amatus welcomed their daughter, Bari Najma Ali, on February 22, 2017.
Mahershala Ali’s Daughter, Bari, Won a Trophy in Gymnastics!
The former basketball player-turned-actor Mahershala has played several roles in big movies; however, one of his most special roles is being a father to his daughter.
Mahershala and his wife welcomed their daughter, Bari Najma Ali, in 2017.
Ali announced the happy news on Instagram, sharing his excitement about becoming a father.
On top of that, Bari’s birth came just days before the Academy Awards in 2017, where Ali was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Moonlight.
The timing indeed added a unique twist to an already exciting time in his life.
During an interview with Entertainment Tonight earlier that month, Ali spoke about how incredible it was that his wife’s due date was so close to the Oscars.
He jokingly said it felt like something out of a movie script, with his wife expecting a baby while he was “expecting” an Oscar.
Amatus supported him throughout the awards season, attending events with him while visibly pregnant.
Just a few weeks after Bari’s birth, Ali opened up to PEOPLE magazine at an event called The Most Powerful Stylists in Hollywood Dinner about his experience as a new dad.
He described fatherhood as a “different kind of crazy” but shared how much he loved watching his daughter grow.
Mahershala shared a sweet moment, saying,
She was smiling last night. It’s just been great to know this little person whose body seems to change every day and whose awareness heightens every day. It’s just been exciting.
Mahershala Ali
Fast-forward to June 2025, Ali took his daughter to see his new movie, Jurassic World Rebirth, at its premiere.
It was the first time she watched one of her dad’s films from start to finish.
Ali shared with Entertainment Tonight how much it meant to him to sit with her in the theater, saying:
It was nice just having that experience together and getting to sit there in a movie theater and watch her react to something that I was in and her actually really just enjoying the movie because she likes the Jurassic World franchise.
Mahershala Ali
Ali explained that Bari had only seen bits and pieces of his work before because most of his movies weren’t suitable for a young child.
But Jurassic World Rebirth was different, and he had been preparing her by showing her other movies in the Jurassic World series.
He said he still needed to ask her what she liked most about the film, but he could tell she loved it.
In Case You Didn’t Know
- Mahershala completed his Master of Fine Arts degree at New York University.
- He was born to Willicia Goines and Phillip Gilmore. His father left the family when he was a toddler to pursue a career as a dancer.
