Who Is Marisa Abela? Meet the Actress Playing Amy Winehouse in ‘Back to Black’

Marisa Abela has transformed herself into late music icon Amy Winehouse for the upcoming biopic Back to Black.

The first trailer for the upcoming movie sees the actress, sporting thick eyeliner and all, as she portrays Winehouse through the highs and lows of the singer's career.

Winehouse died on July 23, 2011 at the age of 27. Her cause of death was alcohol poisoning.

Watch the trailer for Back to Black, below:

Back to Black hits theaters on May 10.

In the meantime, find out everything you need to know about Marisa Abela — the actress playing Winehouse — below.

Where Is Marisa Abela From?

According to IMDb, Marisa Abela was born in Brighton, East Sussex, England.

Located 47 miles south of London, Brighton is a popular tourist town known for its seaside resort. According to Britain Express, the area's first pier was built in 1823 but was destroyed by a storm.

Abela's father, a director, is of Maltese-Libyan and English descent, and her mother, an actress, is of Polish and Russian Jewish ancestry.

How Old Is Marisa Abela?

Marisa Abela is 27 years old as of January 2024. She was born on Dec. 7, 1996, according to IMDb.

She graduated from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London in 2019.

What Has Marisa Abela Been In?

Marisa Abela is best known for her role in the HBO series Industry, in which she plays the character of Yasmin Kara-Hanani. According to IMDb, the character is described as a wealthy, ambitious scholar.

READ MORE: Amy Winehouse Disses Kanye West in Old Clip Gone Viral (VIDEO)

Outside of Industry, Abela appeared in the Sky One political series Cobra.

Abela also played the role of Teen Talk Barbie in the Barbie movie released in 2023.

Can Marisa Abela Sing?

Speaking to Empire, Back to Black director Sam Taylor-Johnson revealed that Marisa Abela originally doubted her singing abilities before getting voice-training lessons for the film.

"I was thinking, maybe we'll use Amy's voice throughout, and we'll do it that way. She then went off after that audition – irrespective of whether she knew she'd got the part – and started training her voice," Taylor-Johnson said.

It all worked out in the end, as Taylor-Johnson shared that Abela indeed sings throughout the entire movie.

"Now she sings the entire movie, beginning to end. I mean, it's a huge feat," the director said.

Watch Amy Winehouse's "Back to Black" Music Video:

How Did Marisa Abela Landed Her Role in Back to Black?

Sam Taylor-Johnson says she was looking for an actress who could "inhabit" Winehouse versus someone who could simply impersonate the late music icon.

"We'd seen some brilliant impersonations. But [Marisa] managed to just bring every fiber of her being in alignment with who Amy Winehouse was, and is, to many people. She inhabited her," the director told Empire.