Erana James

Erana James (born 17 February 1999) is a New Zealand actress of Māori descent. She is known for her roles as Toni Shalifoe in the Amazon Prime Video series The Wilds (2020–2022) and Curly in the FX series Alien: Earth (2025–present). Her iwi are Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei and Waikato-Tainui.

Early life and Education James was born in Whangārei, New Zealand, where she grew up on a farm. She moved to Wellington at the age of ten and attended Wellington Girls' College. At fourteen she began studying acting at Rata Studios, a performing arts school in Wellington run by director Miranda Harcourt.

She later studied at Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington, where she pursued a Bachelor of Arts in Te Reo Māori alongside Sociology. She has spoken about her choice to study the language, saying the preservation of Te Reo Māori is important to her as a Māori woman. She now lives in Melbourne, Australia. In a 2021 interview, she described filming the show in New Zealand as an "amazing" experience, noting that being surrounded by familiar people helped her navigate her first major American production.

In 2023, she appeared in the Australian drama series Bad Behaviour and the New Zealand film Uproar, the latter alongside Julian Dennison.

In 2024, James starred as Nellie in We Were Dangerous, the debut feature film of director Josephine Stewart-Te Whiu, which had its world premiere in the Narrative Feature Competition at the 2024 South by Southwest Film & TV Festival. Set in 1950s New Zealand, the film follows three young women at a reform school for girls. The film also lists Taika Waititi among its producers.

In 2025, James joined the main cast of the FX science fiction series Alien: Earth, created by Noah Hawley and set in the Alien universe, playing Curly — a synthetic human who is part of a group of child consciousnesses placed in adult bodies by a fictional corporation. The series premiered on 12 August 2025 and was renewed for a second season, with production scheduled to begin in London in 2026. Also in 2025, she appeared in two music videos for Australian musician Vance Joy, Divine Feelings and Fascination in the Dark.

Filmography

Film Year Title Role Notes 2013 The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Lake-towner Uncredited 2017 The Changeover Laura Chant Based on the 1984 novel by Margaret Mahy 2017 Southland's Home Nell Short film; main role 2020 Hot Mother Sofia Short film 2023 Uproar Samantha 2024 We Were Dangerous Nellie World premiere, SXSW 2024 Television Year Title Role Notes 2015 Sons of Liars Bria Main role 2017 Lucy Lewis Can't Lose J'ess Recurring role 2019 My Life Is Murder Juliana Lloyd Episodic role 2019 Golden Boy Kahu Main role, season 1 2019 Playing for Keeps Samira Recurring role 2020–2022 The Wilds Toni Shalifoe Main role 2023 Bad Behaviour Ronnie Recurring role 2025–present Alien: Earth Curly Main role

Music videos Year Title Artist 2025 "Divine Feelings" Vance Joy 2025 "Fascination in the Dark" Vance Joy