Malia Obama, the daughter of former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama, has stepped into adulthood and is carving out her own unique path – she’s even decided to adopt a new name.
The 25-year-old recently debuted her directorial work, “The Heart,” at the Sundance Film Festival.
Notably, the film’s credits omitted her family surname.
Born Malia Ann Obama on July 4, 1998, her middle name honors her paternal grandmother, who passed away from ovarian cancer at the age of 52 in 1995. Growing up under the spotlight as the daughter of the President and graduating from Harvard, Malia has chosen to pursue a career in screenwriting.
In her latest endeavor, “The Heart,” where Malia takes on the roles of director and screenwriter, she opted to go by the pseudonym Malia Ann. Making a memorable appearance on the festival’s red carpet earlier this year, Malia celebrated the premiere of her film.
However, this venture into filmmaking isn’t Malia’s first step into the industry. In 2021, she contributed to the writing team for the series “Swarm,” which streamed on Amazon Prime. With notable cast members like Billie Eilish and Rory Culkin, “Swarm” marked a promising start to her professional journey.
“Some of her pitches were wild as hell, and they were just so good and so funny. She’s an incredible writer,” said “Swarm” co-creator Janine Nabers about Malia’s talent. “She brought a lot to the table… She’s really, really dedicated to her craft.”
