James grew up on a wine farm in Paarl, Western Cape, South Africa. His
parents were very conservative and separatists during the time of
apartheid in South Africa, and James was the first liberal in the
family. He also clashed with his father, a strict Reformed Dutchman,
about his interest in theater. He and his father struck a bargain that
if he were to letter in sports in school, he could choose his own study
- which he did. After his course in the military, he decided on arts
and performance.
Studying acting, singing, dance, and even the flute, James quickly made
his mark in theater in South Africa. He has appeared in performances of
Charlotte's Web, My Fair Lady, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the
Forum, and Aladdin, among others. He has also appeared in many
commercials and corporate promotional materials, including ads and
promos for Ford, Toys 'R Us, and Compaq.
His television credits in South Africa are very different from his
theater work, where he has often portrayed the menacing and even
downright psychotic bad guy. His first big break came when he got the
part of the snarling Koobus Venter in the 2009 science fiction hit
District 9.
Hunting Jessica Brok(2025)as Whitman
G20(2025)as Csonger
Dance of Death(2024)as Botha
Diepe Waters(2022)as Frederich, Coach Frederich, Frederick
Classified(2023)as Farnie Steyn
The Alien Agenda: A Filmmaker's Log(2009)as Self
WatchMojo(2006)as Koobus Venter
