As Malia Obama makes strides in her Hollywood career, she’s decided to take on a new name.
The writer and producer, who is also the eldest daughter of Barack and Michelle Obama, will now go by her middle name: Malia Ann, perhaps in an effort to distance herself from her powerful parents’ fame.
The change was revealed in the Sundance Institute’s “Meet the Artist” spotlight video, which introduced her as a filmmaker.
She described her film project “The Heart” as “an odd little story, somewhat of fable, about a man grieving the death of his mother after she leaves him an unusual request in her will.”
Donald Glover , whose company, Gilga, produced the project, predicts Malia has a strong future in the industry. “I feel like she’s just somebody who’s gonna have really good things coming soon,” he told Vanity Fair in March 2022.
“Her writing style is great,” he said, having worked with her on his Amazon show “Swarm.” We can’t be easy on her just because she’s the former President’s daughter.”
Malia Ann made her red carpet debut at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival for the premiere of her short.
The former President and First Lady have also transitioned into entertainment careers with their production company Higher Ground Productions, which put out the Oscar-nominated biopic “Rustin” last year.