Meagan Good and Jonathan Majors granted Guinean citizenship after tracing ancestry

Hollywood actors and spouses Meagan Good and Jonathan Majors have travelled to Guinea, where they have been granted citizenship after DNA tests traced their ancestry to the West African country.

Majors, known for his roles in Creed and Ant-Man, said acquiring Guinean citizenship would help the couple “bridge the gap” between their identities as entertainers and members of the African diaspora. Good, best known for Think Like a Man, described the moment as deeply meaningful and said it marked her first visit to Guinea.

The actors were formally granted citizenship during a private cultural ceremony organised by Guinea’s Ministry of Culture at the Gbassi Kolo tourist and cultural centre on Friday. Passports were presented on behalf of President Mamadi Doumbouya by Djiba Diakité, Minister and Chief of Staff at the Presidency.

Diakité said the couple were considered worthy sons and daughters of Guinea who would represent the country and its red and green flag on the global stage. The ceremony featured traditional music and dance performances, including drumming on the djembe, a cultural symbol closely associated with Guinea.

Speaking to the BBC via email, the couple said they could envision living in Guinea in the future, describing their connection to the country as long-term and evolving rather than symbolic.

Good, 44, and Majors, 36, began dating in 2023 and married last year. Their visit comes after a challenging period for Majors, who was sentenced in the United States in 2024 to probation and ordered to complete a domestic violence intervention programme following an assault conviction involving his former partner.

The pair arrived at Conakry’s Gbessia International Airport to a ceremonial welcome by officials and musicians, including the presentation of kola nuts, a traditional symbol of hospitality and peace in West Africa. They are also expected to tour Boké, a coastal region with historic slave trade sites.

Their citizenship follows a growing trend of members of the African diaspora reclaiming heritage through citizenship initiatives, a movement that gained prominence after Ghana’s 2019 “Year of Return.” Other celebrities who have acquired African citizenship include Stevie Wonder, Ciara, and Samuel L Jackson.