Nov 03, 2016 08:20 AM EDT By Jane Reed, UniversityHerald Reporter

Cottonmouth in the upcoming Luke Cage season 2 actor was a multi-talented athlete who worked hard for a career. Actor Mahershala Ali is known for his work in "House of Cards" in Netflix, "The Hunger Games" and "Treme" in HBO.

But what many do not know is that Mahershala Ali didn't have it all in the beginning. The 42 year old actor grew up playing sports.

He is described by People as a multi-talented athlete. At the young age of four, Mahershalalhashbaz as he is named by birth, says he grew up playing sports and already competing. He took competition very seriously.

Like many kids, he also engaged in off court and on court sports. He started racing with a BMX bike. And as he grew up, he engaged himself with basketball. Although competitive, for the Luke Cage actor, it was never about beating the other person. It is about the goal.

He explains that he is a goal-oriented person. As he grew up into a young man, he learned that his goal is going to be towards education. His goal in high school is to go to school for free. That means, he needs to win a scholarship. His family at the time was struggling. Ali adds that if he did not get a scholarship, that means he is not ever going to get a higher education at all.

Ultimately, he got a basketball scholarship. His goal was finally met. Mareshala Ali was proud that his education was paid for because of his hard work.

Now, he is known for his memorable performance in "House of Cards" and his upcoming stunt in "Luke Cage" season 2. He left "House of Cards" based on his own decision. That enabled him to work on "Moonlight" which is an indie movie about a young homosexual black boy who lives in Miami. "Moonlight" focuses on his poor life and challenging life growing up.

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