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Eli James is an American actor, stand-up comedian, singer, and dialect expert based in London. He is widely recognized for his voiceover work, notably as the spirited teenage character Yuma Tsukumo in the animated series Yu-Gi-Oh Zexal. His vocal talents extend to numerous other beloved characters in shows like Yu-Gi-Oh, Pokémon, P. King Duckling, and Beast Boy: Lone Wolf. Additionally, he has contributed voice work to fiction and nonfiction podcasts as well as video games. His voice can be heard on the BBC's World of Secrets, Radiotopia's The Body Genius series, and his own podcast, Strong Reception.
Eli appears as a CIA operative in the 2025 film The Amateur, featuring Rami Malek and directed by James Hawes. His U.S. television credits include Gossip Girl, Unforgettable, Alpha House, Lights Out, and numerous commercials. He regularly performs stand-up comedy across the UK, including shows at London’s Angel Comedy Club, Comedy Rumblings, and the Sam Rhodes Comedy Explosion.
A lifelong stage actor, Eli has Broadway credits such as the National Theatre’s One Man Two Guvnors, directed by Nicholas Hytner, and Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, the rock musical written and directed by Alex Timbers. His theatre work also includes the UK and Ireland tour of Bob Dylan and Conor McPherson’s Girl From the North Country, Becky Shaw at Boston’s Huntington Theater, The Four of Us at Manhattan Theatre Club, Rutherford & Son at New York’s Mint Theater, and Jason Grote’s Maria/Stuart at Woolly Mammoth Theater, directed by Pam MacKinnon. In Philadelphia, his hometown, he performed in Moises Kaufman’s Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde at the Philadelphia Theatre Company and Tom Stoppard’s The Invention of Love at The Wilma Theater.
His solo comedy show Imagine All the People was staged at the Peoples Improv Theater in New York. Before that, his solo play William and the Tradesmen was featured at the New York International Fringe Festival, Ars Nova's ANT Fest, and the Drilling Company, receiving acclaim from nytheatre.com as “a gem ... well-wrought, insightful and precise.”
Eli was a house team performer at the renowned Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in New York, appearing on Maude Night, the theater’s monthly sketch comedy showcase, along with numerous improv, sketch, and character performances. He was a dedicated student of the theater’s Advanced Study Improv Program and the UCB Academy, with his improv training deeply shaping his approach to performance.
In addition to acting and comedy, Eli is an experienced guitarist, songwriter, and singer, having recorded and performed his own music both solo and with bands. He possesses a strong baritone voice with a broad range. As a coach, he has trained a wide array of individuals and groups in acting, improv, and his specialty: dialects. Having studied accent and dialect science intensively from a young age, Eli has professionally performed a diverse array of British, Irish, European, and American dialects on both stage and screen.
