Meet Sonya Nicole Hamlin. She’s a property lawyer from Maryland, but what she’s really known for is being the “secret” second wife of English actor Idris Elba.
Yep, you heard that right – Mrs. Hamlin was once Mrs. Elba!
Even though their marriage didn’t last, her association with the award-winning actor certainly put her in the spotlight.
Nowadays, Sonya Nicole Hamlin continues to excel in her career as a lawyer, but it’s safe to say that her brief time as Idris Elba’s wife is what most people remember her for.
Sonya Nicole Hamlin Quick Facts
| Full Name | Sonya Nicole Hamlin |
| Nick Name | Sonya |
| Birthday | January 1, 1974 |
| Age | 50 years old. |
| Birth Place | Glenn Dale, Maryland, USA |
| Horoscope | Capricorn |
| Religion | Christianity |
| Nationality | American |
| Ethnicity | African-American |
| Education | University of Virginia (BSc) American University Washington College of Law (JD) |
| Father’s Name | |
| Mother’s Name | |
| Siblings | |
| Half-Siblings | |
| Height | 5’6″ (1.67m) |
| Weight | 55kg (122 lbs) |
| Shoe Size | 7 |
| Hair Color | Black |
| Eye Color | Dark Brown |
| Physique (Figure) | Fit |
| Married | No |
| Relationship Status | Divorced |
| Ex-husband | Idris Elba |
| Partner | |
| Son | |
| Daughter | |
| Profession | Real Estate Attorney |
| Net Worth | $2 million |
| Social Media |
Sonya Hamlin: Bio, Age
Sonya Nicole Hamlin, a 50-year-old American property lawyer, hails from Glenn Dale, Maryland.
She was born on January 1, 1974, and her zodiac sign is Capricorn.
However, her family later moved to the posh neighborhood of Notting Hill in London.
Needless to say, Hamlin spent some time there before embarking on her career journey.
Moreover, she has always been a very private person and never really talked about her family and parents.
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College Education and Degree
Sonya Nicole Hamlin’s academic journey took her from the United States to London, and back to the US again.
After completing her secondary education in the US, she moved to Notting Hill, London, where she studied real estate law, although the specific institutions she attended remain a mystery.
Eventually, she returned to the US, attending the University of Virginia for her bachelor’s degree in political science and government.
Furthermore, Hamlin then went on to earn her Juris Doctor (JD) degree from the American University Washington College of Law, where she studied law.
With her diverse education and experience, Hamlin became an accomplished property lawyer based in Maryland, USA.
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Current Career and Professional Life
Sonya Nicole Hamlin, a real estate attorney based in Maryland, has been running her firm, The Hamlin Legal Group, LLC, since 2000.
With over two decades of experience in the field, she has earned a reputation as a successful specialist in all matters related to real estate law.
Her expertise ranges from foreclosure prevention and short sale negotiations to loan modifications and foreclosure mediation.
Moreover, she also handles legal tax matters, credit improvement, and property management, along with condominium and home association conflicts.
As an attorney, she has excellent skills in public speaking and negotiating student loan debt and unsecured loans.
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Met Idris Through Mutual Friends
Sonya and Idris Elba first crossed paths in early 2006 through some mutual friends, and it was all thanks to their professions.
Despite being strangers at the time, they hit it off right away at a crowded gathering with a few other people. It wasn’t long before they realized they had a deep romantic connection.
Sonya revealed that they had a lot in common, including their love for cooking, dedication to their families, overcoming obstacles in their respective fields, and a shared passion for boxing.
It was clearly a match made in heaven!
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Engagement and Wedding Details
Love can sometimes make people do unexpected things, like spontaneously getting married after only a few months of knowing each other.
That’s exactly what happened with Sonya Nicole Hamlin and Idris Elba.
They were in Los Angeles to watch a boxing match when they decided to take the plunge and get hitched.
Without much planning, they exchanged their vows the very next day at the Little White Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas.
They had talked about marriage before and agreed to keep things simple, but nothing could have prepared them for this impromptu decision.
Idris and Nicole felt the time was right and that’s all that mattered to them.
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Race To Find Witness
Elba had the ring and they were ready to get married. However, for a marriage to be legally recognized, it needs witness.
Since getting married was a spontaneous decision, the couple did not have time to inform family and friends and had they informed anyone, it would still be nearly impossible to attend a wedding, far away, in such a short notice.
So what did they do? Improvised the situation of course.
They found a witness, Daniel Krastev, a Las Vegas real estate agent they met just a few hours before the wedding.
After their spontaneous wedding, the newlyweds informed their parents of their surprise union, but kept it under wraps from the public eye.
The couple then jetted off to Jamaica for their honeymoon to bask in the joy of their newlywed status.
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Reasons for Divorce After 2 Months
Idris Elba and Sonya Nicole Hamlin’s marriage was short-lived, lasting only two months before Sonya filed for divorce. According to her, Elba’s friends played a significant role in causing their divorce. They questioned why he chose to marry her, and some even suggested that their marriage would harm his career and image as a single sex symbol in Hollywood.
Sonya was heartbroken that Idris was being persuaded and convinced to end their marriage so quickly.
Despite her love for him and a desire to save their marriage, it was not meant to be.
The divorce left her devastated because they had genuinely loved each other at the time of their breakup, but she knew that things were not going to work out.
However, the state of Maryland refused to grant Sonya’s request for divorce because the state laws require a couple to be married for at least a year before filing for separation.
So, Hamil hired a lawyer in Nevada, claiming that she was drunk on her wedding day, and the marriage was annulled.
The secondary factor which solidified Sonya’s plan of getting a divorce was her feeling that the timing was not right for them.
She couldn’t leave her career to follow Idris to Los Angeles, and the constant back and forth might not have worked for them.
Her practice would suffer if she had to visit him for months while he was away shooting in another country.
Choosing to end their marriage was not an easy decision, but sometimes love and pure chemistry were not enough.
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Sonya Nicole After Divorce
After the divorce, Sonya faced significant difficulties in both her personal life and her business. The sudden end of her marriage left her heartbroken, and the recession that hit the US economy at the same time had a significant impact on her law firm.
The recession hit her so hard that Sonya declared bankruptcy. But fortunately, she was able to save her house, which was worth $450,000 at the time.
Furthermore, the affair and marriage remained a secret for a long time and were known only to a few people in Hollywood.
It was only after about a decade that the public came to know that Idris, the male symbol of Hollywood was once married to an attorney.
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Are Idris and Sonya Friends Today?
Despite everything that went down Sonya insists that they stay friends and speak on the phone once every few weeks.
Sadly, we are unsure of their current relationship and whether they still communicate as friends.
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Idris Elba After Divorce
Idris Elba has since moved on from his brief marriage to Sonya Nicole Hamlin and has been associated with numerous women over the years. He was first married to makeup artist Hanne Norgaard from 1999 to 2003.
Idris has two children, a daughter with Norgaard and a son with his former girlfriend, Naiyana Garth.
In 2019, Elba found love again with former Miss Vancouver and model, Sabrina Dhowre Elba.
The couple got married on April 26th, 2019 in Marrakesh.
Dhowre is of Somali-Canadian descent and is also an actress who has appeared in TV shows such as “Three Thousand Years of Longing” (2022) and CNBC’s “Sustainable Future” (2021).
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Idris Elba’s Biography
Idris Elba, 51, was born on September 6, 1972, in the London Borough of Hackney. He is an English actor best known for his roles as DCI John Luther in the BBC One series Luther and Stringer Bell in the HBO series The Wire, among others.
He grew up as the only child of his parents, Winston Elba, a Sierra Leonean Creole man who worked at the Ford Dagenham plant, and Eve.
Elba’s interest in drama began while he was in school, and he received a grant from the Prince’s Trust, which allowed him to join the National Youth Music Theatre in 1990.
In his late teens, he simultaneously tried out for small-screen acting parts and worked as a disc jockey under the moniker DJ Big Driis.
In the mid-1990s, Elba started appearing in small roles on British TV shows such as “Siders” (1997), “Family Affairs” (1997), and “Dangerfield” (1997).
His career breakthrough came after appearing in a three-season run of the HBO crime thriller “The Wire”.
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What Makes Idris one of the sexiest men alive?
Idris Elba was named “Sexiest Man Alive” by People magazine in 2018, an honor that took him by surprise. He acknowledged that it was a nice ego boost and felt flattered by the title.
The actor’s undeniable talent, good looks, and confident, easygoing personality all contribute to his reputation as one of the sexiest men alive. And it immensely helps when you just exude confidence as an aura.
Moreover, Idris Elba’s acting skills are versatile, and he brings authenticity and nuance to a range of roles.
In addition to his acting skills, Idris is known for his toned physique and unique sense of style. He stands out in any crowd, and his confident presence is alluring to many.
All in all, Idris Elba’s combination of talent, charisma, and physical appeal make him a highly desirable and irresistible figure to many.
