Cody Lightning (born August 8, 1986) is a Cree actor and filmmaker from Edmonton, Treaty 6, Alberta, Canada. He is the son of film director and actress Georgina Lightning and brother of actors Crystle Lightning and William Lightning. He was a Young Artist Award nominee in 1999 for Best Performance in a Feature Film - Supporting Young Actor, for Smoke Signals (1998), and won the American Indian Film Festival award for Best Actor in 2007 for Four Sheets to the Wind.
In 2023, he wrote, directed and starred in his directorial debut film Hey, Viktor!, a mockumentary in which a fictionalized version of himself struggles to reestablish his faded career as an actor by creating his own sequel to Smoke Signals. In 2024, he received two Canadian Screen Award nominations for his work on the film, for Best Lead Performance in a Comedy Film and Best Original Screenplay, at the 12th Canadian Screen Awards.
His second feature film, Smudge the Blades, premiered at the 2026 Toronto International Film Festival, where it won the Best Canadian Discovery Award.
Selected filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | Geronimo | Young Daklugie | TV movie |
| 1997 | The Brave | Frankie | |
| 1998 | Smoke Signals | Young Victor Joseph | Nominated—Young Artist Award for Best Performance in a Feature Film - Supporting Young Actor |
| 1999 | Pepper Ann | Dave (voice) | Episode: "Dances with Ignorance/Girl Power" |
| The Wild Thornberrys | Jim (voice) | Episode: "Tamper Proof Seal" | |
| 2001 | Manic | Kenny | |
| 2003 | Dreamkeeper | Sixth Brother | |
| 2005 | Brick | The Lug | |
| 2007 | Four Sheets to the Wind | Cufe Smallhill | American Indian Film Festival for Best Actor |
| 2008 | Older than America | Dwayne | |
| 2021 | Run Woman Run | Mike | |
| 2023 | Hey, Viktor! | Cody | Also director, writer |
| 2024 | Echo | Cousin Biscuits | |
| Rez Ball | Micah Tso | ||
| 2025 | The Lowdown | Waylon | Recurring role |
| 2026 | Smudge the Blades | Willie Gladue | Also director, writer |
