Jeffrey Wright
Jeffrey Wright | |
|---|---|
 Wright in 2019 | |
| Born | December 7, 1965 Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Education | Amherst College (BA) New York University |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1990–present |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
Jeffrey Wright (born December 7, 1965) is an American actor. He is well known for his role as Belize in the Broadway production of Angels in America, for which he won a Tony Award, and its acclaimed HBO miniseries adaptation, for which he won an Emmy and Golden Globe.
He has starred as Jean-Michel Basquiat in Basquiat, Felix Leiter in the James Bond films Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace and No Time to Die, Valentin Narcisse in the HBO series Boardwalk Empire, Beetee Latier in The Hunger Games films, Isaac Dixon in the video game The Last of Us Part II and the Watcher in the Marvel Studios animated series What If...? From 2016 to 2022, he starred as Bernard Lowe in the HBO series Westworld. He portrayed James Gordon in the superhero film The Batman (2022) by Matt Reeves.
Early life[edit]
Wright was born on December 7, 1965 in Washington, D.C., the son of Barbara Evon (Whiting), a customs lawyer, and James Charles Wright, Jr., who died when he was a child.[1][2] He graduated from St. Albans School and attended Amherst College, receiving a bachelor's degree in political science, planning to attend law school, but chose instead to study acting. After attending the MFA acting program at the New York University Tisch School of the Arts for two months in 1988, he left to appear in Les Blancs at Arena Stage before transferring with it to the Huntington Theatre Company and deciding to be an actor full-time.[3][4]
Career[edit]
1990s[edit]
Wright began appearing off-Broadway in New York City and Washington D.C. In 1990 he appeared in his first major film as an attorney in Alan J. Pakula's legal drama Presumed Innocent. In 1991, he joined John Houseman's national touring repertory company The Acting Company in productions of A Midsummer Night's Dream and Athol Fugard's Blood Knot. In 1993 and 1994, he appeared as Norman "Belize" Arriaga in Tony Kushner's award-winning play Angels in America. His portrayal of a gay nurse forced to take care of Roy Cohn as he dies of AIDS won him the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play. He also had small roles in the films Jumpin' at the Boneyard (1992), Faithful (1996), and Critical Care (1997).
He guest-starred in George Lucas's The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles as a fictionalized Sidney Bechet and Homicide: Life on the Street in the early to late 1990's. In 1996, Wright portrayed painter Jean-Michel Basquiat in the film Basquiat, to critical acclaim. Critic Roger Ebert praised Wright's performance describing it by writing, "who gives a performance of almost mystical opacity".[5] Throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, he appeared in leading and supporting roles in such films as Woody Allen's satirical comedy Celebrity (1998), and Ang Lee's western Ride with the Devil (1999).
2000s[edit]
In 2000 he starred in three films, Shaft, Hamlet, and Crime and Punishment in Suburbia. He also starred in Clark Johnson's HBO television film Boycott (2001) as Martin Luther King Jr., for which he received an AFI Award. He starred opposite Carmen Ejogo and Terrence Howard. The following year he portrayed Howard Bingham in Michael Mann's biographical sports drama Ali (2001). The film also starred Will Smith, Jamie Foxx, and Jon Voight. The following year he returned to Broadway playing Lincoln in the Suzan-Lori Parks play Topdog/Underdog (2002). He starred opposite Mos Def who played Booth. Wright for his performance earned a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play nomination.
In 2003, he reprised his role as Norman "Belize" Arriaga in HBO's award-winning adaptation of Angels in America, garnering him an Emmy award and a Golden Globe award for Best Supporting Actor in a Miniseries. In 2004, he appeared in Jonathan Demme's remake of The Manchurian Candidate. In February 2005, he returned to HBO Films in Lackawanna Blues.
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In 2005, he played Washington attorney Bennett Holiday in Syriana and Bill Murray's eccentric Ethiopian neighbor Winston in Broken Flowers, starred in the play This Is How It Goes, and appeared as one of the tenants in Lady in the Water. In 2006, he appeared as Felix Leiter in the James Bond film Casino Royale. He reprised the role in Quantum of Solace and No Time to Die.[6] In 2007, Wright starred in the alien invasion suspense thriller The Invasion. In 2008, he portrayed Colin Powell in W. He portrayed Muddy Waters in Cadillac Records, a biopic, loosely based on the rise and fall of Chess Records.
2010s[edit]
In 2010, Wright played Jacques Cornet in the world premiere run of A Free Man of Color at the Vivian Beaumont Theater of the Lincoln Center for Performing Arts in New York City. In 2011 he acted in three films Source Code with Jake Gyllenhaal, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close starring Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock and The Ides of March starring George Clooney. Wright plays Beetee in The Hunger Games film series, starting with The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, released in November 2013. He landed the role of Dr. Valentin Narcisse in season 4 of Boardwalk Empire, starting in the fall of 2013.[7] Wright was nominated for three Emmys for his performance as Bernard Lowe in HBO's Westworld.[8] In March 2017, Wright appeared in a commercial for Dell Technologies.[9]
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In 2018, Wright produced the HBO documentary We Are Not Done Yet, which gives voice to war veterans who, through a USO-sponsored arts workshop at Walter Reed National Military Hospital, discover the power and healing of shared experience to unite and find resilience in the face of post-traumatic stress.[10] That same year, Wright starred in HBO's O.G., a film about a man confronting his past crime and preparing to leave prison after decades behind bars.[11] The film was directed by Madeleine Sackler, and was filmed entirely in Pendleton Correctional Facility near Indianapolis, Indiana.[12] The film was shot in a working prison and many prisoners and staff were recruited as actors for the film, including Wright's co-star, Theotus Carter, who plays Beecher, a younger prisoner that Louis, (Wright's character) takes under his wing, which threatens Louis' release date.[13] During shooting Wright was sometimes mistaken for a prisoner by other real prisoners and guards. The film debuted on HBO on February 25, 2019.[14] Nick Paumgarten of The New Yorker said, "The performances are exceptionally strong, both by the free-to-leave professional actors (especially Jeffrey Wright, who plays Louis, the 'O.G.' of the title, an older inmate on the verge of release) and by the incarcerated neophytes."[15] Ben Kenigsberg of The New York Times said, "Jeffrey Wright gives a rich, imposing performance as the former 'mayor' of Pendleton Correctional Facility."[16]
2020s[edit]
Wright starred in the video game The Last of Us Part II as Isaac, the leader of the Washington Liberation Front. The game was released on June 19, 2020.[17] Wright voices the Watcher in the Disney+ animated series What If...? (2021), which is set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).[18]
In 2021, Wright portrayed food writer Roebuck Wright in the film The French Dispatch by Wes Anderson.[19] He reunited with Anderson portraying General Gibson in the film Asteroid City (2023).
Personal life[edit]
Wright married actress Carmen Ejogo in August 2000. They have a son named Elijah and a daughter named Juno and lived in Brooklyn, New York City.[20][21][22][23] They have since divorced.[24]
He is a fan of the Washington Commanders.[25][26]
In 2004, Wright received an honorary degree from his alma mater Amherst College.[27]
Charity and business ventures[edit]
Wright is chairman and co-founder of Taia, LLC and Taia Peace Foundation and Vice Chairman of Taia Lion Resources, Inc,[28][29] a gold-exploration company looking to create a conflict-free gold mining operation in Sierra Leone.[30][31][32]
Filmography[edit]
Film[edit]
|
Denotes works that have not yet been released |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Presumed Innocent | Prosecuting Attorney | |
| 1992 | Jumpin' at the Boneyard | Derek | |
| 1996 | Faithful | Young Man | |
| Basquiat | Jean-Michel Basquiat | ||
| 1997 | Critical Care | Bed Two | |
| 1998 | Too Tired to Die | Balzac Man | |
| Celebrity | Greg | ||
| Meschugge | Win | ||
| Blossoms and Veils | Ben | ||
| 1999 | Cement | Ninny | |
| Ride with the Devil | Daniel Holt | ||
| 2000 | Hamlet | Gravedigger | |
| Crime and Punishment in Suburbia | Chris | ||
| Shaft | Peoples Hernandez | ||
| 2001 | Ali | Howard Bingham | |
| 2002 | D-Tox | Jaworski | |
| 2004 | Sin's Kitchen | Rex | |
| The Manchurian Candidate | Al Melvin | ||
| 2005 | Broken Flowers | Winston | |
| Syriana | Bennett Holiday | ||
| 2006 | Lady in the Water | Mr. Dury | |
| Casino Royale | Felix Leiter | ||
| 2007 | The Invasion | Dr. Stephen Galeano | |
| Blackout | Nelson | Also producer | |
| 2008 | W. | Colin Powell | |
| Quantum of Solace | Felix Leiter | ||
| Cadillac Records | Muddy Waters | ||
| 2009 | One Blood | Dan Clark | Also producer |
| 2011 | Source Code | Dr. Rutledge | |
| The Ides of March | Senator Thompson | ||
| Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close | William Black | ||
| 2013 | Broken City | Carl Fairbanks | |
| A Single Shot | Simon | ||
| The Hunger Games: Catching Fire | Beetee | ||
| The Inevitable Defeat of Mister & Pete | Henry | ||
| 2014 | Ernest & Celestine | Grizzly Judge (voice) | English dub |
| Only Lovers Left Alive | Dr. Watson | ||
| The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 | Beetee | ||
| 2015 | The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 | ||
| The Good Dinosaur | Poppa Henry (voice) | ||
| 2018 | Monster | Mr. Harmon | |
| The Public | Mr. Anderson | ||
| Game Night | FBI Agent Ron Henderson | Uncredited[33] | |
| Age Out | Detective Portnoy | ||
| O.G. | Louis | ||
| Hold the Dark | Russell Core | ||
| 2019 | The Laundromat | Malchus Irvin Boncamper | |
| The Goldfinch | James "Hobie" Hobart | ||
| Rigged: The Voter Suppression Playbook | Narrator | ||
| 2020 | All Day and a Night | J.D. | |
| 2021 | The French Dispatch | Roebuck Wright | |
| No Time to Die | Felix Leiter | ||
| 2022 | The Batman | James Gordon | |
| 2023 | Asteroid City | General Gibson | |
| Rustin
|
TBA | Post-production | |
| Untitled Erasure adaptation
|
Thelonious "Monk" Ellison | Post-production |
Television[edit]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Separate but Equal | William Coleman | Television movie |
| 1993 | The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles | Sidney Bechet | 2 episodes |
| 1994 | New York Undercover | Andre Foreman | Episode: "Garbage" |
| 1997 | Homicide: Life on the Street | Hal Wilson | 3 episodes |
| 2001 | Boycott | Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. | Television movie |
| 2003 | Angels in America | Norman "Belize" Arriaga / Mr. Lies / Homeless Man / The Angel Europa |
6 episodes |
| 2005 | Lackawanna Blues | Mr. Paul | Television movie |
| 2007 | American Experience | Narrator | Episode: "New Orleans" |
| 2012 | House | Dr. Walter Cofield | Episode: "Nobody's Fault" |
| 2013–14 | Boardwalk Empire | Valentin Narcisse | 11 episodes |
| 2016 | The Venture Brothers | Think Tank (voice) | Episode: "Tanks for Nuthin" |
| Confirmation | Charles Ogletree | Television movie | |
| BoJack Horseman | Cuddlywhiskers / Father (voice) | 3 episodes | |
| 2016–22 | Westworld | Bernard Lowe / Arnold Weber | Main role |
| 2017 | She's Gotta Have It | Purple "ITIS" Voice (voice) | Episode: "#NolasChoice (3 DA HARD WAY)" |
| 2019 | Sesame Street | Bernard Lowe | Segment: "Respect World" |
| Green Eggs and Ham | McWinkle (voice) | 13 episodes | |
| Rick and Morty | Tony (voice) | Episode: "The Old Man and the Seat" | |
| 2020 | Finding Your Roots | Himself | Episode: "This Land is My Land"[34] |
| The Daily Show with Trevor Noah | Narrator | Episode dated 28 August 2020 | |
| 2021 | What If...? | The Watcher (voice) | 9 episodes[35] |
| 2023 | Digman! | (voice) | Episode: "The Grail" |
| Ark: The Animated Series | Henry Townsend (voice) | [36] |
Video games[edit]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | The Last of Us Part II | Isaac Dixon | Voice; Also motion capture |
Audio[edit]
| Year | Title | Role | Production company | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | The Sandman: Act II | Destiny | Audible | [37] |
| 2021 | Batman: The Audio Adventures | Batman/Bruce Wayne | Blue Ribbon Content |
Theatre[edit]
| Year | Title | Role | Author | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | Angels in America: Millennium Approaches | Belize / Mr. Lies | Tony Kushner | Walter Kerr Theatre, Broadway |
| 1993 | Angels in America: Perestroika | Belize / Mr. Lies Council of Principalities | ||
| 1996 | Bring in 'da Noise, Bring in 'da Funk | Da Voice | Reg E. Gaines | Ambassador Theatre, Broadway |
| 2002 | Topdog/Underdog | Lincoln | Suzan-Lori Parks | |
| 2010 | A Free Man of Color | Jacques Cornet | John Guare | Vivian Beaumont Theatre, Broadway |
Awards[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ . "Jeffrey Wright". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. 2013. Archived from the original on October 25, 2013. Retrieved June 2, 2017.
- ^ Stated on Finding Your Roots, January 14, 2020
- ^ Richards, David (February 12, 1988). "Barren 'Blancs'". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 6, 2020.
- ^ Horwitz, Simi (November 22, 2010). "Jeffrey Wright Preens in 19th Century New Orleans". Reuters. Retrieved December 6, 2020.
- ^ "Basquiat". Rogerebert.com. Retrieved June 13, 2023.
- ^ Meza, Ed; Siegel, Tatiana (January 2, 2008). "'Bell' man takes on Bond". Variety. Retrieved January 2, 2008.
- ^ Moaba, Alex (March 6, 2013). "Jeffrey Wright Joins 'Boardwalk Empire' And More Casting News". HuffPost.
- ^ "Jeffrey Wright". Television Academy.
- ^ Matyszczyk, Chris (March 26, 2017). "Is Dell claiming it's better than all that Apple magic?". CNET.
- ^ Simkins, J. D. (November 15, 2018). "New HBO documentary puts a much-needed face to complex veteran struggles with PTSD". Military Times. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
- ^ "I'm in Prison—And on HBO". The Marshall Project. March 1, 2019. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^ Travers, Ben (February 23, 2019). "'O.G.' Review: Jeffrey Wright Awes in a Meditative HBO Film Shot in a Working Prison". IndieWire. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^ Smith, Jamil (February 22, 2019). "Inside Man: 'O.G.' Star Jeffrey Wright on Life Behind Bars". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^ Travers, Ben (February 28, 2019). "Jeffrey Wright Made 'O.G.' in a Working Prison to Show the Thin Line Between Us and Them". IndieWire. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^ Paumgarten, Nick. "The Première of "O.G.," the Film Made Inside an Indiana Prison". The New Yorker. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^ Kenigsberg, Ben (April 17, 2018). "17 Movies to Enjoy for the Tribeca Film Festival's 17th Edition". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 26, 2020.
- ^ Hawkins, Josh (June 22, 2020). "The Last of Us Part 2 voice actors and cast". Shacknews.
- ^ Welk, Brian (July 20, 2019). "Jeffrey Wright to Play The Watcher in Marvel's 'What If...?' Animated Series". TheWrap. Retrieved October 27, 2021.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "'The French Dispatch': How Jeffrey Wright Landed His Best Performance in Wes Anderson's Literary Tribute". IndieWire. October 26, 2021. Retrieved March 18, 2023.
- ^ "Jeffrey Wright Biography (1965?–)". Filmreference.com. Retrieved January 2, 2013.
- ^ "Carmen Ejogo: 'There's some kind of trauma at play'", The Independent, 4 September 2009 (retrieved 2 July 2015).
- ^ "Carmen, Elijah & Juno Wright" alittlemuse.com, 7 September 2011 (retrieved 2 July 2015).
- ^ "Actor Jeffrey Wright and family". bck online. August 31, 2009. Retrieved June 2, 2017.
- ^ Zahed, Ramin; "'Selma' allows Carmen Ejogo to play Coretta Scott King a second time", LATimes.com, 18 December 2014 (retrieved 26 December 2014).
- ^ "20 celebrities and athletes who are Redskins fans". NBCSports.com. Retrieved July 31, 2022.
- ^ Steinberg, Dan (September 24, 2013). "Jeffrey Wright defends 'Redskins' name". WashingtonPost.com. Retrieved February 4, 2023.
- ^ Amherst Magazine Summer 2004: College Row Archived 2011-10-04 at the Wayback Machine Amherst Magazine, Summer 2004
- ^ "About Us". www.taiapeace.org. Retrieved March 30, 2022.
- ^ "Jeffrey Wright". Oslo Freedom Forum. Retrieved March 30, 2022.
- ^ Bergner, Daniel (January 16, 2014). "Jeffrey Wright's Gold Mine". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 30, 2022.
- ^ Shaffer, Claire (May 4, 2020). "'The First Time': Jeffrey Wright". Rolling Stone. Retrieved March 30, 2022.
- ^ "Mining in Africa for the 21st Century". Human Rights Foundation. Retrieved March 30, 2022.
- ^ Bramesco, Charles (September 27, 2018). "Jeffrey Wright on Hold the Dark: 'I Was Worn Out, Physically and Mentally'". Vulture. Retrieved March 17, 2019.
- ^ "Finding Your Roots: Meet Our Guests – Jeffrey Wright". PBS. Retrieved October 27, 2021.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Mancuso, Vinnie (July 20, 2019). "Marvel's 'What If?' Announces Massive Voice Cast of MCU Stars & Jeffrey Wright as The Watcher". Collider. Archived from the original on July 21, 2019. Retrieved August 20, 2019.
- ^ Del Rosario, Alexandra (December 11, 2020). "'Ark: The Animated Series': Vin Diesel, Michelle Yeoh & Elliot Page Among Voice Cast Members In New Video Game-Inspired Show". Deadline Hollywood.
- ^ Spangler, Todd (July 22, 2021). "'The Sandman: Act II' on Audible Premiere Date Set, James McAvoy Returns to Lead Star-Studded Cast". Variety. Retrieved October 27, 2021.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
External links[edit]
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| People | |
| Other | |
- 1965 births
- 20th-century American male actors
- 21st-century American male actors
- African-American male actors
- American male film actors
- American male Shakespearean actors
- American male stage actors
- American male television actors
- American male voice actors
- Amherst College alumni
- Best Supporting Actor Golden Globe (television) winners
- Drama Desk Award winners
- Living people
- Male actors from Washington, D.C.
- Tisch School of the Arts alumni
- Outstanding Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Movie Primetime Emmy Award winners
- St. Albans School (Washington, D.C.) alumni
- Tony Award winners