FINE BLACK ACTORS
by rumtumditty | created - 04 Feb 2012 | updated - 04 Apr 2012 | PublicIn no particular order, this list is solely based on the physical attributes of Black Male Actors. I like to call it "Easiest on the Eyes". In an interesting side note on the film industry, though the actors are all different from comedy to drama to indie and span decades, they are all connected in some way or another (I couldn't get more than six degrees from any of them). The acting community is small but it seems the acting community for the minority actor is minuscule at best.
1. Will Smith
Producer | The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
Willard Carroll "Will" Smith II (born September 25, 1968) is an American actor, comedian, producer, rapper, and songwriter. He has enjoyed success in television, film, and music. In April 2007, Newsweek called him "the most powerful actor in Hollywood". Smith has been nominated for five Golden ...
At the top of the pack, Will Smith is that rare box office star, like Tom Cruise, that crosses racial boundaries. Multi talented with a sure finger on what his own strengths are and also what the public wants he has been on a winning streak that, with the exception of Cruise, is unmatched in the industry.
2. Larenz Tate
Actor | Crash
Larenz Tate was born on the west side of Chicago to Larry and Peggy Tate, the youngest of three brothers. His brothers are actors Larron Tate and Lahmard J. Tate. In 1984, Larenz and his family moved to California. It was while living in California that Larenz's parents got him and his brothers ...
Still attractive, Larenz Tate is still looking for that elusive role that will separate him from the pack. A strong work ethic and pure talent have kept him in the public eye for over two decades.
3. Corbin Bleu
Actor | High School Musical 3: Senior Year
Cobin Bleu was born Corbin Bleu Reivers on February 21, 1989 in Brooklyn, New York City, to Martha (Callari) and David Reivers, an actor. His mother is of Italian descent and his father is Jamaican.
Corbin began appearing in television commercials at the age two, for products such as Life cereal, ...
While the High School Musical (2006) franchise thrust Corbin Bleu into the spotlight, the jury is still out on the depth of his talent or his career intentions. While the rest of the world was fawning over Zac Efron, Bleu, in what may have seemed like a good idea at the time, concentrated on his musical career. Making matters worse is a slew of new sure footed talent that has swooped in and isn't afraid of taking those sexuality questionable roles. An ill fated turn in The Beautiful Life: TBL (2009) did little damage to his reputation which to his credit is still scandal free.
4. Evan Ross
Actor | The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1
Evan Ross was born on August 26, 1988 in Greenwich, Connecticut, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1 (2014), The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2 (2015) and ATL (2006). He has been married to Ashlee Simpson since August 30, 2014. They have two children.
If ever there was entertainment royalty, Evan Ross is in that line. Diana Ross is considered to be and is one of the most successful entertainers ever. Evan has her looks, her style and so far has shown that he inherited her talent also. Exhibiting a class that only his mother could have given him Ross is in the position to pick and choose the roles he wants. A slew of projects seem to be on his plate but the one everyone seems to be waiting for is his role in Prep School directed by none other than Jerome Elston Scott (also on this list). The status of that project is unknown but if Scott can get half the performance out of Evan that he got out of Michael Warren in Anderson's Cross (2010), Ross may be following his mother into Oscar nomination territory.
5. Jerome Elston Scott
Director | Connor & Jayden
Jerome Elston Scott is known for Connor & Jayden (2022), Anderson's Cross (2010) and Freaks and Geeks (1999).
Actor, writer, director seems to be the path young black actors have to take but few have debuted so strongly. An African American from the Judd Apatow stable(!) Jerome Elston Scott demonstrated a knack for storytelling, and directing with his debut film Anderson's Cross (2010). While simultaneously pulling career defining performances from such veteran actors as Michael Warren and Joanna Cassidy, Scott also showed a knowing restraint in his self directed turn as Nick Anderson. His understated award winning performance in that film has many hoping that, unlike some, he will stay in front of the camera as well as behind.
6. LL Cool J
Actor | Deep Blue Sea
L.L. Cool J was born James Todd Smith in Bay Shore, Long Island, New York, the son of Ondrea Griffith and James Louis Smith, Jr.
Todd, as he was called, did not have a very happy childhood. At the age of four, he saw his mother and grandfather shot by his own father. After they recovered from their ...
7. Denzel Washington
Actor | Fences
Denzel Hayes Washington, Jr. was born on December 28, 1954 in Mount Vernon, New York. He is the middle of three children of a beautician mother, Lennis, from Georgia, and a Pentecostal minister father, Denzel Washington, Sr., from Virginia. After graduating from high school, Denzel enrolled at ...
8. Shemar Moore
Actor | Criminal Minds
Shemar Franklin Moore (born April 20, 1970) is an American actor and former fashion model. His notable roles are that of Malcolm Winters on The Young and the Restless from 1994 to 2005, Derek Morgan on CBS's Criminal Minds from 2005 to 2016, and as the third permanent host of Soul Train from 1999 ...
9. Djimon Hounsou
Actor | Blood Diamond
Djimon Hounsou was born in Cotonou, Benin, in west Africa to Albertine and Pierre Hounsou, a cook. He moved to Lyon, France, when he was 13. Hounsou has graced the catwalks of Paris and London as a popular male model. He has since left his modeling career and has worked on Gladiator (2000) by ...
10. Derek Luke
Actor | Antwone Fisher
Derek Luke was born on April 24, 1974 in Jersey City, New Jersey, USA. He is an actor, known for Antwone Fisher (2002), Glory Road (2006) and Captain America: The First Avenger (2011). He has been married to Sophia Adella Luke since April 4, 1999. They have one child.
11. Blair Underwood
Actor | Deep Impact
A true multi-hyphenate, Blair Underwood is enjoying success in film, television and theatre, as an actor, director and producer. Underwood recently returned to Broadway starring opposite David Alan Grier in the Pulitzer Prize winning drama "A Solider's Play" for director Kenny Leon and the ...
12. Jaden Smith
Actor | The Karate Kid
Jaden Smith is an actor, known for The Pursuit of Happyness (2006), The Karate Kid (2010) and After Earth (2013). In addition to being an actor he is also a dancer, songwriter and rapper who won an MTV award for his performance in The Pursuit of Happyness. He co-starred with his father Will Smith ...
13. Common
Actor | John Wick: Chapter 2
First known as a rapper who became one of the more prominent voices in hip-hop's new millennium renaissance, Common later transitioned into acting. He was born in Chicago, and is the son of educator Dr. Mahalia Ann Hines and Lonnie Lynn, an ABA basketball player turned youth counselor.
On October 6,...
14. Cory Hardrict
Actor | American Sniper
Cory Hardrict was born on November 9, 1979 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for American Sniper (2014), Brotherly Love (2015) and November Criminals (2017). He was previously married to Tia Mowry.
15. Rick Gonzalez
Actor | Coach Carter
Rick Gonzalez was born on June 30th 1979 in New York City and raised in the Bushwick section of Brooklyn. He attended the "Fame" High School of performing arts where he studied Acting. Graduating in 1997 to pursue a career, Rick briefly worked in New York and later moved to Los Angeles to continue ...
16. Lee Thompson Young
Actor | Friday Night Lights
Lee Thompson Young was born as the son of Velma Love and Tommy Scott Young. When he was in second grade his parents split up and he went to live with his mother. At age ten, he portrayed Dr. Martin Luther King in a play called "A Night of Stars and Dreams". That's when Lee decided he wanted to be ...
17. Terrence Jenkins
Actor | Think Like a Man
Terrence Jenkins was born on April 21, 1982 in Queens, New York City, New York, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Think Like a Man (2012), Burlesque (2010) and Entourage (2015).
18. Texas Battle
Actor | Death Valley
As the song states, "The Stars at Night are big and bright ... Deep in the Heart of Texas!" That's what Texas Battle has: heart. A heart and desire for acting.
Texas stars in the feature, WRONG PLACE, opposite Bruce Willis and Ashley Greene, in the role of 'Captain East.' Other recent roles include ...
19. Tyrese Gibson
Actor | Baby Boy
Tyrese Darnell Gibson was born December 30, 1978 in Watts, Los Angeles, California, where he was raised. He is an R&B singer, songwriter, actor, author, television producer and model. He is well known for his actor role as Roman Pearce in the The Fast and Furious movie franchise. Other popular ...
20. Michael Ealy
Actor | Barbershop
Known for his charming looks and deep personality, Michael Ealy blessed the movie screen with his role in Barbershop (2002). When he left Silver Spring, Maryland, with a degree in English, he headed off to New York. From there he performed in several stage productions, including the Off-Broadway ...
21. Idris Elba
Actor | Beasts of No Nation
An only child, Idrissa Akuna Elba was born and raised in London, England. His father, Winston, is from Sierra Leone and worked at Ford Dagenham; his mother, Eve, is from Ghana and had a clerical duty. Idris attended school in Canning Town, where he first became involved in acting, before he dropped...
22. Taye Diggs
Actor | House on Haunted Hill
Taye Diggs was born in Newark, New Jersey, and was raised in Rochester, New York. He is the son of Marcia (Berry), a teacher and actress, and Andre Young, a visual artist. When he was a child, his mother married Jeffries Diggs, whose surname Taye took. He received a BFA degree in musical theater ...
23. Hill Harper
Actor | CSI: NY
Hill Harper, an accomplished film, television and stage actor, stars in the hit CBS drama series, CSI: NY (2004). He portrays "Dr. Sheldon Hawkes", a reclusive coroner who walked away from a promising surgical career after the traumatic loss of two patients. This February, he will star in the HBO ...
24. Dulé Hill
Actor | Psych
Dulé Hill can currently be seen starring as the patriarch Bill Williams in ABC's re-imagining of "The Wonder Years". Inspired by the beloved award-winning series of the same name, the Peabody Award winning, "The Wonder Years" is a coming-of-age story set in the late 1960s that takes a nostalgic ...
25. Mekhi Phifer
Actor | ER
Mekhi Phifer was born in Harlem, Manhattan, and was raised by his mother, Rhoda, a high school teacher. Phifer's acting career began when he auditioned at an open casting call for director Spike Lee's Clockers (1995) and was selected for the leading role. Working alongside Harvey Keitel and Delroy ...
26. Morris Chestnut
Actor | Kick-Ass 2
A tall, handsome, and versatile American actor, Morris Chestnut was born in Cerritos, California, to Shirley (Wynn) and Morris Chestnut, Sr. He first came to be recognized by moviegoers starring as Ricky in Boyz n the Hood (1991), a role where he played a high school running back using his football...
27. Sidney Poitier
Actor | In the Heat of the Night
Sidney Poitier was a native of Cat Island, Bahamas, although born, two months prematurely, in Miami during a visit by his parents, Evelyn (Outten) and Reginald James Poitier. He grew up in poverty as the son of farmers, with his father also driving a cab in Nassau. Sidney had little formal ...
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