Harold Perrineau

Harold Perrineau (born August 7, 1963) is an American actor. His breakout role was in the independent film Smoke (1995), for which he was nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male. He went on to appear as Mercutio in Romeo+Juliet (1996) and Link in The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions (both 2003).

On television, he has starred as Augustus Hill in the HBO prison drama Oz (1997–2003), Michael Dawson in the ABC series Lost (2004–2010), and Sheriff Boyd Stevens in the MGM+ horror series From (2022–present).

Perrineau has also appeared in the films The Edge (1997), The Best Man (1999), Woman on Top (2000), and 28 Weeks Later (2007). His other television credits include Sons of Anarchy (2012), Constantine (2014–2015), Claws (2017–2022), and The Rookie (2019–2021).

Early life

Perrineau was born in Brooklyn, New York City.<ref name="inquirer">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> His parents changed his name to Williams when he was a child, but he later changed it back, after discovering there was already a Harold Williams in the Screen Actors Guild.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He attended Shenandoah University and Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.<ref name="inquirer" />

Career

In 1989, Perrineau was cast as the original Tyrone Jackson in the world premiere of the stage adaptation of the 1980 hit movie Fame (now known as Fame: The Musical) at the Walnut Street Theatre, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He took the role of Link in The Matrix series after the original operator Tank was written out of the script when Marcus Chong was fired over monetary disputes.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Around this time, he also booked a main role of Augustus Hill on the HBO series Oz (1997–2003).Template:Citation needed

Perrineau played Michael Dawson on ABC's hit show Lost. He was temporarily written off when his character left the island with his son at the end of season two and did not appear in season three.Template:Citation needed In July 2007, it was announced he would return to the main cast for the show's fourth season.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> However, the return was short-lived, as the fourth season was his last as a regular cast member. He made one guest appearance in the sixth and final season.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Since his debut single "Stay Strong" in 2007 Perrineau has been working on his musical career.Template:Citation needed He actively collaborated with music producer Tomo in der Muhlen, known as DJ Tomo Tom Tom, on his debut album, Seeker.Template:Citation needed The first single, "Moving On", was released October 15, 2011.Template:Citation needed Perrineau has also done live shows where he performs with a full band: two guitars, bass, drums and keyboards.Template:Citation needed He performed at Los Angeles club The Mint in April 2010. Perrineau has appeared in MKTO's "Thank You" music video and J. Cole's "She Knows" music video.Template:Citation needed

Perrineau starred in 30 Days of Night: Dark Days with Rhys Coiro, Mia Kirshner, Kiele Sanchez, Diora Baird and Monique Ganderton.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Perrineau appeared in the 2008 music video "Yes We Can".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Perrineau voiced the title character from Marvel's Blade anime series on G4 in January 2012. He was cast to play the character of Damon Pope, the main antagonist of season 5 of the hit show Sons of Anarchy.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Perrineau starred as Stevie, the bass player, in the TBS comedy Wedding Band, which ran from 2012 to 2013.Template:Citation needed

Perrineau starred as Manny, an angelic messenger, in Constantine,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> the short-lived 2015 television series based on the DC Comics/Vertigo character John Constantine.Template:Citation needed

He made his Broadway debut in the Roundabout Theatre Company production of Anton Chekov's The Cherry Orchard, adapted by Stephen Karam.Template:Citation needed The play ran from September 2016 to December 4, 2016. Perrineau played Lopakhin, with Diane Lane as Ranevskaya.<ref>"Perrineau Broadway" Template:Webarchive, ibdb.com, accessed October 17, 2016</ref><ref>Viagas, Robert. "See What the Critics Said About 'The Cherry Orchard' on Broadway" Template:Webarchive, Playbill, October 16, 2016</ref> Also in 2016, Perrineau co-starred in the Amazon Studios legal series Goliath.Template:Citation needed

From 2017 to 2022, Perrineau played Dean, a man on the autism spectrum and the brother of Desna, in TNT's Claws.Template:Citation needed He won the award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series at the NAACP Awards.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In May 2021, Deadline announced that Perrineau would lead the cast of the forthcoming in the MGM+ science fiction horror television series From.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The first season of the series was released globally in 2022.<ref name="Premieredate">Template:Cite web</ref> The second season of From premiered on April 23, 2023.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The third season of From premiered on September 22, 2024.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> A fourth season of From has been announced and is speculated to be released in 2026.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Perrineau has received critical acclaim for his performance on From.<ref name="PAGENAMEBASE">Template:Cite Rotten Tomatoes</ref>

In November 2022, Perrineau signed with Independent Artist Group for representation.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In December 2024, Perrineau was announced as a cast member in independent drama Out Come The Wolves based on the Rancid 1995 album of the same name.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Personal life

Since 2002, Perrineau has been married to Brittany Robinson Perrineau, a former actress and model for Tommy Hilfiger and Liz Claiborne throughout the 1990s.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Brittany appeared on the first season of Lost in an episode titled "Outlaws" as the girlfriend of Sawyer, and in the episode "Numbers" as the woman who read the lottery numbers. Her acting credits also include the romantic-comedy Saving Face (2004) and the surreal biopic Your Name Here (2008).Template:Citation needed

They have three daughters, actress Aurora, born 1994, and two others born in 2008, <ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and 2013.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1988	Shakedown	Tommie
1990	King of New York	Thug Leader
1991	Out for Justice	King's Henchman (uncredited)
1995	Smoke	Thomas "Rashid" Cole
	Flirt	Men's Room Man 1#
1996	Blood and Wine	Henry
	Romeo + Juliet	Mercutio
1997	The Edge	Steve
1998	Lulu on the Bridge	Bobby Perez
	Come to	Joseph	Short
1999	A Day in Black and White	Black Man
	Macbeth in Manhattan	Chorus
	The Best Man	Julian Murch
2000	Woman on Top	Monica Jones
	Overnight Sensation	Experienced PA
2001	Prison Song	Uncle Cee
2002	On Line	Moe Curley
2003	The Matrix Reloaded	Link
	The Matrix Revolutions	Link
2007	28 Weeks Later	Flynn
	Garfield Gets Real	Husband	Voice, video
2008	Gardens of the Night	Orlando
	Ball Don't Lie	Jimmy
	Your Name Here	Richard Roundtree
	Felon	Lieutenant Bill Jackson
2010	The Killing Jar	John Smith
	Case 219	Franklyn Bonner
	30 Days of Night: Dark Days	Todd	Video
2011	Seeking Justice	Jimmy
2012	Transit	Losada
	Sunset Stories	Harold
	Taking the Edge Off	–	Short
	Zero Dark Thirty	Jack
2013	Snitch	Assistant District Attorney Jeffrey Steele
	Go for Sisters	Wiley
	Sexy Evil Genius	Marvin Coolidge	Video
	The Best Man Holiday	Julian Murch
	The Championship Rounds	Darryl	Short
2014	Sabotage	Investigator Darius Jackson
2015	Meet Me at a Funeral	Jeffrey	Short
2016	#FoundingFathers	–	Short
2017	Stephanie	Leader
	The Bachelors	Dr. Rollens
	I'm Not Here	Santana
2018	Virginia Minnesota	Mister	Voice
	Cold Brook	Gil Le Deux
	Dumplin'	Lee Wayne / Rhea Ranged
2022	Without Ward	Lord Voraz Esquire
2023	Unicorn Boy	Guard Pantius	Voice
2024	The Distinguished	Reverend	Short
2025	And Out Comes The Wolf	TBA	Post-production

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1986–1987	Fame	Fame Dancer	Recurring role (season 6)
1989	The Cosby Show	Scott	Episode: "The Dead End Kids Meet Dr. Lotus"
1990	CBS Schoolbreak Special	Curtis	Episode: "Flour Babies"
	Law & Order	Jordan Hill	Episode: "Out of the Half-Light"
1991	The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd	Singer	Episode: "Here's a Neat Way to Tie Up the Loose Ends"
1991–1993	I'll Fly Away	Robert Evans	Recurring role
1993	Law & Order	Kenny Rinker	Episode: "Virus"
1994	The Cosby Mysteries	Junior Vansen	Episode: "Camouflage"
1995	New York News	Benny	2 episodes
1997	ER	Isaac Price	Episode: "Freak Show"
	Living Single	Walter Jackson	Episode: "Forgive Us Our Trespasses"
1997–2003	Oz	Augustus Hill	Main role
1998	The Tempest	Ariel	TV movie
1999	Saturday Night Live	Augustus Hill	Episode: "Jerry Seinfeld/David Bowie"
2003	Spider-Man: The New Animated Series	Louis Wyler/Turbo Jet	Voice, episode: "Heroes and Villains"
	Dead Like Me	Aroun Levert	Episode: "Rest in Peace"
2004–2010	Lost	Michael Dawson	Main role (seasons 1–2 & 4; guest: season 6)
2007	CSI: Crime Scene Investigation	Reverend Rhodes	Episode: "Go to Hell"
	Demons	Mitch	TV movie
2009	The Unusuals	Detective Leo Banks	Main role
2010	CSI: NY	Reggie Tifford	Episode: "Redemption"
	The Whole Truth	Paul Braun	Episode: "Uncanny"
2012	Marvel Anime: Blade	Blade	Voice, main role
	Phineas and Ferb	Additional Voices	Episode: "Where's Perry?"
	Georgia	Michael	Main role
	Sons of Anarchy	Damon Pope	Recurring role (season 5)
2012–2013	Wedding Band	Stevie	Main role
2013	Law & Order: Special Victims Unit	Brian Tremore	Episode: "Secrets Exhumed"
2014	HitRecord on TV	Himself	Episode: "The Edge of Space"
	Growing Up Fisher	Fred	Episode: "Pilot"
	Z Nation	Lieutenant Hammond	Episode: "Puppies And Kittens"
	Newsreaders	Harold Perrineau	Episode: "F- Dancing, Are You Decent?"
2014–2015	Constantine	Manny	Main role
2016	The Mysteries of Laura	Charles Baptiste	Episode: "The Mystery of the Morning Jog"
	Goliath	Judge Reston Keller	Recurring role (season 1)
	Full Circle	Damon Houserman	Main role (season 3)
	Poor Richard's Almanack	Matt	TV movie
2017	Criminal Minds	Calvin Shaw	Recurring role (season 12)
2017–2022	Claws	Dean Simms	Main role
2018–2019	Star	Bobby Brooks	Recurring role (season 3)
2019–2021	The Rookie	Nick Armstrong	Recurring role (seasons 2–3)
2020	The Good Doctor	Wes Keeler	Episode: "Fixation"
2022–present	From	Boyd Stevens	Main role
2022	The Best Man: The Final Chapters	Julian "Murch" Murchison	Main role

Video games

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2003	Enter the Matrix	Link	Voice
2004	The Matrix Online	Link	Voice

Awards and nominations

Year	Awards	Category	Work	Outcome
1996	Independent Spirit Awards	Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male	Smoke	Template:Nom
2000	NAACP Image Awards	NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture	The Best Man	Template:Nom
2006	Screen Actors Guild Awards	Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series	Lost	Template:Won
2020	NAACP Image Awards	NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series	Claws	Template:Won
2022	Saturn Awards	Saturn Award for Best Actor in a Network or Cable Television Series	From	Template:Nom

External links

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