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Michael Potts (actor)

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Michael Potts
Potts in 2018
Born (1962-09-21) September 21, 1962 (age 62)
Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Alma materDavid Geffen School of Drama at Yale University
OccupationActor
Years active1990–present
Known forBrother Mouzone in The Wire
Mafala Hatimbi in The Book of Mormon

Michael Potts (born September 21, 1962) is an American actor. He has appeared on stage, on television and in motion pictures.[1]

Early years

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Potts grew up in South Carolina, and got his start participating in church and local plays. His inspiration to attend the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale University came from watching a clip of the 1985 production of August Wilson's play Fences, starring James Earl Jones and Courtney B. Vance. Vance attended the Drama School at Yale.[2]

Acting career

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Potts is best known for playing the roles of Brother Mouzone in The Wire, Mafala Hatimbi in the musical The Book of Mormon, and Slow Drag in Ma Rainey's Black Bottom.[3] He also played Detective Gilbough in the first season of True Detective.[4]

Potts appeared in the 2022 Broadway revival of The Piano Lesson,[5] in a performance which The Hollywood Reporter called one of the highlights of the production.[6]

Filmography

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Key
† Denotes works that have not yet been released

Film

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Year Name Role Notes
1990 Halloween Night Bill Also known as The Damning, DeathMask, and Hack-o-Lantern
1995 Hackers Tow Truck Driver
1997 The Peacemaker DOE Haz-mat Tech #1
1997 Conspiracy Theory Justice Guard
2000 Black People Hate Me and They Hate My Glasses Short film
2006 Diggers South Shell Pot Buyer
2008 Jocasta Oedipus
2013 Mom Andy
2016 37 Archibald Smith
2017 Let Me Make You a Martyr Charon
2018 Here and Now Ray
2018 Change in the Air Professor Hoffman
2020 Cicada Francis
2020 Ma Rainey's Black Bottom Slow Drag
2022 Measure of Revenge Detective Eaton
2023 Rustin Cleveland Robinson
2024 The Piano Lesson Wining Boy
2025 Highest 2 Lowest TBA

Television

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Year Name Role Notes
1996 The West Voice TV miniseries
1996 NYPD Blue Mel Episode: "Yes, We Have No Cannolis"
1997 Thomas Jefferson Isaac (voice) TV special[7]
1997–2010 Law & Order Reggie Dobbs, Lester Wilkes, Malcolm Young, Stokes's Attorney 4 episodes
1998 Trinity Detective Jackson Episode: "No Secrets"
1999 Cosby Floyd Episode: "The Wedding"
2001 Oz Reinhardt Episode: "Medium Rare"
2003–2004 The Wire Brother Mouzone 7 episodes
2004 The Jury Dr. Bertand Episode: "Three Boys and a Gun"
2009 Flight of the Conchords Nigel Saladu Episode: "New Cup"
2009 Bored to Death Yusef Episode: "The Alanon Case"
2010 Damages Horatio Emanuel 3 episodes
2012–2016 Law & Order: Special Victims Unit IAB Sergeant Cole Draper 6 episodes
2012 Royal Pains Mr. Burman Episode: "After the Fireworks"
2013 Nurse Jackie Mediator 2 episodes
2014 Blue Bloods Thorton Mead Episode: "Manhattan Queens"
2014 True Detective Detective Maynard Gilbough 8 episodes
2014 Matador Moktar Zola Episode: "Code Red Card"
2014 White Collar David Episode: "Return to Sender"
2015 Allegiance Unknown 2 episodes
2015 Gotham Sid Bunderslaw 3 episodes
2015 Show Me a Hero Walt Henderson 5 episodes
2015–2016 Person of Interest Travers 2 episodes
2016 BrainDead Dr. Daudier Episode: "The Insanity Principle: How Extremism in Politics Is Threatening Democracy in the 21st Century"
2016 Madam Secretary Senator Fred Reynolds 3 episodes
2017 The Blacklist Iniko Episode: "The Forecaster (No. 163)"
2018 Taken Hanson Episode: "Password"
2018 Elementary Doctor Peter Hanson Episode: "Pushing Buttons"
2018 Random Acts of Flyness Director Episode: "What are your thoughts on raising free black children?"
2019 She's Gotta Have It Joseph Petiport Episode: "#NationTime"
2020 Lincoln Rhyme: Hunt for the Bone Collector Dr. Arthur Wasden Episode: "What Lies Beneath"
2020 God Friended Me King Omari Episode: "The Princess and the Hacker"
2021 Prodigal Son Dr. Brandon Marsh 2 episodes
2022 Bull Judge Nolan Episode: "The Other Shoe"
2022 The First Lady Fraser C. Robinson III 6 episodes[8]
2022 The Good Fight Bill Goate Episode: "The End of Football"
2022–2023 East New York Goody Gaines 3 episodes
2023 FBI Agent Bruce Ellis Episode: "Imminent Threat: Part Two"

Video games

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Year Name Role Notes
2005 The Warriors Cyrus Voice

Theatre credits

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Year Production Role Category Theatre Notes
1994 The America Play Brazil Off-Broadway Public Theater
1994 Rent Benjamin Coffin III New York Theatre Workshop Workshop
1996 Overtime Gratiano Manhattan Theatre Club
1997 Mud, River, Stone David Bradley Playwrights Horizons Theatre
1998 The Rivals Sir Lucius O'Trigger Regional Williamstown Theatre Festival
1999 A Cup of Coffee Julius Snaith Yale Repertory Theatre
2000 Arms and the Man Nicola Off-Broadway Gramercy Theatre
2000 Joe Fearless (A Fan Dance) Ray and Doctor Atlantic Theatre
2000 Brooklyn Bridge National Arts Club Staged reading
2001 Romeo and Juliet Benvolio Los Angeles Ahmanson Theatre
2001 Once Around the City Rudy Off-Broadway Second Stage Theatre
2002 Twelfth Night Feste Delacorte Theatre
2003 Highway Ulysses Ensemble Regional American Repertory Theatre
2005 Lennon Ensemble Broadway Broadhurst Theatre
2006–2007 Grey Gardens Brooks Sr./Brooks Jr. Walter Kerr Theatre
2007 Richard III Buckingham Off-Broadway Classic Stage Company
2008 The Tempest Alonso
2011–2013 The Book of Mormon Mafala Hatimbi Broadway Eugene O'Neill Theatre
2016 Cabin in the Sky Little Joe Jackson Off-Broadway City Center Theatre
2017 Jitney Turnbo Broadway Samuel J. Friedman Theatre
2017 1984 Charrington Hudson Theatre
2018–2019 The Prom Mr. Hawkins Longacre Theatre
2022–2023 The Piano Lesson Wining Boy Ethel Barrymore Theatre [9]

References

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  1. ^ Carter, Gayle Jo (February 14, 2014). "VIP: Michael Potts' triple threat status was 'meant to be'". USA Today. Retrieved December 9, 2023.
  2. ^ Bonazzo, John (February 10, 2017). "Michael Potts Tackles the 'Particular Humanity' of August Wilson's 'Jitney'". The Observer. Retrieved December 9, 2023.
  3. ^ McPhee, Ryan (December 17, 2020). "Meet the Band: Michael Potts, Colman Domingo, and Glynn Turman on August Wilson, Chadwick Boseman, and the Commoditization of Black Art". Playbill. Retrieved December 9, 2023.
  4. ^ Riesman, Abraham Josephine (March 7, 2014). "True Detective's Papania and Gilbough on McConaughey's Chain-Smoking and Method Acting". Vulture. Retrieved December 9, 2023.
  5. ^ Evans, Greg (April 26, 2022). "Broadway's 'The Piano Lesson' Adds Trai Byers, Ray Fisher, April Matthis & Michael Potts To Cast". Deadline. Retrieved December 9, 2023.
  6. ^ Rooney, David (October 13, 2022). "August Wilson's 'The Piano Lesson' Theater Review: Samuel L. Jackson Soars in a Broadway Revival That Only Intermittently Hits the Right Notes". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
  7. ^ "Michael Potts Biography ((?)-)". www.filmreference.com.
  8. ^ Petski, Denise (June 14, 2021). "'The First Lady': Rosalind Chao, Michael Potts & Donna Lynne Champlin To Recur On Showtime Anthology Series". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 9, 2021.
  9. ^ White, Abbey (April 27, 2022). "Ray Fisher Joins Samuel L. Jackson, John David Washington in Cast of Broadway's 'The Piano Lesson'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 12, 2022.
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