Raised in Chicago's West Side

Acted in the New York Shakespeare Festival (NYSF) productions of "Twelfth Night" and "Coriolanus"

Made feature film debut in "Glory"

Played a police detective in a series of "Kojak" TV-movies starring Telly Savalas; the first, "Ariana" (1989) marked his TV debut

Played the title role in the TV-movie, "The Court-Martial of Jackie Robinson"

Featured in the "Simple Justice" installment of the PBS docudrama series "The American Experience"

Was featured in the TV-movie dramas "Class of '61" (ABC) and "Without Warning: Terror in the Towers" (NBC)

Played police detective Frank Pembleton on the NBC drama series, "Homicide: Life on the Street"

Was featured in the HBO original war film "The Tuskegee Airmen"

Returned to the NYSF to play "Henry V"

Had supporting role of a heavenly being in "City of Angels"

Played a hard-driving idealistic African-American priest in the TNT original movie "Passing Glory"

Was featured in the Showtime dramatic trilogy "Love Songs," directing one segment and starring in another

Played a gay lawyer who becomes mixed up in a handgun-related incident in "It's the Rage/All the Rage"; premiered at Toronto Film Festival before airing on Cinemax and receiving a US theatrical release in 2000

Featured in the independent "Thick as Thieves," which premiered on HBO

Stared in the short "Louisville," which aired as part of the "Showtime Black Filmmaker Showcase"

Reprised role of Frank Pembleton in "Homicide: The Movie" (NBC)

Starred as a physician in the ABC medical drama "Gideon's Crossing," created by Paul Attanasio; received Emmy nomination

Starred as civil rights leader A. Philip Randolph in the Showtime drama "10,000 Black Men Named George"

Narrated the Motown-classics documentary "Standing in the Shadows of Motown"

Cast as Sgt. Carlos Diaz in the Showtime original movie "A Soldier's Girl" a true story of a young soldier beaten to death for falling in love with a transgendered nightclub performer

Cast in the TNT mini series Stephen King's "Salem's Lot"

Played a veteran robber rounding up his team for a new heist in the FX drama "Thief"; received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor in a Television Mini-Series

Starred in director Wolfgang Petersen's remake of "The Poseidon Adventure"

Cast in the superhero sequel "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer"

Co-starred in Stephen King's "The Mist"