Michael Potts (actor)

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Michael Potts
Michael Potts (2018 crop).jpg
Potts in 2018
Born (1962-09-21) September 21, 1962 (age 62)
Alma mater Yale School of Drama
OccupationActor
Years active1990present
Known for Brother 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]

Contents

Early years

Potts was born on September 21, 1962 in Brooklyn, New York City and grew up in South Carolina. He got his start participating in church and local plays. His inspiration to attend the School of Drama at Yale University [2] came from watching a clip of the 1985 production of August Wilson's play Fences , starring James Earl Jones and Courtney B. Vance.

Acting career

Potts is best known for playing the roles of Brother Mouzone in the HBO hit show, 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

Key
Denotes works that have not yet been released

Film

YearNameRoleNotes
1990Halloween NightBillAlso 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
2000Black People Hate Me and They Hate My GlassesShort film
2006 Diggers South Shell Pot Buyer
2008Jocasta Oedipus
2013MomAndy
201637Archibald 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 Patrick Bethea

Television

YearNameRoleNotes
1996 The West VoiceTV miniseries
1996 NYPD Blue MelEpisode: "Yes, We Have No Cannolis"
1997 Thomas Jefferson Isaac (voice)TV special [7]
1997–2010, 2025 Law & Order Reggie Dobbs, Lester Wilkes, Malcolm Young, Stokes's Attorney, Defense Attorney Kenneth Lowell5 episodes
1998 Trinity Detective JacksonEpisode: "No Secrets"
1999 Cosby FloydEpisode: "The Wedding"
2001 Oz ReinhardtEpisode: "Medium Rare"
2003–2004 The Wire Brother Mouzone 7 episodes
2004 The Jury Dr. BertandEpisode: "Three Boys and a Gun"
2009 Flight of the Conchords Nigel SaladuEpisode: "New Cup"
2009 Bored to Death YusefEpisode: "The Alanon Case"
2010 Damages Horatio Emanuel3 episodes
2012–2016 Law & Order: Special Victims Unit IAB Sergeant Cole Draper6 episodes
2012 Royal Pains Mr. BurmanEpisode: "After the Fireworks"
2013 Nurse Jackie Mediator2 episodes
2014 Blue Bloods Thorton MeadEpisode: "Manhattan Queens"
2014 True Detective Detective Maynard Gilbough8 episodes
2014 Matador Moktar ZolaEpisode: "Code Red Card"
2014 White Collar DavidEpisode: "Return to Sender"
2015 Allegiance Unknown2 episodes
2015 Gotham Sid Bunderslaw3 episodes
2015 Show Me a Hero Walt Henderson5 episodes
2015–2016 Person of Interest Travers2 episodes
2016 BrainDead Dr. DaudierEpisode: "The Insanity Principle: How Extremism in Politics Is Threatening Democracy in the 21st Century"
2016 Madam Secretary Senator Fred Reynolds3 episodes
2017 The Blacklist InikoEpisode: "The Forecaster (No. 163)"
2018 Taken HansonEpisode: "Password"
2018 Elementary Doctor Peter HansonEpisode: "Pushing Buttons"
2018 Random Acts of Flyness DirectorEpisode: "What are your thoughts on raising free black children?"
2019 She's Gotta Have It Joseph PetiportEpisode: "#NationTime"
2020 Lincoln Rhyme: Hunt for the Bone Collector Dr. Arthur WasdenEpisode: "What Lies Beneath"
2020 God Friended Me King OmariEpisode: "The Princess and the Hacker"
2021 Prodigal Son Dr. Brandon Marsh2 episodes
2022 Bull Judge NolanEpisode: "The Other Shoe"
2022 The First Lady Fraser C. Robinson III 6 episodes [8]
2022 The Good Fight Bill GoateEpisode: "The End of Football"
2022–2023 East New York Goody Gaines3 episodes
2023 FBI Agent Bruce EllisEpisode: "Imminent Threat: Part Two"

Video games

YearNameRoleNotes
2005 The Warriors CyrusVoice

Theatre credits

YearProductionRoleCategoryTheatreNotes
1994 The America Play BrazilOff-Broadway Public Theater
1994 Rent Benjamin Coffin III New York Theatre Workshop Workshop
1996OvertimeGratiano Manhattan Theatre Club
1997Mud, River, StoneDavid Bradley Playwrights Horizons Theatre
1998 The Rivals Sir Lucius O'TriggerRegional Williamstown Theatre Festival
1999A Cup of CoffeeJulius Snaith Yale Repertory Theatre
2000 Arms and the Man NicolaOff-Broadway Gramercy Theatre
2000Joe Fearless (A Fan Dance)Ray and Doctor Atlantic Theatre
2000Brooklyn Bridge National Arts Club Staged reading
2001 Romeo and Juliet Benvolio Los Angeles Ahmanson Theatre
2001 Once Around the City RudyOff-Broadway Second Stage Theatre
2002 Twelfth Night Feste Delacorte Theatre
2003Highway UlyssesEnsembleRegional American Repertory Theatre
2005 Lennon EnsembleBroadway 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 HatimbiBroadway Eugene O'Neill Theatre
2016 Cabin in the Sky Little Joe JacksonOff-Broadway City Center Theatre
2017 Jitney TurnboBroadway 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

  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.