Courtney Bernard Vance made his debut in the 1983 American made-for-television romantic drama film ‘First Affair’ directed by Gus Trikonis. He went on to make his big-screen debut in the 1987 fictional American war film ‘Hamburger Hill’ directed by John Irvin. The film was well-received by critics. In 1990, he starred as ‘Petty Officer Jones’ in the American submarine spy thriller film ‘The Hunt for Red October’ directed by John McTiernan. The film opened to critical acclaim and was a massive box office success, grossing over $200.5 million against a budget of $30 million. He next appeared in the 1993 American comedy-drama adventure film ‘The Adventures of Huck Finn’ directed by Stephen Sommers. The film saw positive reviews upon release and was a major financial success. He next appeared in films like ‘Beyond the Law’ (1993), ‘Holy Matrimony’ (1994), ‘Dangerous Minds’ (1995), ‘The Tuskegee Airmen’ (1995), ‘The Preacher's Wife’ (1996), ‘Ambushed’ (1998), ‘Love and Action in Chicago’ (1999), and ‘Space Cowboys’ (2000).
In 2001, he joined the main cast of the American police procedural drama television series ‘Law & Order: Criminal Intent’ created by Dick Wolf. He played the role of ‘A.D.A. Ron Carver’ and remained a part of the series until 2006. He went on to star in television series like ‘American Experience’ (2002), ‘American Experience’ (2004), ‘State of Mind’ (2007), ‘ER’ (2008-2009), and ‘The Spectacular Spider-Man’ (2009). In 2010, he starred as ‘Marcus Temple’ in the American medical drama film ‘Extraordinary Measures’ directed by Tom Vaughan. The film received negative reviews from critics and was a box office bomb. He was next seen in films like ‘The Divide’ (2011), ‘Final Destination 5’ (2011), ‘Joyful Noise’ (2012), and ‘Terminator Genisys’ (2015). In 2016, he became a part of ‘The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story,’ the first season of the FX true crime anthology television series ‘American Crime Story.’ He portrayed ‘Johnnie Cochran’ which earned him the ‘Primetime Emmy Award,’ ‘Critics' Choice Television Award,’ and ‘NAACP Image Award.’Â
The year 2017 saw the release of the American action-adventure film ‘The Mummy’ where Vance was seen playing the role of ‘Army Colonel Greenway.’ The film saw mostly negative reviews upon release and was a box office disappointment. In 2018, he appeared in the American drama film ‘Ben Is Back’ directed by Peter Hedges. Despite opening to positive reviews, the film failed to achieve success at the box office. In 2021, he joined the main cast of the third season of the American anthology period drama television series ‘Genius’ where he portrayed ‘C. L. Franklin.’
