Childhood & Early Life
Aaron was born on August 15, 1984, in The Bronx, New York City, to Laura Aaron and an unknown father. After finishing elementary school, he moved to Augusta, Georgia.
Not much is known about his early life, except that he had a difficult childhood, both financially and socially, on account of his obesity and stature. He grew up in a “rough neighborhood” while living in The Bronx and had witnessed physical assaults on his mother.
The actor was baptized at the age of 9 and practically grew up in the church. He was also part of the church choir.
He was a victim of bullying as a kid. His first experience of being bullied was in 1990, when he was just 6 years old. The actor claims he was bullied throughout elementary school and later in physical education class, because he was interested more in music and drama than in sports and because he wore glasses and had crooked teeth.
Aaron wanted to become an actor since an early age and apparently told his mother that he was going to be the first black ‘James Bond.’
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Acting Career
After starting his career in 2008 as ‘Q’ in the Michel Gondry film ‘Be Kind Rewind,’ following a few uncredited jobs, Aaron appeared in ‘Fighting,’ starring Channing Tatum and Terrence Howard, the following year. He also co-starred in a ‘New York University’ thesis short named ‘Mr. Brooklyn,’ opposite Al Thompson.
2009 became truly life-altering year when he was cast as “Big Mike,” or Michael Oher, the ‘NFL’ offensive tackler, in the ‘Academy Award’-winning blockbuster hit ‘The Blind Side’ (2009), alongside Sandra Bullock. The film grossed over $300 million at the US box office alone, making Aaron an overnight star.
Thus, the actor tasted commercial and critical success early in his career, with ‘The Blind Side.’ However, he has not received much attention since, even though he has maintained consistent presence in films and TV series.
He guest-starred in an episode of ‘Law & Order: Special Victims Unit’ in 2010, which was actually a return to the show for him, as he had appeared (in an uncredited role) in two episodes of Season 17 of ‘Law & Order’ in 2007. He also guest-starred in an episode of ‘Mercy,’ titled ‘We All Saw This Coming,’ about a month later, on April 28, 2010.
Following this, he was seen in the ‘Harry's Law’ season finale in April 2011, alongside ‘The Blind Side’ co-star Kathy Bates. This was followed by appearances in ‘Drop Dead Diva’ and two episodes of ‘The CW’ primetime soap ‘One Tree Hill.’
In 2014, he did a minor role in the horror flick ‘The Appearing.’ He also appeared in the biblical post-apocalyptic film ‘Left Behind,’ starring Nicolas Cage and Chad Michael Murray, Nicky Whelan, and Jordin Sparks. Both the films were disasters at the box office.
Between 2015 and 2016, Aaron kept himself busy with an assortment of minor acting jobs, including small roles in ‘My Favorite Five’ and the family flick ‘Dancer and the Dame.’ Few of his forgettable projects were ‘Mothers and Daughters,’ the Western ‘Traded,’ and the teen flick ‘My First Miracle.’ He also returned in a football biopic titled ‘Greater,’ which was about real-life footballer Brandon Burlsworth.
The only substantial role he bagged during this period was in the festival fare ‘Halfway’ (2016), in which he played the only black man on probation in a conservative white farming town in Wisconsin. He also worked as an executive producer for this film.
In 2017, he earned a relatively meaty role in the offbeat comedy ‘It's Not My Fault and I Don't Care Anyway’ and a supporting role in the Western ‘Justice.’ He was also seen in a ‘Newport Beach Film Festival’ selection called ‘Heart, Baby,’ along with a slew of low-budget B-movies.
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In 2018, Aaron was seen in ‘The Second Coming of Christ,’ ‘Worthless,’ ‘Fishbowl California,’ and ‘Bad Company.’ These were followed by another horror, though a promising one, called ‘Hybristophilia.’ He also appeared in the recurring role of ‘Vick Wilson’ in the series ‘Gods of Medicine.’
Career in Social Work & Entrepreneurship
A lot of Quinton’s off-screen time goes toward spreading anti-bullying awareness among children and teenagers in schools across the US and sharing his own story and solutions with kids, teachers, parents, and administrators. He pursues this personal mission through ‘The Quinton Aaron Foundation,’ which he founded in 2012.
Unsurprisingly, he is an advocate for ‘Celebrities Against Bullies’ and has raised over $1,230,000 for his charity.
He also represents ‘Beating the Odds,’ a non-profit organization that works toward children’s welfare. He participates as an ambassador in their ‘Quarterbacks of Life’ program, alongside actor James Earl Jones, surfer and shark-attack survivor Bethany Hamilton, and ‘NFL Hall of Fame’ quarterback Warren Moonas.
Aaron also happens to be the ‘Goodwill Ambassador’ for ‘Forgotten Angels of Florida,’ an organization dedicated to children who have aged beyond foster care. He is a life coach and mentor to more than 525,000 children in 43 states in the US.
He is on the ‘Advisory Board’ of the ‘Hillsborough County Department of Education,’ the eighth-largest school board in the US.
His entrepreneurial ventures include ‘B.O.M. Productions,’ of which he is the president and CEO. He recently joined a newly formed Albuquerque, New Mexico-based post-production company named ‘Dream House Productions,’ as its director of development.
Family & Personal Life
Aaron has a reputation for announcing “new girlfriends” and “future wives” on social media, rather casually. He dated ‘Playboy’ model Jenna Bently in 2012 and made public appearances with her. They were seen together at the 39th ‘Annual People's Choice Awards’ in Los Angeles in January 2013. His last reported girlfriend was Taryn Marie Stejskal.
In June 2019, he was hospitalized for an upper respiratory infection and high blood pressure. Earlier, he had assumed it to be simply bad congestion from severe cold.
