Russell Hornsby Biography

(Actor)

Birthday: May 15, 1974 (Taurus)

Born In: San Francisco, California, United States

Russell Hornsby is an actor from America who has garnered fame for primarily his television work. Some of his most memorable portrayals are Edward "Eddie" Sutton in ABC Family's ‘Lincoln Heights’, Luke in the HBO drama ‘In Treatment’, and Detective Hank Griffin in the NBC series ‘Grimm’. A California native, Hornsby’s interest in acting began to develop after he played Scarecrow in a spring production of the musical ‘The Wiz’. He subsequently appeared in several school plays before enrolling at Boston University to study theatre. He later furthered his education at the British American Drama Academy. After returning to the United States, he was active for a period in New York’s theatre scene. Eventually, he moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in films and television. He made his screen debut as a food truck assistant in an episode of ‘Bill Nye, the Science Guy’ in 1993. His cinematic debut came about five years later, in the romantic comedy ‘Woo’. In recent years, he has found some recognition for his big-screen performances. In 2016, he played Lyons in Denzel Washington’s directorial venture, ‘Fences’.
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Quick Facts

Age: 49 Years, 49 Year Old Males

Actors American Men

Height: 6'2" (188 cm), 6'2" Males

Notable Alumni: British American Drama Academy

U.S. State: California

City: San Francisco, California

More Facts

education: Boston University, British American Drama Academy

awards: Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Ensemble Performance
Obie Award for Ensemble Performance

Childhood & Early Life
Born on May 15, 1974, in Oakland, California, USA, Russell Hornsby played football for St. Mary's College High School in Berkeley, California.
He developed an interest in acting after he was cast as the Scarecrow in ‘The Wiz’, and this interest only grew in the next few years, as he continued to perform in high school plays.
Following his graduation, he began attending Boston University, eventually earning a degree in performance. He subsequently went to London to study at the British American Drama Academy.
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Career
After coming back to US, Russell Hornsby initially decided to settle in New York and join the theatre scene there. He portrayed Atticus Finch in an Off-Broadway production of ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’. In an Off-Broadway production of ‘Six Degrees of Separation’, he essayed the role of Paul. He also appeared in a production of ‘Joe Louis Blues’.
In the late 1990s, he came to Los Angeles to work in films and television. His first television appearance was in a 1993 episode of ‘Bill Nye, the Science Guy’. He was featured on the big screen for the first time in 1994, in Daisy von Scherler Mayer’s directorial venture ‘Woo’.
In 2000, he played a small role in the Robert De Niro-starrer ‘Meet the Parents’. That year, he was cast as Dr Aaron Boies in the ABC medical drama ‘Gideon's Crossing’. This was the first time Hornsby was part of the main cast of a TV show. Unfortunately, ‘Gideon's Crossing’ was cancelled after airing only 20 episodes.
In 2002, he appeared in a film, ‘Big Fat Liar’; a telefilm, ‘Keep the Faith, Baby’; a short film ‘Milk and Honey’; and a UPN show, ‘Haunted’.
In 2003, he starred in yet another short-lived show, ESPN’s sports drama ‘Playmakers’. In HBO’s critically acclaimed drama series ‘In Treatment’, he played Luke in a season two episode. Luke was previously married to Bess (Sherri Saum), and they have a son together, Oliver (Aaron Shaw). The family visits psychologist Dr Paul Weston (Gabriel Byrne) to treat Oliver’s depression.
Between 2007 and 2009, Hornsby appeared in 42 episodes of ABC Family’s drama series ‘Lincoln Heights’. His character, Edward "Eddie" Sutton, is a police officer who relocates his family to the neighbourhood he had grown up, so he can bring about changes there.
For his portrayal of Isaiah Butler in the Netflix miniseries ‘Seven Seconds’ (2018), he received the Black Reel Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor, TV Movie or Limited Series.
In 2018, he played the recurring character Carl Gatewood in three episodes of the Showtime mystery-drama series ‘The Affair’. Hornsby is currently starring as Ezekiel 'Easy' Boudreau in FX’s legal-drama series ‘Proven Innocent’ (2019-current).
In 2010, Russel Hornsby worked alongside Denzel Washington and Viola Davis in a Broadway production of August Wilson’s 1985 play ‘Fences’. In 2016, he reprised the role of Lyons Maxson in the cinematic adaptation of Wilson’s play.
In 2018, he shared screen space with Amandla Stenberg and Regina Hall in the critically acclaimed drama film ‘The Hate U Give’. He played Buddy Marcelle, a boxing promoter, in ‘Creed II’, the eighth film in the Rocky film franchise. Hornsby is set to portray the eponymous character in the upcoming NBC suspense thriller ‘Lincoln’.
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Major Works
In the fantasy police procedural drama ‘Grimm’ (2011-17), Russell Hornsby was cast as Detective Hank Griffin, who is the partner of the series protagonist, Detective Nicholas "Nick" Burkhardt (David Giuntoli), at the Portland Police Department. ‘Grimm’ garnered critical acclaim and enjoyed good ratings throughout its six-season run.
Family & Personal Life
Russell Hornsby began dating accounting consultant Denise Walker sometime in 2003. At one point, they broke up for nearly a year before getting back together. He proposed to her in June 2008 and they exchanged wedding vows on 1 August 2008.

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