Lawrence Gilliard Jr. | |
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Larry Gilliard Jr.
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Born |
New York City, New York, U.S. |
September 22, 1971
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 1989—present |
Spouse(s) | Michelle Paress |
Lawrence Gilliard Jr. (born September 22, 1971) is an American character actor who has appeared in films, television series and theatre. He portrayed D'Angelo Barksdale on the HBO drama series The Wire, a role which earned him much critical acclaim. He is also known for his role as Bob Stookey in the AMC horror drama The Walking Dead. He will star in HBO's The Deuce.
Gilliard was born in New York City. He and his family moved to Baltimore, Maryland when he was 7. Gilliard studied classical music at Baltimore School for the Arts along with Jada Pinkett Smith and Tupac Shakur but decided to pursue acting instead. He made his film debut as the lead in the independent film Straight Out of Brooklyn (1991). He studied acting at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, The Acting Studio-New York (formerly Inc.), and the Stella Adler Conservatory.
Often cast as a hoodlum, Gilliard has appeared on numerous television crime dramas such as Law & Order, Homicide: Life on the Street, The Wire, New York Undercover, and CSI: NY. Film roles include: a love-struck ghetto teen in LottoLand (1995), an earnest college football player in The Waterboy (1998), and a member of the Dead Rabbits in Gangs of New York (2002).