Terrence Howard

Terrence Howard
Howard at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival
Born	Terrence Dashon Howard (1969-03-11) March 11, 1969 (age 47) Chicago, Illinois, United States
Occupation	Actor, singer-songwriter, record producer
Years active	1992–present
Spouse(s)	Lori McCommas (m. 1994–2005) Michelle Ghent (m. 2010–13) Mira Pak (m. 2013)
Children	5

Terrence Dashon Howard (born March 11, 1969) is an American actor and singer. Having his first major roles in the 1995 films Dead Presidents and Mr. Holland's Opus, Howard broke into the mainstream with a succession of television and cinema roles between 2004 and 2006. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in Hustle & Flow. Howard has had prominent roles in many other movies including Winnie, Ray, Lackawanna Blues, Crash, Four Brothers, Get Rich or Die Tryin', Idlewild, August Rush, The Brave One and Prisoners. Howard played James Rhodes in Iron Man and reprised the role in the video game adaptation. However, he was replaced by Don Cheadle for the future films. He currently stars as the lead character Lucious Lyon in the television series Empire. His debut album, Shine Through It, was released in September 2008.

Howard was born in Chicago, Illinois on March 11, 1969 to Tyrone and Anita (nee Hawkins) Howard. The great-grandson of stage actress Minnie Gentry, he was raised in Cleveland, Ohio by father Tyrone Howard and mother Anita Williams. Howard experienced a rocky childhood, enduring disciplinary beatings from his physically abusive father, and even witnessing his father stabbing another man when he was just 2 years old in the Santa Line Slaying. The killing resulted in Tyrone Howard spending 11 months in jail for manslaughter. Howard's parents divorced upon his father's release.