Wesley Snipes | |
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Snipes in September 2009 at Venice
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Born |
Wesley Trent Snipes July 31, 1962 Orlando, Florida, United States |
Occupation | Actor, film producer, martial artist |
Years active | 1986–present |
Spouse(s) |
April Dubois (m. 1985–90) Nikki Park (m. 2003) |
Children | 5 |
Wesley Trent Snipes (born July 31, 1962) is an American actor, film producer and martial artist.
His prominent film roles include New Jack City (1991), White Men Can't Jump (1992) and the Marvel Comics character Blade in the Blade film trilogy (1998–2004). He formed a production company, Amen-Ra Films, in 1991, and a subsidiary, Black Dot Media, to develop projects for film and television. He has been training in martial arts since the age of 12, earning a 5th dan black belt in Shotokan Karate and 2nd dan black belt in Hapkido.
Snipes was born in Orlando, Florida, the son of Maryann (née Long), a teacher's assistant, and Wesley Rudolph Snipes, an aircraft engineer. He grew up in the Bronx, New York. He attended the High School of Performing Arts of Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts but moved back to Florida before he could graduate. After graduating from Jones High School in Orlando, Snipes returned to New York and attended the State University of New York at Purchase. He also attended Southwest College in Los Angeles, California.
At the age of 23, Snipes was discovered by an agent while performing in a competition. He made his film debut in the 1986 Goldie Hawn vehicle Wildcats. Later that year, he appeared on the TV show Miami Vice as a drug-dealing pimp in the episode "Streetwise" (first aired December 5, 1986). In 1987, he appeared as Michael Jackson's nemesis in the Martin Scorsese–directed music video "Bad" and the feature film Streets of Gold. That same year, Snipes was also considered for the role of Geordi La Forge in the TV series Star Trek: The Next Generation, but the role eventually went to LeVar Burton.