Courtney B. Vance

Acting

Courtney B. Vance

Born March 12, 1960Detroit, Michigan, USA97 credits

Courtney Bernard Vance (born March 12, 1960) is an American actor. Vance started his career on the Broadway stage in the original productions of August Wilson's Fences in 1985, John Guare's Six Degrees of Separation in 1990 and Nora Ephron's Lucky Guy in 2013 for which he won a Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play. He is known for his roles in films such as Hamburger Hill (1987), The Hunt for Red October (1990), The Preacher's Wife (1996), Cookie's Fortune (1999), Terminator Genisys (2015), and Isle of Dogs (2018). Vance is also known for work on television on shows such as Law & Order: Criminal Intent, where he portrayed Assistant District Attorney Ron Carver. He also guest-starred on Law & Order, Picket Fences, The Closer, Revenge, Scandal, and Masters of Sex. He won acclaim for his portrayal of Johnnie Cochran in the FX limited series The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story (2016) for which he received the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie. He recently appeared in the HBO television film, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (2017), National Geographic's limited series Genius: Aretha (2020), and the HBO drama series Lovecraft Country (2020) the latter of which earned him a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series. He has been married to actress Angela Bassett since 1997. Vance is on the Board of Directors for The Actors Center in New York City, and is an active supporter of Boys & Girls Clubs of America. In 2019, Vance was appointed as the President of the Screen Actors Guild Foundation.

Known For

Filmography

Lilo & Stitch
2025Lilo & Stitch
as Cobra BubblesMovie
Death Wish
2024Death Wish
as Pilot (voice)Movie
Grotesquerie
2024Grotesquerie
as Marshall TryonTV
Heist 88
2023Heist 88
as Jeremy HorneMovie
Sherri
2022Sherri
as Self - GuestTV
61st Street
202261st Street
as Franklin RobertsTV
Lovecraft Country
2020Lovecraft Country
as George FreemanTV
Project Power
2020Project Power
as Captain CraineMovie
Uncorked
2020Uncorked
as LouisMovie
The Photograph
2020The Photograph
as Louis MortonMovie
On Broadway
2019On Broadway
as Self (archive footage)Movie
Tamron Hall
2019Tamron Hall
as Self - GuestTV
Ben Is Back
2018Ben Is Back
as Mr. BeebyMovie
The Groveland Four
2018The Groveland Four
as Self - NarratorMovie
Isle of Dogs
2018Isle of Dogs
as Narrator (voice)Movie
The Mummy
2017The Mummy
as Colonel GreenwayMovie
Genius
2017Genius
as C.L. FranklinTV
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
2017The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
as Sir Lord Keenan CoefieldMovie
Office Christmas Party
2016Office Christmas Party
as Walter DavisMovie
American Crime Story
2016American Crime Story
as Johnnie CochranTV
Terminator Genisys
2015Terminator Genisys
as Miles DysonMovie
Masters of Sex
2013Masters of Sex
as Dr. Charles HendricksTV
Graceland
2013Graceland
as Sam CampbellTV
Let It Shine
2012Let It Shine
as JacobMovie
Scandal
2012Scandal
as Clarence ParkerTV
Joyful Noise
2012Joyful Noise
as Pastor DaleMovie
The Divide
2012The Divide
as DelvinMovie
Revenge
2011Revenge
as Benjamin BrooksTV
Final Destination 5
2011Final Destination 5
as Agent BlockMovie
Hurricane Season
2010Hurricane Season
as Mr. RandolphMovie
Extraordinary Measures
2010Extraordinary Measures
as Marcus TempleMovie
FlashForward
2009FlashForward
as Stanford WedeckTV
Nothing But the Truth
2008Nothing But the Truth
as Agent O'HaraMovie
The Best of The Tony Awards: The Plays
2006The Best of The Tony Awards: The Plays
as Corey (segment "Fences")Movie
The Closer
2005The Closer
as Chief Tommy DelkTV
The Fight
2005The Fight
as Narrator (voice)Movie
Partners of the Heart
2002Partners of the Heart
as Vivien Thomas (voice)Movie
D-Tox
2002D-Tox
as Reverend JonesMovie
Boston Public
2000Boston Public
as Walter HarrelsonTV
Space Cowboys
2000Space Cowboys
as Roger HinesMovie
Cookie's Fortune
1999Cookie's Fortune
as Otis TuckerMovie
Naked City: A Killer Christmas
1998Naked City: A Killer Christmas
as Officer James HalloranMovie
Blind Faith
1998Blind Faith
as John WilliamsMovie
Naked City: Justice with a Bullet
1998Naked City: Justice with a Bullet
as Officer James HalloranMovie
The Wild Thornberrys
1998The Wild Thornberrys
as Makai (voice)TV
Ambushed
1998Ambushed
as Jerry RobinsonMovie
12 Angry Men
199712 Angry Men
as ForemanMovie
The View
1997The View
as SelfTV
The Preacher's Wife
1996The Preacher's Wife
as Reverend Henry BiggsMovie
The Boys Next Door
1996The Boys Next Door
as Lucien P. SingerMovie
The Affair
1995The Affair
as Travis HollowayMovie
The Tuskegee Airmen
1995The Tuskegee Airmen
as Lt. GlennMovie
Dangerous Minds
1995Dangerous Minds
as Mr. George GrandeyMovie
Panther
1995Panther
as Bobby SealeMovie
ER
1994ER
as Russell BanfieldTV
Holy Matrimony
1994Holy Matrimony
as CooperMovie
Percy & Thunder
1993Percy & Thunder
as Wayne 'Thunder' CarterMovie
Beyond the Law
1993Beyond the Law
as Conroy PriceMovie
Picket Fences
1992Picket Fences
as Warren GrierTV
The Emperor's New Clothes
1992The Emperor's New Clothes
as Scribe (voice)Movie
Law & Order
1990Law & Order
as Mayor's AssistantTV
The Hunt for Red October
1990The Hunt for Red October
as Petty Officer Ronald 'Jonesy' Jones (USS Dallas)Movie
American Experience
1988American Experience
as Narrator (voice)TV
Hamburger Hill
1987Hamburger Hill
as Spc. Abraham 'Doc' JohnsonMovie
First Affair
1983First Affair
as Male Student #2Movie
NOVA
1974NOVA
as NarratorTV
Hallmark Hall of Fame
1951Hallmark Hall of Fame
as Lucien P. SingerTV
Golden Globe Awards
1944Golden Globe Awards
as Self - Audience MemberTV