Andre Royo
Encyclopedia
Andre Royo is an American
actor. He is best known for his role as "Bubbles
" in The Wire
, and has had guest starring appearances in Fringe
, Party Down
, and How To Make It In America
.
of the film Shaft
. He had a brief appearance in Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles as a soldier in a unit that was sent back in time. He has also had roles in Heroes
and Kenan and Kel.
He is mostly known for his starring role on the HBO
program The Wire
as drug addict and confidential informant "Bubbles
" (a regular character since the show's first season). Royo's portrayal of this character was so convincing that during on-location filming
he was once approached by a real life addict and given heroin, with the compassionate addict declaring that the in-character Royo did "need a fix more than" him. Royo has called this his "street Oscar."
Royo also appeared in the 2002 movie G
, which was based on The Great Gatsby
.
He was introduced as the character Stephen Canfield during the third season of the television series Heroes
. He also played the role of a drug addicted homeless serial killer in the Criminal Minds
Season 4 episode "Catching Out".
Royo was also featured at a Harvard University
panel discussion in October, 2009, along with fellow actors from The Wire, Sonja Sohn and Michael K. Williams
. The panel discussed the value of The Wire as a media source at-risk youth can relate to and learn positive life lessons from.
In 2010, Royo guest starred on the Starz original series Party Down
. Later that year he was a guest star in the third season premiere
as well as the seventh episode
and eighteenth episode
of the Fox television series Fringe
, playing a cab driver in the parallel universe
.
and Cuban
heritage. Allegedly, Royo has often been told by casting directors that he is "not black enough" or "not Latino enough" for certain parts.
Royo attended Mount Saint Michael Academy
in The Bronx from 1982 - 1986 at the same time as Sean Combs
.
Royo is married and has a daughter, Stella.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor. He is best known for his role as "Bubbles
Bubbles (The Wire)
Reginald "Bubbles" Cousins is a fictional character on the HBO drama The Wire, played by actor Andre Royo. Bubbles is a recovering heroin addict. His real name is not revealed until a fourth-season episode when he is called "Mr. Cousins" and in the fifth-season premiere when he is called "Reginald"...
" in The Wire
The WIRE
the WIRE is the student-run College radio station at the University of Oklahoma, broadcasting in a freeform format. The WIRE serves the University of Oklahoma and surrounding communities, and is staffed by student DJs. The WIRE broadcasts at 1710 kHz AM in Norman, Oklahoma...
, and has had guest starring appearances in Fringe
Fringe (TV series)
Fringe is an American science fiction television series created by J. J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci. The series follows a Federal Bureau of Investigation "Fringe Division" team based in Boston, Massachusetts under the supervision of Homeland Security...
, Party Down
Party Down
Party Down is an American comedy television series created and primarily written by John Enbom, Rob Thomas, Dan Etheridge, and Paul Rudd that aired on the Starz network in the United States.-Conception:...
, and How To Make It In America
How to Make It in America
How to Make It in America is an American comedy-drama television series that premiered on HBO on February 14, 2010. The series follows the lives of Ben Epstein and his friend Cam Calderon as they try to succeed in New York City's fashion scene...
.
Career
He had a small role in John Singleton's 2000 remakeShaft (2000 film)
Shaft is a 2000 American action-crime film directed by John Singleton, and starring Samuel L. Jackson, Jeffrey Wright, Christian Bale, Pat Hingle, Toni Collette, Busta Rhymes, Vanessa L. Williams, and Mekhi Phifer. This film is not a remake of the 1971 film of the same name, but rather a sequel,...
of the film Shaft
Shaft (1971 film)
Shaft is a 1971 American blaxploitation film directed by Gordon Parks, released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. An action film with elements of film noir, Shaft tells the story of a black private detective, John Shaft, who travels through Harlem and to the Italian mob neighborhoods in order to find the...
. He had a brief appearance in Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles as a soldier in a unit that was sent back in time. He has also had roles in Heroes
Heroes (TV series)
Heroes is an American science fiction television drama series created by Tim Kring that appeared on NBC for four seasons from September 25, 2006 through February 8, 2010. The series tells the stories of ordinary people who discover superhuman abilities, and how these abilities take effect in the...
and Kenan and Kel.
He is mostly known for his starring role on the HBO
Home Box Office
HBO, short for Home Box Office, is an American premium cable television network, owned by Time Warner. , HBO's programming reaches 28.2 million subscribers in the United States, making it the second largest premium network in America . In addition to its U.S...
program The Wire
The Wire (TV series)
The Wire is an American television drama series set and produced in and around Baltimore, Maryland. Created and primarily written by author and former police reporter David Simon, the series was broadcast by the premium cable network HBO in the United States...
as drug addict and confidential informant "Bubbles
Bubbles (The Wire)
Reginald "Bubbles" Cousins is a fictional character on the HBO drama The Wire, played by actor Andre Royo. Bubbles is a recovering heroin addict. His real name is not revealed until a fourth-season episode when he is called "Mr. Cousins" and in the fifth-season premiere when he is called "Reginald"...
" (a regular character since the show's first season). Royo's portrayal of this character was so convincing that during on-location filming
Filming location
A filming location is a place where some or all of a film or television series is produced, in addition to or instead of using sets constructed on a movie studio backlot or soundstage...
he was once approached by a real life addict and given heroin, with the compassionate addict declaring that the in-character Royo did "need a fix more than" him. Royo has called this his "street Oscar."
Royo also appeared in the 2002 movie G
G (2002 film)
G is a film released in 2002 by Christopher Scott Cherot. It made its worldwide premiere on May 10, 2002 at the Tribeca Film Festival in USA. It made its theatrical premiere on October 28, 2005 in the US, more than 3 years from its initial premiere. Since then, it has been released on DVD in Spain,...
, which was based on The Great Gatsby
The Great Gatsby
The Great Gatsby is a novel by the American author F. Scott Fitzgerald. First published in1925, it is set on Long Island's North Shore and in New York City from spring to autumn of 1922....
.
He was introduced as the character Stephen Canfield during the third season of the television series Heroes
Heroes (TV series)
Heroes is an American science fiction television drama series created by Tim Kring that appeared on NBC for four seasons from September 25, 2006 through February 8, 2010. The series tells the stories of ordinary people who discover superhuman abilities, and how these abilities take effect in the...
. He also played the role of a drug addicted homeless serial killer in the Criminal Minds
Criminal Minds
Criminal Minds is an American police procedural drama that premiered September 22, 2005, on CBS. The series follows a team of profilers from the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit based in Quantico, Virginia. The BAU is part of the FBI National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime...
Season 4 episode "Catching Out".
Royo was also featured at a Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
panel discussion in October, 2009, along with fellow actors from The Wire, Sonja Sohn and Michael K. Williams
Michael K. Williams
Michael Kenneth Williams is an American actor known for his portrayal of Omar Little on the HBO drama series The Wire, and of Albert "Chalky" White on HBO's Boardwalk Empire.-Early life and career:...
. The panel discussed the value of The Wire as a media source at-risk youth can relate to and learn positive life lessons from.
In 2010, Royo guest starred on the Starz original series Party Down
Party Down
Party Down is an American comedy television series created and primarily written by John Enbom, Rob Thomas, Dan Etheridge, and Paul Rudd that aired on the Starz network in the United States.-Conception:...
. Later that year he was a guest star in the third season premiere
Olivia (Fringe)
"Olivia" is the first episode of the third season of the American science fiction drama television series Fringe. The episode was written by executive producers J. H. Wyman and Jeff Pinkner, and was directed by Joe Chappelle. The third season spent its time alternating between the prime and...
as well as the seventh episode
The Abducted
"The Abducted" is the seventh episode of the third season of the American science fiction drama television series Fringe. The third season spent much of its time alternating between the prime and parallel universes, and "The Abducted" was set in the latter...
and eighteenth episode
Bloodline (Fringe)
"Bloodline" is the 18th episode of the third season of the American science fiction drama television series Fringe, and the 61st episode overall.-Plot:...
of the Fox television series Fringe
Fringe (TV series)
Fringe is an American science fiction television series created by J. J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci. The series follows a Federal Bureau of Investigation "Fringe Division" team based in Boston, Massachusetts under the supervision of Homeland Security...
, playing a cab driver in the parallel universe
Parallel universe (fiction)
A parallel universe or alternative reality is a hypothetical self-contained separate reality coexisting with one's own. A specific group of parallel universes is called a "multiverse", although this term can also be used to describe the possible parallel universes that constitute reality...
.
Personal life
Royo was born in the Bronx, New York of African AmericanAfrican American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
and Cuban
Cubans
Cubans or Cuban people are the inhabitants or citizens of Cuba. Cuba is a multi-ethnic nation, home to people of different ethnic and national backgrounds...
heritage. Allegedly, Royo has often been told by casting directors that he is "not black enough" or "not Latino enough" for certain parts.
Royo attended Mount Saint Michael Academy
Mount Saint Michael Academy
Mount Saint Michael Academy, also known as The Mount, is an all-boys Roman Catholic High School in the northeast part of the Bronx, New York, on the Mount Vernon city line, . The 22-acre campus is a non-boarding college preparatory school for some 1,100 boys grades 6 through 12...
in The Bronx from 1982 - 1986 at the same time as Sean Combs
Sean Combs
Sean John Combs , also known by his stage names Diddy and P. Diddy, is an American rapper, singer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur. He has won three Grammy Awards and two MTV Video Music Awards, and his clothing line earned a Council of Fashion Designers of America award. He was originally...
.
Royo is married and has a daughter, Stella.