Don Cheadle
Encyclopedia
Donald Frank "Don" Cheadle, Jr. (ˈtʃiːdəl; born November 29, 1964) is an American film actor and producer
. Cheadle rose to prominence in the late 1990s and the early 2000s for his supporting roles in the Steven Soderbergh
-directed films Out of Sight
, Traffic
, and Ocean's Eleven
. In 2004, his lead role as Rwanda
n hotel manager Paul Rusesabagina
in the genocide
drama film Hotel Rwanda
earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor
. He also campaigns for the end of genocide in Darfur, Sudan
, and co-authored a book concerning the issue titled Not On Our Watch: The Mission To End Genocide In Darfur And Beyond. In 2010, Cheadle was named U.N. Environment Program Goodwill Ambassador.
, the son of Bettye (née North) Garner, a teacher, and Donald Frank Cheadle, Sr., a clinical psychologist
. He has a sister, Dawn, and a brother, Colin. His family moved from city to city throughout his childhood. Cheadle graduated in 1982 from East High School in Denver, Colorado
, and went on to the California Institute of the Arts
, graduating with a BA in Fine Arts.
in 1987. He also played the role of Jack in the April 1, 1988 "Jung and the Restless" episode of Night Court
. Although his character was supposed to be 16 years old, Cheadle was 23 at the time.
Cheadle then played the role of Rocket in the 1988 movie Colors
. In 1989, he appeared in a video for Angela Winbush
's #2 hit single "It's the Real Thing
", performing dance moves in an orange jump suit, working at a car wash. In 1990, he appeared in an episode of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
titled "Homeboy, Sweet Homeboy", playing Will Smith
's friend and Hilary's first love interest, Ice Tray. In 1992, he received a supporting role in The Golden Girls
spin-off The Golden Palace
. Although the show was highly publicized, it was canceled after one season. Cheadle subsequently played district attorney
John Littleton on two seasons of Picket Fences
.
Cheadle first received widespread notice for his portrayal of Mouse Alexander in the film Devil in a Blue Dress
, for which he won Best Supporting Actor awards from the Los Angeles Film Critics Association
and the National Society of Film Critics
and was nominated for similar awards from the Screen Actors Guild
and the NAACP Image Awards. Following soon thereafter was his performance in the title role of the 1996 HBO TV movie Rebound: The Legend of Earl "The Goat" Manigault
. A legend among American street basketball players, Manigault
is considered by many to be the best streetball
player that never reached the NBA
as a professional. He also starred in the 1997 film Volcano, directed by Mick Jackson.
Cheadle's fame spread with a regular role as the district attorney on the television series Picket Fences
. Cheadle's other television credits include Emmy-nominated performances in the movies The Rat Pack
, A Lesson Before Dying
, Things Behind the Sun
and in a guest appearance on ER
. The last of these spanned four episodes during the show's ninth season, in which he portrayed Paul Nathan, a medical student struggling to cope with Parkinson's disease
. He has made appearances in films including Rosewood
, The Family Man
, Boogie Nights
, a cameo appearance in the film Abby Singer
, Out of Sight
, Traffic
, and Ocean's Eleven
. These last three were directed by Steven Soderbergh
. In 2005, Cheadle was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor
for his portrayal of Paul Rusesabagina
in the film Hotel Rwanda
. He also starred in, and was one of the producers of Crash
, which won the 2005 Academy Award for Best Picture
. For his performance in Crash, Cheadle was nominated for BAFTA and Screen Actors Guild
Award for Best Supporting Actor. He played the main character in the movie Traitor
. Cheadle starred in Hotel for Dogs
by Dreamworks.
In 2007 Cheadle published a book, Not On Our Watch: The Mission to End Genocide in Darfur and Beyond, co-authored with John Prendergast
.
Cheadle was to make his directorial debut with the adaptation of Elmore Leonard
's Tishomingo Blues
. In a July 2007 interview he stated, "'Tishomingo' is dead..."
Cheadle appeared in NFL
commercials promoting the Super Bowl
from 2002 to 2005. He so regularly appeared for the NFL in its Super Bowl advertising that in 2006, in a drive to have fans submit their own advertising ideas, the NFL sought his permission to reference his previous commercials to portray themselves as having no new ideas: "he quickly signed off on the idea and found it funny." Abe Sutton (along with Etan Bednarsh), one of the finalists in this NFL contest, played on this commercial by proposing an ad where an entire team of football players are Don Cheadle.
Cheadle and Boondocks creator Aaron McGruder
are working together to launch a comedy show on NBC. The "project revolves around mismatched brothers who reunite to open a private security company." Cheadle will serve as an executive producer, along with McGruder, who will write the script.
In 2009, Cheadle performed in The People Speak
, a documentary feature film that uses dramatic and musical performances of the letters, diaries, and speeches of everyday Americans, based on historian Howard Zinn
's A People's History of the United States
.
In 2010, Cheadle assumed the role of James Rhodes
in the film Iron Man 2
, replacing Terrence Howard
, his Crash co-star.
In 2010, Cheadle was appointed, "U.N. Environment Program Goodwill Ambassador." He and Prendergast published their second book, The Enough Moment
: Fighting to End Africa's Worst Human Rights Crimes, in 2010.
He also appeared in Derek Water's "Drunk History" video as Frederick Douglass.
on April 15, 2007, Cheadle defeated noted poker champion Phil Ivey
in the first round of the tournament. The two met in the "Hearts & Diamonds" bracket. Cheadle, as an amateur player, was considered a significant underdog against the professional Ivey, notorious for his stone-cold "poker face". On the episode aired April 29, 2007, in the second round of the tournament, Cheadle was defeated and knocked out of the tournament by Vegas poker pro Scott Fischman
. In the same tournament in 2009, he defeated David Pham
in the first round only to lose to Paul Wasicka
in the round of 32.
At the 2007 World Series of Poker
, Cheadle and poker player Annie Duke
organized an annual charity poker tournament, "Ante Up for Africa". Many Hollywood actors were expected to play in the tournament, which had a $
5,000 buy-in. Money finishers were encouraged to donate part of their winnings to the International Rescue Committee
or the Enough Project
. The annual tournament is one of two non-bracelet events listed on the official WSOP schedule.
In 2007, Cheadle was awarded the BET Humanitarian award of the year for his numerous humanitarian services he rendered for the cause of the people of Darfur and Rwanda.
On December 13, 2007, Cheadle and fellow actor George Clooney
were presented with the Summit Peace Award by the Nobel Peace Prize Laureates in Rome for their work to stop the genocide and relieve the suffering of the people of Darfur. The award was presented by the World Summit of Nobel Laureates, Mikhail Gorbachev
, and TheCommunity.com
.
In 2008, Cheadle's family history was profiled on the PBS
series African American Lives 2. A DNA test shows that he may have ancestry in present day Cameroon
.
Voice acting
Theatre
Film producer
A film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre-production period, before a film is fully financed.The...
. Cheadle rose to prominence in the late 1990s and the early 2000s for his supporting roles in the Steven Soderbergh
Steven Soderbergh
Steven Andrew Soderbergh is an American film producer, screenwriter, cinematographer, editor, and an Academy Award-winning film director. He is best known for directing commercial Hollywood films like Erin Brockovich, Traffic, and the remake of Ocean's Eleven, but he has also directed smaller less...
-directed films Out of Sight
Out of Sight
Out of Sight is a 1998 American crime film. The film was directed by Steven Soderbergh and based on the novel of the same name by Elmore Leonard. It was the first of several collaborations between Soderbergh and star George Clooney. The film was released on June 26, 1998. It was nominated for two...
, Traffic
Traffic (2000 film)
Traffic is a 2000 American crime drama film directed by Steven Soderbergh and written by Stephen Gaghan. It explores the illegal drug trade from a number of perspectives: a user, an enforcer, a politician and a trafficker. Their stories are edited together throughout the film, although some of the...
, and Ocean's Eleven
Ocean's Eleven (2001 film)
Ocean's Eleven is a 2001 American comedy-crime caper and remake of the 1960 Rat Pack caper film of the same name. The 2001 film was directed by Steven Soderbergh and features an ensemble cast including George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Don Cheadle, Andy García, and Julia Roberts. The film was...
. In 2004, his lead role as Rwanda
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
n hotel manager Paul Rusesabagina
Paul Rusesabagina
Paul Rusesabagina is a Rwandan humanitarian who has been internationally honored for saving 1,268 refugees during the Rwandan Genocide. He was the assistant manager of the Sabena Hôtel des Mille Collines before he became the manager of the Hôtel des Diplomates, both in Kigali, Rwanda...
in the genocide
Rwandan Genocide
The Rwandan Genocide was the 1994 mass murder of an estimated 800,000 people in the small East African nation of Rwanda. Over the course of approximately 100 days through mid-July, over 500,000 people were killed, according to a Human Rights Watch estimate...
drama film Hotel Rwanda
Hotel Rwanda
Hotel Rwanda is a 2004 American drama film directed by Terry George. It was adapted from a screenplay written by both George and Keir Pearson. Based on real life events which took place in Rwanda during the spring of 1994, the film stars Don Cheadle as hotelier Paul Rusesabagina, who attempts to...
earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor
Academy Award for Best Actor
Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
. He also campaigns for the end of genocide in Darfur, Sudan
War in Darfur
The Darfur Conflict was a guerrilla conflict or civil war centered on the Darfur region of Sudan. It began in February 2003 when the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army and Justice and Equality Movement groups in Darfur took up arms, accusing the Sudanese government of oppressing non-Arab Sudanese in...
, and co-authored a book concerning the issue titled Not On Our Watch: The Mission To End Genocide In Darfur And Beyond. In 2010, Cheadle was named U.N. Environment Program Goodwill Ambassador.
Early life
Cheadle was born in Kansas City, MissouriKansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
, the son of Bettye (née North) Garner, a teacher, and Donald Frank Cheadle, Sr., a clinical psychologist
Psychologist
Psychologist is a professional or academic title used by individuals who are either:* Clinical professionals who work with patients in a variety of therapeutic contexts .* Scientists conducting psychological research or teaching psychology in a college...
. He has a sister, Dawn, and a brother, Colin. His family moved from city to city throughout his childhood. Cheadle graduated in 1982 from East High School in Denver, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
, and went on to the California Institute of the Arts
California Institute of the Arts
The California Institute of the Arts, commonly referred to as CalArts, is located in Valencia, in Los Angeles County, California. It was incorporated in 1961 as the first degree-granting institution of higher learning in the United States created specifically for students of both the visual and the...
, graduating with a BA in Fine Arts.
Career
He appeared in a late 1980s video (It's The Real Thing) with Angela Winbush as a dancer. Cheadle acted in Hamburger HillHamburger Hill
Hamburger Hill is a 1987 American war film about the actual assault of the U.S. Army's 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment, part of the 3rd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division 'Screaming Eagles', on a well-fortified position, including trenchworks and bunkers, of the North Vietnamese Army on Ap Bia...
in 1987. He also played the role of Jack in the April 1, 1988 "Jung and the Restless" episode of Night Court
Night Court
Night Court is an American television situation comedy that aired on NBC from January 4, 1984, to May 20, 1992. The setting was the night shift of a Manhattan court, presided over by the young, unorthodox Judge Harold T. "Harry" Stone...
. Although his character was supposed to be 16 years old, Cheadle was 23 at the time.
Cheadle then played the role of Rocket in the 1988 movie Colors
Colors (film)
Colors is a 1988 police procedural crime film starring Sean Penn and Robert Duvall and directed by Dennis Hopper. The story takes place in South Central Los Angeles, and is about Bob Hodges , an experienced LAPD Community Resources Against Street Hoodlums Police Officer III, and his rookie partner,...
. In 1989, he appeared in a video for Angela Winbush
Angela Winbush
Angela Winbush is an American R&B/soul singer-songwriter who rose to fame first in the 1980s R&B duo René & Angela, also scoring hits as a solo artist.-Early life and career:...
's #2 hit single "It's the Real Thing
It's the Real Thing
"It's the Real Thing" is the title track and lead single from Angela Winbush's second album, The Real Thing. It climbed to number two on the R&B Singles chart. Oscar-nominated actor Don Cheadle, appears in the music video for the song.-Charts:...
", performing dance moves in an orange jump suit, working at a car wash. In 1990, he appeared in an episode of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is an American television sitcom that originally aired on NBC from September 10, 1990 to May 20, 1996. The show stars Will Smith as a fictionalized version of himself, a street-smart teenager from West Philadelphia who is sent to move in with his aunt and uncle in their...
titled "Homeboy, Sweet Homeboy", playing Will Smith
Will Smith
Willard Christopher "Will" Smith, Jr. , also known by his stage name The Fresh Prince, is an American actor, producer, and rapper. He has enjoyed success in television, film and music. In April 2007, Newsweek called him the most powerful actor in Hollywood...
's friend and Hilary's first love interest, Ice Tray. In 1992, he received a supporting role in The Golden Girls
The Golden Girls
The Golden Girls is an American sitcom created by Susan Harris, which originally aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, to May 9, 1992. Starring Bea Arthur, Betty White, Rue McClanahan and Estelle Getty, the show centers on four older women sharing a home in Miami, Florida...
spin-off The Golden Palace
The Golden Palace
The Golden Palace is an American sitcom that originally aired on CBS from September 18, 1992, to May 14, 1993. The show was a spin-off and continuation of the sitcom The Golden Girls....
. Although the show was highly publicized, it was canceled after one season. Cheadle subsequently played district attorney
District attorney
In many jurisdictions in the United States, a District Attorney is an elected or appointed government official who represents the government in the prosecution of criminal offenses. The district attorney is the highest officeholder in the jurisdiction's legal department and supervises a staff of...
John Littleton on two seasons of Picket Fences
Picket Fences
Picket Fences is a 60-minute American television drama about the residents of the fictional town of Rome, Wisconsin, created and produced by David E. Kelley. The show initially ran from September 18, 1992, to June 26, 1996, on the CBS television network in the United States...
.
Cheadle first received widespread notice for his portrayal of Mouse Alexander in the film Devil in a Blue Dress
Devil in a Blue Dress (film)
Devil in a Blue Dress is a 1995 American neo-noir film directed by Carl Franklin and photographed by Tak Fujimoto.The film was based on Walter Mosley's novel of the same name, was executive produced by Jonathan Demme, and starred Denzel Washington, Tom Sizemore, Jennifer Beals, and Don Cheadle.In...
, for which he won Best Supporting Actor awards from the Los Angeles Film Critics Association
Los Angeles Film Critics Association
The Los Angeles Film Critics Association was founded in 1975. Its main purpose is to present yearly awards to members of the film industry who have excelled in their fields. These awards are presented each January...
and the National Society of Film Critics
National Society of Film Critics
The National Society of Film Critics is an American film critic organization. As of December 2007 the NSFC had approximately 60 members who wrote for a variety of weekly and daily newspapers.-History:...
and was nominated for similar awards from the Screen Actors Guild
Screen Actors Guild
The Screen Actors Guild is an American labor union representing over 200,000 film and television principal performers and background performers worldwide...
and the NAACP Image Awards. Following soon thereafter was his performance in the title role of the 1996 HBO TV movie Rebound: The Legend of Earl "The Goat" Manigault
Rebound: The Legend of Earl "The Goat" Manigault
Rebound: The Legend of Earl 'The Goat' Manigault is a 1996 HBO television film about Earl Manigault, an American street basketball legendary player famous under his nickname of "The Goat."...
. A legend among American street basketball players, Manigault
Earl Manigault
Earl Manigault was a famous American street basketball player nicknamed "The Goat."-Early life and career:...
is considered by many to be the best streetball
Streetball
Streetball or street basketball is a variation of the sport of basketball, typically played on outdoor courts and featuring significantly less by way of formal structure and enforcement of the game's rules...
player that never reached the NBA
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
as a professional. He also starred in the 1997 film Volcano, directed by Mick Jackson.
Cheadle's fame spread with a regular role as the district attorney on the television series Picket Fences
Picket Fences
Picket Fences is a 60-minute American television drama about the residents of the fictional town of Rome, Wisconsin, created and produced by David E. Kelley. The show initially ran from September 18, 1992, to June 26, 1996, on the CBS television network in the United States...
. Cheadle's other television credits include Emmy-nominated performances in the movies The Rat Pack
The Rat Pack (film)
The Rat Pack is a 1998 HBO TV movie about the Rat Pack. The movie stars Ray Liotta as Frank Sinatra, Joe Mantegna as Dean Martin, Don Cheadle as Sammy Davis, Jr., and Angus Macfadyen as Peter Lawford....
, A Lesson Before Dying
A Lesson Before Dying
A Lesson Before Dying is Ernest J. Gaines' eighth novel, published in 1993.-Point of view:The reader is given a unique outlook on the status of African Americans in the South, after World War II and before the Civil Rights Movement...
, Things Behind the Sun
Things Behind the Sun
Things Behind the Sun is a 2001 film starring Kim Dickens and Gabriel Mann and directed by Allison Anders. Its title is taken from a song by Nick Drake....
and in a guest appearance on ER
ER (TV series)
ER is an American medical drama television series created by novelist Michael Crichton that aired on NBC from September 19, 1994 to April 2, 2009. It was produced by Constant c Productions and Amblin Entertainment, in association with Warner Bros. Television...
. The last of these spanned four episodes during the show's ninth season, in which he portrayed Paul Nathan, a medical student struggling to cope with Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system...
. He has made appearances in films including Rosewood
Rosewood (film)
Rosewood is a 1997 feature film, directed by John Singleton. While based on historic events of the 1923 Rosewood massacre in Florida, the film introduces fictional characters and changes from historic accounts. It stars Ving Rhames as a man who travels to the town and becomes a witness...
, The Family Man
The Family Man
The Family Man is a 2000 drama film directed by Brett Ratner and starring Nicolas Cage and Téa Leoni. Cage's production company, Saturn Films, helped produce the film....
, Boogie Nights
Boogie Nights
Boogie Nights is a 1997 drama film written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. Set in Los Angeles's San Fernando Valley, the script focuses on a young nightclub dishwasher who becomes a popular star of pornographic films, and chronicles his rise and fall from the Golden Age of Porn of the 1970s...
, a cameo appearance in the film Abby Singer
Abby Singer (film)
Abby Singer is a darkly comic tale that chronicles the life of Curtis Clemins, who is torn between the love of his life and accomplishing his dream. Originally released in 2003, there was a different version released in 2006 and a limited DVD release in 2007. The film had some film festival...
, Out of Sight
Out of Sight
Out of Sight is a 1998 American crime film. The film was directed by Steven Soderbergh and based on the novel of the same name by Elmore Leonard. It was the first of several collaborations between Soderbergh and star George Clooney. The film was released on June 26, 1998. It was nominated for two...
, Traffic
Traffic (2000 film)
Traffic is a 2000 American crime drama film directed by Steven Soderbergh and written by Stephen Gaghan. It explores the illegal drug trade from a number of perspectives: a user, an enforcer, a politician and a trafficker. Their stories are edited together throughout the film, although some of the...
, and Ocean's Eleven
Ocean's Eleven (2001 film)
Ocean's Eleven is a 2001 American comedy-crime caper and remake of the 1960 Rat Pack caper film of the same name. The 2001 film was directed by Steven Soderbergh and features an ensemble cast including George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Don Cheadle, Andy García, and Julia Roberts. The film was...
. These last three were directed by Steven Soderbergh
Steven Soderbergh
Steven Andrew Soderbergh is an American film producer, screenwriter, cinematographer, editor, and an Academy Award-winning film director. He is best known for directing commercial Hollywood films like Erin Brockovich, Traffic, and the remake of Ocean's Eleven, but he has also directed smaller less...
. In 2005, Cheadle was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor
Academy Award for Best Actor
Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
for his portrayal of Paul Rusesabagina
Paul Rusesabagina
Paul Rusesabagina is a Rwandan humanitarian who has been internationally honored for saving 1,268 refugees during the Rwandan Genocide. He was the assistant manager of the Sabena Hôtel des Mille Collines before he became the manager of the Hôtel des Diplomates, both in Kigali, Rwanda...
in the film Hotel Rwanda
Hotel Rwanda
Hotel Rwanda is a 2004 American drama film directed by Terry George. It was adapted from a screenplay written by both George and Keir Pearson. Based on real life events which took place in Rwanda during the spring of 1994, the film stars Don Cheadle as hotelier Paul Rusesabagina, who attempts to...
. He also starred in, and was one of the producers of Crash
Crash (2004 film)
Crash is a 2004 American drama film co-written, produced, and directed by Paul Haggis. The film is about racial and social tensions in Los Angeles, California. A self-described "passion piece" for Haggis, Crash was inspired by a real life incident in which his Porsche was carjacked outside a video...
, which won the 2005 Academy Award for Best Picture
Academy Award for Best Picture
The Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to artists working in the motion picture industry. The Best Picture category is the only category in which every member of the Academy is eligible not only...
. For his performance in Crash, Cheadle was nominated for BAFTA and Screen Actors Guild
Screen Actors Guild
The Screen Actors Guild is an American labor union representing over 200,000 film and television principal performers and background performers worldwide...
Award for Best Supporting Actor. He played the main character in the movie Traitor
Traitor (film)
Traitor is a 2008 American spy thriller film, based on an idea by Steve Martin who is also an executive producer. Written and directed by Jeffrey Nachmanoff, the film stars Don Cheadle and Guy Pearce in the lead roles.-Plot:...
. Cheadle starred in Hotel for Dogs
Hotel for Dogs
Hotel for Dogs is a novel by Lois Duncan. It was adapted into a film of the same name by Nickelodeon Movies for DreamWorks Pictures, released on January 16, 2009. When the book was originally released in 1971, Andi's name was Liz, and Friday's name was Sadie. The book was re-released December 1,...
by Dreamworks.
In 2007 Cheadle published a book, Not On Our Watch: The Mission to End Genocide in Darfur and Beyond, co-authored with John Prendergast
John Prendergast
John Prendergast is an American human rights activist, author, and former Director for African Affairs at the National Security Council. He is the co-founder of the Enough Project, a non profit human rights organization affiliated with the Center for American Progress...
.
Cheadle was to make his directorial debut with the adaptation of Elmore Leonard
Elmore Leonard
Elmore John Leonard Jr. , better known as Elmore Leonard, is an American novelist and screenwriter. His earliest published novels in the 1950s were westerns, but Leonard went on to specialize in crime fiction and suspense thrillers, many of which have been adapted into motion pictures.Among his...
's Tishomingo Blues
Tishomingo Blues (novel)
Tishomingo Blues is a 2002 novel by Elmore Leonard, set in Mississippi, about two fledgling allies, the local Dixie Mafia, and a high-stakes Civil War re-enactment. It happens to be Leonard's favorite book of the books he has written...
. In a July 2007 interview he stated, "'Tishomingo' is dead..."
Cheadle appeared in NFL
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
commercials promoting the Super Bowl
Super Bowl
The Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League , the highest level of professional American football in the United States, culminating a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. The Super Bowl uses Roman numerals to identify each game, rather...
from 2002 to 2005. He so regularly appeared for the NFL in its Super Bowl advertising that in 2006, in a drive to have fans submit their own advertising ideas, the NFL sought his permission to reference his previous commercials to portray themselves as having no new ideas: "he quickly signed off on the idea and found it funny." Abe Sutton (along with Etan Bednarsh), one of the finalists in this NFL contest, played on this commercial by proposing an ad where an entire team of football players are Don Cheadle.
Cheadle and Boondocks creator Aaron McGruder
Aaron McGruder
Aaron McGruder is an American cartoonist best known for writing and drawing The Boondocks, a Universal Press Syndicate comic strip about two young African American brothers from inner-city Chicago now living with their grandfather in a sedate suburb, as well as being the creator and executive...
are working together to launch a comedy show on NBC. The "project revolves around mismatched brothers who reunite to open a private security company." Cheadle will serve as an executive producer, along with McGruder, who will write the script.
In 2009, Cheadle performed in The People Speak
The People Speak (film)
The People Speak is a documentary feature film that uses dramatic and musical performances of the letters, diaries, and speeches of everyday Americans. The film gives voice to those who, by insisting on equality and justice, spoke up for social change throughout U.S...
, a documentary feature film that uses dramatic and musical performances of the letters, diaries, and speeches of everyday Americans, based on historian Howard Zinn
Howard Zinn
Howard Zinn was an American historian, academic, author, playwright, and social activist. Before and during his tenure as a political science professor at Boston University from 1964-88 he wrote more than 20 books, which included his best-selling and influential A People's History of the United...
's A People's History of the United States
A People's History of the United States
Chapter 7, "As Long As Grass Grows or Water Runs" discusses 19th century conflicts between the U.S. government and Native Americans and Indian removal, especially during the administrations of Andrew Jackson and Martin Van Buren....
.
In 2010, Cheadle assumed the role of James Rhodes
War Machine
War Machine is a fictional character, a comic book superhero appearing in comic books set in the Marvel Comics universe. The character of James Rhodes first appeared in Iron Man #118 by David Michelinie, John Byrne and Bob Layton...
in the film Iron Man 2
Iron Man 2
Iron Man 2 is a 2010 American superhero film featuring the Marvel Comics character Iron Man, produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Paramount Pictures. It is the sequel to 2008's Iron Man, the second film in a planned trilogy and is a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Directed by Jon...
, replacing Terrence Howard
Terrence Howard
Terrence Dashon Howard is an American actor. Having his first major role in the 1995 film Mr. Holland's Opus, which subsequently led to a number of roles in films and high visibility among African American audiences. Howard broke into the mainstream with a succession of well-reviewed television...
, his Crash co-star.
In 2010, Cheadle was appointed, "U.N. Environment Program Goodwill Ambassador." He and Prendergast published their second book, The Enough Moment
The Enough Moment
The Enough Moment: Fighting to End Africa's Worst Human Rights Crimes is the second book co-authored by actor Don Cheadle, and co-founder of the Enough Project and human rights activist, John Prendergast...
: Fighting to End Africa's Worst Human Rights Crimes, in 2010.
He also appeared in Derek Water's "Drunk History" video as Frederick Douglass.
Personal life
According to the episode of the "National Heads-Up Poker Championship" aired on NBCNBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
on April 15, 2007, Cheadle defeated noted poker champion Phil Ivey
Phil Ivey
Phillip Dennis "Phil" Ivey Jr. is an American professional poker player who has won eight World Series of Poker bracelets, one World Poker Tour title and appeared at nine World Poker Tour final tables...
in the first round of the tournament. The two met in the "Hearts & Diamonds" bracket. Cheadle, as an amateur player, was considered a significant underdog against the professional Ivey, notorious for his stone-cold "poker face". On the episode aired April 29, 2007, in the second round of the tournament, Cheadle was defeated and knocked out of the tournament by Vegas poker pro Scott Fischman
Scott Fischman
Scott Fischman is an American professional poker player based in Las Vegas, Nevada.Fischman grew up in South Jersey and moved to Las Vegas at the age of 12. He was introduced to poker by a schoolfriend and went on to become a poker dealer at the Sahara and the Mirage...
. In the same tournament in 2009, he defeated David Pham
David Pham
David Pham , is a Vietnamese-American professional poker player from Bell Gardens, California with two World Series of Poker bracelets and has made seven final tables at the World Poker Tour.- Early life :...
in the first round only to lose to Paul Wasicka
Paul Wasicka
Paul J. Wasicka is a professional poker player, based in Las Vegas, Nevada who was the runner-up at the 2006 World Series of Poker Main Event and the winner of the 2007 NBC National Heads-Up Poker Championship....
in the round of 32.
At the 2007 World Series of Poker
2007 World Series of Poker
The 2007 World Series of Poker began on June 1, 2007. The $10,000 no-limit Texas hold 'em Main Event began on July 6 and was completed on the morning of July 18...
, Cheadle and poker player Annie Duke
Annie Duke
Annie Duke is a professional poker player and author who won a bracelet in the 2004 World Series of Poker $2,000 Omaha Hi-Low Split-8 or Better Event and was the winner of the 2004 World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions, where she earned the Winner-Take-All prize of $2,000,000...
organized an annual charity poker tournament, "Ante Up for Africa". Many Hollywood actors were expected to play in the tournament, which had a $
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
5,000 buy-in. Money finishers were encouraged to donate part of their winnings to the International Rescue Committee
International Rescue Committee
The International Rescue Committee is a leading nonsectarian, nongovernmental international relief and development organization based in the United States, with operations in over 40 countries...
or the Enough Project
Enough Project
Enough is a project of the Center for American Progress , based in Washington, D.C., created to end genocide and crimes against humanity. Its Co-Founders are John Prendergast and Gayle Smith; its Executive Director is John C. Bradshaw, J.D....
. The annual tournament is one of two non-bracelet events listed on the official WSOP schedule.
In 2007, Cheadle was awarded the BET Humanitarian award of the year for his numerous humanitarian services he rendered for the cause of the people of Darfur and Rwanda.
On December 13, 2007, Cheadle and fellow actor George Clooney
George Clooney
George Timothy Clooney is an American actor, film director, producer, and screenwriter. For his work as an actor, he has received two Golden Globe Awards and an Academy Award...
were presented with the Summit Peace Award by the Nobel Peace Prize Laureates in Rome for their work to stop the genocide and relieve the suffering of the people of Darfur. The award was presented by the World Summit of Nobel Laureates, Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev is a former Soviet statesman, having served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1985 until 1991, and as the last head of state of the USSR, having served from 1988 until its dissolution in 1991...
, and TheCommunity.com
TheCommunity.com
Founded in 1999 as a portal for non-profit organizations, TheCommunity.com provides news, projects and interaction with global leaders including the winners of the Nobel Peace Prize...
.
In 2008, Cheadle's family history was profiled on the PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
series African American Lives 2. A DNA test shows that he may have ancestry in present day Cameroon
Cameroon
Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon , is a country in west Central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west; Chad to the northeast; the Central African Republic to the east; and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo to the south. Cameroon's coastline lies on the...
.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | 3 Days | Angel | |
| 1985 | Moving Violations Moving Violations Moving Violations is a 1985 comedy film starring John Murray, Jennifer Tilly, Brian Backer, Sally Kellerman, Nedra Volz, Clara Peller, Wendie Jo Sperber and Fred Willard. It was directed by Neal Israel... |
Juicy Burgers Worker | |
| 1986 | Punk | ||
| 1987 | Hamburger Hill Hamburger Hill Hamburger Hill is a 1987 American war film about the actual assault of the U.S. Army's 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment, part of the 3rd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division 'Screaming Eagles', on a well-fortified position, including trenchworks and bunkers, of the North Vietnamese Army on Ap Bia... |
Pvt. Washburn | |
| 1988 | Colors Colors (film) Colors is a 1988 police procedural crime film starring Sean Penn and Robert Duvall and directed by Dennis Hopper. The story takes place in South Central Los Angeles, and is about Bob Hodges , an experienced LAPD Community Resources Against Street Hoodlums Police Officer III, and his rookie partner,... |
Rocket | |
| 1992 | Roadside Prophets Roadside Prophets Roadside Prophets is a 1992 cult film written and directed by Abbe Wool, featuring musicians John Doe of the L.A. punk band X, and Adam Horovitz of the Beastie Boys, with cameo appearances by, amongst others, Timothy Leary, Arlo Guthrie, David Carradine, an uncharacteristic performance by John... |
Happy Days Manager | |
| 1993 | Goldilocks | ||
| 1993 | Lush Life | Jack | (TV movie) |
| 1995 | Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead is a 1995 crime film directed by Gary Fleder from a screenplay written by Scott Rosenberg. The film features an ensemble cast that includes Andy García, Christopher Lloyd, Steve Buscemi, Christopher Walken, Fairuza Balk, and Gabrielle Anwar.The film's title... |
Rooster | |
| 1995 | Devil in a Blue Dress Devil in a Blue Dress (film) Devil in a Blue Dress is a 1995 American neo-noir film directed by Carl Franklin and photographed by Tak Fujimoto.The film was based on Walter Mosley's novel of the same name, was executive produced by Jonathan Demme, and starred Denzel Washington, Tom Sizemore, Jennifer Beals, and Don Cheadle.In... |
Mouse Alexander | Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor The Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor is one of the annual awards given by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association.This award has been awarded since 1977.-1970s:-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:... National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor The National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor is an annual film award given by the National Society of Film Critics.The awards was given for the first time in 1968 .-1960s:-1970s:-1980s:-1990s:... Nominated—Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor The Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor is an annual award given by the Chicago Film Critics Association.-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:-References:... Nominated—NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture The NAACP Image Award winners for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture:Performers that earned or won Academy Award nominations:*1. Denzel Washington- Glory*2. Djimon Hounsou- In America*3. Morgan Freeman- Million Dollar Baby... Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role |
| 1996 | Rebound: The Legend of Earl "The Goat" Manigault Rebound: The Legend of Earl "The Goat" Manigault Rebound: The Legend of Earl 'The Goat' Manigault is a 1996 HBO television film about Earl Manigault, an American street basketball legendary player famous under his nickname of "The Goat."... |
Earl "The Goat" Manigault | (TV movie) Nominated—NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special The NAACP Image Award winners for Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special:... |
| 1997 | Volcano | Emmit Reese | |
| 1997 | Rosewood Rosewood (film) Rosewood is a 1997 feature film, directed by John Singleton. While based on historic events of the 1923 Rosewood massacre in Florida, the film introduces fictional characters and changes from historic accounts. It stars Ving Rhames as a man who travels to the town and becomes a witness... |
Sylvester Carrier | Nominated—NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture The NAACP Image Award winners for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture:Performers that earned or won Academy Award nominations:*1. Denzel Washington- Glory*2. Djimon Hounsou- In America*3. Morgan Freeman- Million Dollar Baby... |
| 1997 | Boogie Nights Boogie Nights Boogie Nights is a 1997 drama film written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. Set in Los Angeles's San Fernando Valley, the script focuses on a young nightclub dishwasher who becomes a popular star of pornographic films, and chronicles his rise and fall from the Golden Age of Porn of the 1970s... |
Buck Swope | Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Cast Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture |
| 1998 | Out of Sight Out of Sight Out of Sight is a 1998 American crime film. The film was directed by Steven Soderbergh and based on the novel of the same name by Elmore Leonard. It was the first of several collaborations between Soderbergh and star George Clooney. The film was released on June 26, 1998. It was nominated for two... |
Maurice Miller | |
| 1998 | Sammy Davis Jr. | Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film Nominated—Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor – Miniseries or a Movie Nominated—NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special The NAACP Image Award winners for Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special:... |
|
| 1998 | Bulworth Bulworth Bulworth is a 1998 American film co-written, co-produced and directed by the film's star, Warren Beatty. It was loosely based on the life of Beatty's friend, Tennessee political figure John Jay Hooker. It co-stars Halle Berry, Oliver Platt, Don Cheadle, Paul Sorvino, Jack Warden, and Isaiah... |
L.D. | Nominated—NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture The NAACP Image Award winners for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture:Performers that earned or won Academy Award nominations:*1. Denzel Washington- Glory*2. Djimon Hounsou- In America*3. Morgan Freeman- Million Dollar Baby... |
| 1999 | Grant Wiggins | (TV movie) Black Reel Award for Network/Cable – Best Actor Black Reel Awards The Black Reel Awards began in 2000 and were designed to annually recognize and celebrate the achievements of black people in feature, independent and television films... Nominated—Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor – Miniseries or a Movie Nominated—NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special The NAACP Image Award winners for Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special:... Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film |
|
| 2000 | Traffic Traffic (2000 film) Traffic is a 2000 American crime drama film directed by Steven Soderbergh and written by Stephen Gaghan. It explores the illegal drug trade from a number of perspectives: a user, an enforcer, a politician and a trafficker. Their stories are edited together throughout the film, although some of the... |
Montel Gordon | Black Reel Award for Best Supporting Actor Black Reel Awards The Black Reel Awards began in 2000 and were designed to annually recognize and celebrate the achievements of black people in feature, independent and television films... Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture |
| 2000 | Mission to Mars Mission to Mars Mission to Mars is a 2000 science fiction film directed by Brian De Palma from an original screenplay written by Jim Thomas, John Thomas, and Graham Yost. The film's story details a fictional portrayal of a manned Mars exploration mission gone awry in the year 2020... |
Luke Graham | |
| 2000 | Fail Safe | Lt. Jimmy Pierce | (TV movie) |
| 2000 | Cash | ||
| 2001 | Things Behind the Sun Things Behind the Sun Things Behind the Sun is a 2001 film starring Kim Dickens and Gabriel Mann and directed by Allison Anders. Its title is taken from a song by Nick Drake.... |
Chuck | Nominated—Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor – Miniseries or a Movie Nominated—Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male |
| 2001 | Manic Manic (film) Manic is a 2001 American drama film directed by Jordan Melamed and written by Michael Bacall and Blayne Weaver. It was shown at several film festivals in 2001 and 2002, including the Sundance Film Festival. The region 1 DVD was released January 20, 2004... |
Dr. David Monroe | |
| 2001 | Swordfish Swordfish (film) Swordfish is a 2001 crime-thriller film, directed by Dominic Sena and starring John Travolta, Hugh Jackman, Halle Berry, Don Cheadle and Vinnie Jones. The film is an action thriller that was also notable for Halle Berry's first topless scene... |
Agent J.T. Roberts | |
| 2001 | Ticker | Passenger | |
| 2001 | Rush Hour 2 Rush Hour 2 Rush Hour 2 is a 2001 martial arts action comedy film. This is the second installment in the Rush Hour film series. A sequel to the 1998 film Rush Hour, the film stars Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker who respectively reprise their roles as Inspector Lee and Los Angeles police detective James Carter... |
Kenny | (uncredited) |
| 2001 | Ocean's Eleven Ocean's Eleven (2001 film) Ocean's Eleven is a 2001 American comedy-crime caper and remake of the 1960 Rat Pack caper film of the same name. The 2001 film was directed by Steven Soderbergh and features an ensemble cast including George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Don Cheadle, Andy García, and Julia Roberts. The film was... |
Basher Tarr | |
| 2001 | Abby Singer Abby Singer (film) Abby Singer is a darkly comic tale that chronicles the life of Curtis Clemins, who is torn between the love of his life and accomplishing his dream. Originally released in 2003, there was a different version released in 2006 and a limited DVD release in 2007. The film had some film festival... |
Himself | |
| 2003 | Pearl Madison | ||
| 2004 | Ocean's Twelve Ocean's Twelve Ocean's Twelve is a 2004 American crime comedy film, the sequel to 2001's Ocean's Eleven. Like its predecessor, which was a remake of the 1960 film Ocean's 11, the film used a celebrity ensemble cast. It was released in the United States on December 10, 2004. A third film, Ocean's Thirteen, was... |
Basher Tarr | Nominated—BET Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Theatrical Film BET Awards The BET Awards were established in 2001 by the Black Entertainment Television network to celebrate African Americans and other minorities in music, acting, sports, and other fields of entertainment over the past year. The awards are presented annually and broadcast live on BET... Nominated—Association Award for Best Cast Nominated—NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture The NAACP Image Award winners for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture:Performers that earned or won Academy Award nominations:*1. Denzel Washington- Glory*2. Djimon Hounsou- In America*3. Morgan Freeman- Million Dollar Baby... |
| 2004 | After the Sunset After the Sunset After the Sunset is a 2004 action comedy film starring Pierce Brosnan as Max Burdett, a master thief caught in a cat-and-mouse game with FBI agent Stan Lloyd played by Woody Harrelson... |
Henri Mooré | |
| 2004 | Bonny Simmons | ||
| 2004 | "Unchained Memories" – Readings From The Slave Narratives | Film received two Emmy nominations and won the Christopher Award | |
| 2004 | Hotel Rwanda Hotel Rwanda Hotel Rwanda is a 2004 American drama film directed by Terry George. It was adapted from a screenplay written by both George and Keir Pearson. Based on real life events which took place in Rwanda during the spring of 1994, the film stars Don Cheadle as hotelier Paul Rusesabagina, who attempts to... |
Paul Rusesabagina | Satellite Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama Nominated—Academy Award for Best Actor Academy Award for Best Actor Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry... Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Nominated—Black Reel Award for Best Cast Black Reel Awards The Black Reel Awards began in 2000 and were designed to annually recognize and celebrate the achievements of black people in feature, independent and television films... Nominated—Black Reel Award for Best Actor Black Reel Awards The Black Reel Awards began in 2000 and were designed to annually recognize and celebrate the achievements of black people in feature, independent and television films... Nominated—Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Actor The Critics' Choice Award for Best Actor is one of the awards given to people working in the motion picture industry by the Broadcast Film Critics Association.-List of winners and nominees:*1995: Kevin Bacon - Murder in the First as Henri Young... Nominated—Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama Nominated—London Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor London Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor The London Film Critics Circle Award for Actor of the Year in an annual award given by the London Film Critics Circle.-2000s:-2010s:... also for Crash Crash (2004 film) Crash is a 2004 American drama film co-written, produced, and directed by Paul Haggis. The film is about racial and social tensions in Los Angeles, California. A self-described "passion piece" for Haggis, Crash was inspired by a real life incident in which his Porsche was carjacked outside a video... Nominated—NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture The NAACP Image Award winners for Outstanding African-American Actors in a Motion Picture:# of Performances that have won or been nominated for an Academy Award :*1. Louis Gossett Jr.- An Officer and a Gentleman... Nominated—Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor The Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor is an annual film award given by the Online Film Critics Society to honor the best lead actor of the year.-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:... Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role |
| 2005 | Crash Crash (2004 film) Crash is a 2004 American drama film co-written, produced, and directed by Paul Haggis. The film is about racial and social tensions in Los Angeles, California. A self-described "passion piece" for Haggis, Crash was inspired by a real life incident in which his Porsche was carjacked outside a video... |
Det. Graham Waters | Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role Best Actor in a Supporting Role is a British Academy Film award presented annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding supporting performance in a film... Nominated—Black Movie Award for Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role Nominated—Black Reel Award for Best Actor Black Reel Awards The Black Reel Awards began in 2000 and were designed to annually recognize and celebrate the achievements of black people in feature, independent and television films... Nominated—Gotham Award for Best Ensemble Cast Nominated—London Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor London Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor The London Film Critics Circle Award for Actor of the Year in an annual award given by the London Film Critics Circle.-2000s:-2010s:... also for Hotel Rwanda Hotel Rwanda Hotel Rwanda is a 2004 American drama film directed by Terry George. It was adapted from a screenplay written by both George and Keir Pearson. Based on real life events which took place in Rwanda during the spring of 1994, the film stars Don Cheadle as hotelier Paul Rusesabagina, who attempts to... Nominated—NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture The NAACP Image Award winners for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture:Performers that earned or won Academy Award nominations:*1. Denzel Washington- Glory*2. Djimon Hounsou- In America*3. Morgan Freeman- Million Dollar Baby... Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role |
| 2006 | Dr. Nourmand | ||
| 2006 | King Leopold's Ghost King Leopold's Ghost King Leopold's Ghost is a best-selling popular history book by Adam Hochschild that explores the exploitation of the Congo Free State by King Leopold II of Belgium between 1885 and 1908.... |
Narrator | |
| 2007 | Reign Over Me | Alan Johnson | |
| 2007 | Talk to Me Talk to Me (2007 film) Talk To Me is a 2007 biographical film about Washington, D.C. radio personality Ralph "Petey" Greene, an ex-con who became a popular talk show host and community activist, and Dewey Hughes, his friend and manager... |
Petey Greene | African-American Film Critics-Best Actor Gotham Award for Best Ensemble Cast Nominated—Independent Spirit Award for Best Male Lead Nominated—NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture The NAACP Image Award winners for Outstanding African-American Actors in a Motion Picture:# of Performances that have won or been nominated for an Academy Award :*1. Louis Gossett Jr.- An Officer and a Gentleman... Nominated—Satellite Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy |
| 2007 | Ocean's Thirteen Ocean's Thirteen Ocean's Thirteen is a 2007 crime comedy film directed by Steven Soderbergh and starring an ensemble cast. It is the third and final film in the Soderbergh series following the 2004 sequel Ocean's Twelve and the 2001 film Ocean's Eleven, which itself was a remake of the 1960 Rat Pack film Ocean's 11... |
Basher Tarr | |
| 2007 | Darfur Now Darfur Now Darfur Now is a 2007 documentary film examining the genocide in Darfur, Sudan. It was written and directed by Ted Braun and produced by Don Cheadle, Mark Jonathan Harris and Cathy Schulman. Executive Producers were Jeffrey Skoll and Omar Amanat... |
Himself | |
| 2008 | Traitor Traitor (film) Traitor is a 2008 American spy thriller film, based on an idea by Steve Martin who is also an executive producer. Written and directed by Jeffrey Nachmanoff, the film stars Don Cheadle and Guy Pearce in the lead roles.-Plot:... |
Samir Horn | Nominated—Black Reel Award for Best Actor Black Reel Awards The Black Reel Awards began in 2000 and were designed to annually recognize and celebrate the achievements of black people in feature, independent and television films... Nominated—NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture The NAACP Image Award winners for Outstanding African-American Actors in a Motion Picture:# of Performances that have won or been nominated for an Academy Award :*1. Louis Gossett Jr.- An Officer and a Gentleman... |
| 2009 | Hotel for Dogs Hotel for Dogs (film) Hotel for Dogs is a 2009 American children's comedy film based on the 1971 Lois Duncan novel of the same name. The film, directed by Thor Freudenthal and adapted by Jeff Lowell, Bob Schooley, and Mark McCorkle, stars Johnny Simmons, Emma Roberts, Jake T. Austin, Lisa Kudrow, Kevin Dillon, Kyla... |
Bernie | |
| 2009 | Himself | Documentary | |
| 2010 | Brooklyn's Finest Brooklyn's Finest Brooklyn's Finest is a 2009 American crime film starring Richard Gere, Don Cheadle, Ethan Hawke, and Wesley Snipes in his first theatrical film since 2004's Blade: Trinity. The film also stars Will Patton, Ellen Barkin and Vincent D'Onofrio. It is directed by Antoine Fuqua, and written by Michael... |
Clarence 'Tango' Butler | |
| 2010 | Iron Man 2 Iron Man 2 Iron Man 2 is a 2010 American superhero film featuring the Marvel Comics character Iron Man, produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Paramount Pictures. It is the sequel to 2008's Iron Man, the second film in a planned trilogy and is a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Directed by Jon... |
Col. James 'Rhodey' Rhodes/War Machine | (replaces Terrence Howard Terrence Howard Terrence Dashon Howard is an American actor. Having his first major role in the 1995 film Mr. Holland's Opus, which subsequently led to a number of roles in films and high visibility among African American audiences. Howard broke into the mainstream with a succession of well-reviewed television... ) |
| 2011 | FBI Agent Wendell Everett | ||
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Crash Crash (2004 film) Crash is a 2004 American drama film co-written, produced, and directed by Paul Haggis. The film is about racial and social tensions in Los Angeles, California. A self-described "passion piece" for Haggis, Crash was inspired by a real life incident in which his Porsche was carjacked outside a video... |
Producer | Academy Award for Best Picture Academy Award for Best Picture The Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to artists working in the motion picture industry. The Best Picture category is the only category in which every member of the Academy is eligible not only... Black Movie Award for Outstanding Motion Picture Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature The Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature is one of the annual Independent Spirit Awards. It is usually given to the director and producer . The "first feature" designation is applied to the director not the producer... Nominated—BAFTA Award for Best Film BAFTA Award for Best Film This page lists the winners and nominees for the BAFTA Award for Best Film, BAFTA Award for Best Film not in the English Language and Alexander Korda Award for Best British Film for each year, in addition to the retired earlier versions of those awards... |
| 2007 | Talk to Me Talk to Me (2007 film) Talk To Me is a 2007 biographical film about Washington, D.C. radio personality Ralph "Petey" Greene, an ex-con who became a popular talk show host and community activist, and Dewey Hughes, his friend and manager... |
Executive producer | |
| 2007 | Darfur Now Darfur Now Darfur Now is a 2007 documentary film examining the genocide in Darfur, Sudan. It was written and directed by Ted Braun and produced by Don Cheadle, Mark Jonathan Harris and Cathy Schulman. Executive Producers were Jeffrey Skoll and Omar Amanat... |
Producer | |
| 2008 | Traitor Traitor (film) Traitor is a 2008 American spy thriller film, based on an idea by Steve Martin who is also an executive producer. Written and directed by Jeffrey Nachmanoff, the film stars Don Cheadle and Guy Pearce in the lead roles.-Plot:... |
Producer | |
| 2008 | Crash Crash (2008 TV series) Crash is an American television drama series set in Los Angeles, California. It is the first original series produced by the Starz network. The network ordered a 13 episode season which premiered on October 17, 2008. The series is based on the 2004 film of the same name. It was developed for... |
Producer | 2 Episodes (2008) |
| Year | Series | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Fame Fame (1982 TV series) Fame is an American television series originally produced between 1982 and 1987. The show was based on the 1980 motion picture of the same name. Using a mixture of drama and music, it followed the lives of the students and faculty at the New York City High School for the Performing Arts. Although... |
Henry Lee | 2 episodes |
| 1986 | L.A. Law L.A. Law L.A. Law is a US television legal drama that ran on NBC from September 15, 1986 to May 19, 1994. L.A. Law reflected the social and cultural ideologies of the 1980s and early 1990s and many of the cases featured on the show dealt with hot topic issues such as abortion, racism, gay rights,... |
Julian Tatoon | Episode "Gibbon Take" |
| 1986 | Sidekicks Sidekicks (TV series) Sidekicks is a 1986-1987 Disney Channel martial arts TV series, a spin-off of the original Walt Disney one-time special, The Last Electric Knight. The series starred Ernie Reyes, Jr. as Ernie Lee, the Last Electric Knight, and Gil Gerard as Sergeant Jake Rizzo... |
Gang Leader | Episode "The Last Electric Knight" |
| 1987 | Hill Street Blues Hill Street Blues Hill Street Blues is an American serial police drama that was first aired on NBC in 1981 and ran for 146 episodes on primetime into 1987. Chronicling the lives of the staff of a single police precinct in an unnamed American city, the show received critical acclaim and its production innovations ... |
Darius Milton | Episode "Days of Swine and Roses" |
| 1987 | Carver | Episode "Small Victories" | |
| 1988 | Night Court Night Court Night Court is an American television situation comedy that aired on NBC from January 4, 1984, to May 20, 1992. The setting was the night shift of a Manhattan court, presided over by the young, unorthodox Judge Harold T. "Harry" Stone... |
Jack | Episode "Jung and the Restless" |
| 1988 | Hooperman Hooperman Hooperman is a U.S. television series starring John Ritter. It ran for two seasons on ABC, from 1987 to 1989. A comedy-drama, the series was created by Steven Bochco and Terry Louise Fisher who were the team responsible for creating L.A. Law.... |
Himself | Episode "High Noon" |
| 1989 | Booker Booker (TV series) Booker is an American crime drama series starring Richard Grieco that aired on the Fox Network from September 24, 1989 to May 6, 1990. The series was a spin-off of 21 Jump Street... |
Himself | Episode "The Pump" |
| 1990 | China Beach China Beach China Beach is an American dramatic television series set at an evacuation hospital during the Vietnam War. The title refers to My Khe beach in the city of Da Nang, Vietnam, which was nicknamed "China Beach" by unknown foreigners, most likely Americans... |
Angel | Episode "Warriors" |
| 1990 | Ice Tray | (5 episodes) | |
| 1992–1993 | Hangin' with Mr. Cooper Hangin' with Mr. Cooper Hangin' with Mr. Cooper is an American television sitcom that originally aired on ABC from 1992 to 1997, starring Mark Curry and Holly Robinson. The show took place in Curry's hometown of Oakland, California. Hangin' with Mr. Cooper was produced by Jeff Franklin Productions, in association with... |
Bennie | (2 episodes) |
| 1992–1993 | Roland Wilson | (23 episodes) | |
| 1993–1995 | Picket Fences Picket Fences Picket Fences is a 60-minute American television drama about the residents of the fictional town of Rome, Wisconsin, created and produced by David E. Kelley. The show initially ran from September 18, 1992, to June 26, 1996, on the CBS television network in the United States... |
D.A. John Littleton | (38 episodes) Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series (1995, 1996) |
| 2000 | Brother Faith | Episode: "Faith Off Faith Off "Faith Off" is the eleventh episode of the eleventh season of the American animated sitcom The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on January 16, 2000. In the episode, Bart believes he has the power to heal others through faith after removing a bucket glued to... " |
|
| 2002 | Cousin D | (2 episodes) – "Sweet Home Chicago: Parts 1 & 2" | |
| 2002 | ER ER (TV series) ER is an American medical drama television series created by novelist Michael Crichton that aired on NBC from September 19, 1994 to April 2, 2009. It was produced by Constant c Productions and Amblin Entertainment, in association with Warner Bros. Television... |
Paul Nathan | (4 episodes) Nominated—Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor – Drama Series |
| 2003 | MADtv MADtv MADtv is an American sketch comedy television series. It licensed the name and logo of Mad, but otherwise had no connection with the humor magazine outside the animated Spy vs. Spy and Don Martin cartoon shorts and images of Alfred E. Neuman that the show featured during the late 1990s. Its first... |
Perry | Episode #9.3 Greys Anatomy |
| 2011- | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation CSI: Crime Scene Investigation CSI: Crime Scene Investigation is an American crime drama television series, which premiered on CBS on October 6, 2000. The show was created by Anthony E. Zuiker and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer... |
Lloyd Prescott | |
| 2011 | House of Lies | Marty Kaan | Main role |
Voice acting
- Iron Man 2: The Video GameIron Man 2Iron Man 2 is a 2010 American superhero film featuring the Marvel Comics character Iron Man, produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Paramount Pictures. It is the sequel to 2008's Iron Man, the second film in a planned trilogy and is a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Directed by Jon...
video game (2010), Col. James 'Rhodey' Rhodes/War Machine
Theatre
- Topdog/UnderdogTopdog/UnderdogTopdog/Underdog is a play by Suzan-Lori Parks. Parks received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 2002 for the work.The play chronicles the adult lives of two African American brothers, Lincoln and Booth, as they cope with women, work, poverty, gambling, racism, and their troubled upbringings...
off-Broadway performances (2001)
External links
- Don Cheadle: The Hotel for Dogs Interview with Kam Williams
- European edition of Don Cheadle's book Not on Our Watch, published by Maverick House PublishersMaverick House PublishersMaverick House Publishers is an independent publisher of non-fiction books. It was founded in the Republic of Ireland. The headquarter is based in Dunboyne, Co. Meath, Ireland. A second branch is situated in Bangkok, Thailand...
2007 - 10 Questions for Don Cheadle on Time.com (a division of Time Magazine)
- Don Cheadle interview
- Not On Our Watch: George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Don Cheadle, Jerry Weintraub
- Don Cheadle Wins Sexiest Man 2009
- Don Cheadle signs TV production deal
- 'The People Speak' (LA Times article)