Shemar Moore

Shemar Franklin Moore was born on April 20, 1970, in Oakland, California. His early life involved living abroad in Denmark and Bahrain, where he attended a British private school until the age of seven. His mother, a math teacher, moved the family due to civil unrest and racism in the U.S. during the 1970s. Upon returning to the U.S., his family settled in California, where he eventually graduated from Gunn High School in Palo Alto. Moore went on to attend Santa Clara University on an athletic scholarship, playing varsity baseball. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in communications with a minor in Theater Arts.

Moore’s acting career began in 1994 with his notable role as Malcolm Winters on the CBS soap opera “The Young and the Restless,” a position he held for over a decade, with recurring appearances until 2023. During this period, he also served as the third permanent host of “Soul Train” from 1999 to 2003. A significant career turning point arrived in 2005 when he joined the original cast of “Criminal Minds” as Derek Morgan, a role that garnered him widespread recognition and a People’s Choice Award nomination in 2016. He left “Criminal Minds” in 2016 after 251 episodes.

In 2017, Moore took on the lead role of Sergeant II Daniel ‘Hondo’ Harrelson on the CBS series “S.W.A.T.,” which concluded in May 2025. He is also set to reprise this role in the upcoming spin-off series “S.W.A.T. EXILES.” Beyond television, Moore has appeared in films such as “The Brothers” (2001) and “Diary of a Mad Black Woman” (2005). He has also lent his voice to animated features like the “Justice League” series and roles in “Sonic the Hedgehog 2” (2022) and “Sonic the Hedgehog 3” (2024). Over his career, Moore has received eight NAACP Image Awards and a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series in 2000.