Terry Crews

Terry Crews first entered the American public’s consciousness as an NFL player, but it’s as an actor that he has truly found his niche. After appearing in several films, including cult favourites like White Chicks and Idiocracy, he got his breakthrough playing Julius in the hit comedy series Everybody Hates Chris. Since then, he has played major roles in the sitcoms Are We There Yet? and, most notably, the Golden Globe-winning Brooklyn Nine-Nine. He is also a high-profile television host and has fronted America’s Got Talent since 2019. In 2017, he was one of the joint winners of that year’s prestigious Time Person of the Year Award, given that year to a group of people who had bravely gone public with their experiences of sexual assault within the film industry, an episode that helped launch to now world-famous Me Too movement.

As a teenager, Crews was both a talented artist and athlete and won scholarships in both areas. Football won out, and he was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams in the 1991 NFL draft. By 1997, however, after playing for various NFL sides, he’d retired and returned to LA to pursue an acting career. After several minor roles, including adverts and music videos, he got his first major film role with rapper Ice Cube in the rapper’s 2002 comedy film Friday After Next. Further film roles followed, but it was the role of Julius Rock, the father of the title character in the acclaimed series Everybody Loves Chris that really launched his acting career. Since then, there has been no looking back as Crews has established himself as a well-respected force for good in the entertainment industry.