Terrence Howard

Terrence Dashon Howard is an American actor and singer who performs on film, television, and stage. Born on March 11, 1969, in Chicago to Tyrone and Anita Howard, he is of African and English descent, and his great-grandmother was actress Minnie Gentry. Howard was raised in Cleveland, Ohio, where he experienced a challenging childhood. Following his father's conviction for manslaughter, his parents divorced, and he was raised by his great-grandmother until her death in 1993.

Howard began his screen career on television, portraying Jackie Jackson in the 1992 miniseries The Jacksons: An American Dream. He made his feature film debut with a minor role in the 1993 buddy comedy Who's the Man? and gained wider attention in 1995 with roles in Mr. Holland's Opus, Dead Presidents, and the television movie The O. J. Simpson Story. Throughout the late 1990s and early 2000s, Howard appeared in television shows such as Family Matters, Moesha, and Sparks, as well as feature films including The Best Man in 1999.

In 2005, Howard starred as a pimp and aspiring rapper in the film Hustle & Flow, performing all of his character's vocal tracks. His performance earned him a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actor. That same year, he won an NAACP Image Award for his performance in the television film Lackawanna Blues. Howard subsequently appeared as Colonel James "Rhodey" Rhodes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe film Iron Man in 2008. He also worked as a film producer on the 2007 movie Pride and hosted the PBS documentary series Independent Lens in 2008.

In addition to his film work, Howard made his Broadway debut in 2008 as Brick in a revival of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. In September 2008, he released his debut adult alternative music album, Shine Through It, through Columbia/SME Records, writing or co-writing every track. His television career expanded with starring roles as Deputy District Attorney Joe Dekker in Law & Order: Los Angeles and Sheriff Arnold Pope in Wayward Pines. From 2015 to 2020, Howard played the lead role of hip-hop mogul Lucious Lyon on the Fox musical drama series Empire.

Howard's additional screen credits include the biographical film Winnie Mandela, the feature film The Best Man Holiday, and the miniseries The Best Man: The Final Chapters. In December 2022, Howard stated that he planned to retire from acting, though he has continued to appear in subsequent film and television projects, including Beneath and Skeletons in the Closet. Over the course of his career, he has received a Screen Actors Guild Award, along with nominations for a Golden Globe Award and two Independent Spirit Awards.