Wendell Pierce has shaped so much of our lives. Let’s face it, his credit list is basically a collection of culturally impactful films and TV series that have guided, informed and absolutely entertained us throughout the course of his four-decade career. On stage, he’s recited the words that so many of us couldn’t graduate high school without writing term papers on like Othello, and in film he has brought real-life heroes like Hosea Williams like in Selma to the 50-foot screen.
And here’s what’s so brilliant about the Juilliard School-trained actor: he’s got so much more in the tank.
Pierce is currently doing something that he almost rarely does – portraying a bad guy in Starz’s must-watch Raising Kanan, and as Ishmael “Snaps” Henry, he’s both terrifying and illuminating.
Recently, Pierce spoke with Andscape about the scope of his career, his love for Shakespearean words and how he came to fall in love with a Dublin-based soccer team. (Hint: his former The Wire scene partner Dominic West plays a role).
Kelley L. Carter is a senior entertainment reporter and the host of Another Act at Andscape. She can act out every episode of the U.S. version of The Office, she can and will sing the Michigan State University fight song on command and she is very much immune to Hollywood hotness.
