Obba Babatundé

Born: 1951-12-01

Obba Babatundé (born December 1, 1951) is an American actor of stage and screen, known for his Emmy-nominated performance in the television movie Miss Evers' Boys, a NAACP Image Award-nominated performance in the TV movie Introducing Dorothy Dandridge, and a Tony Award-nominated role for his performance as C.C. White in the original cast of the 1981 Broadway musical Dreamgirls. Babatundé was a protege of Sammy Davis, Jr., who said of him, "This is the only cat who can do everything I can do." Babatundé does dance, sing, play instruments, execute impersonations, including his portrayal of Davis, aided by their similarity in energy, size and talent, tap dancing and performing on multiple instruments. In fall 2009, Babatundé played Davis in the title role of "Sammy: Once in a Lifetime," a world premiere musical at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego. Early in 2000, Babatundé partnered with writer/producer Ruth Adkins Robinson for a series of TV projects including "TV in Black: The First 50 Years," "Oscar's Black Odyssey: From Hattie to Hallie" and "Dorthy Dandridge: An American Beauty". The pair have projects that will take them through 2011. His TV roles have often portrayed authority figures, such as a recurring guest-starring role as a high school principal on Dawson's Creek, an appearance as a judge in a two-part episode of Any Day Now, and as the father of the main characters on Half & Half. He also played Harvard college Dean Cain in the movie How High, as well as the role of Willie Long in the movie Life, and co-starred as an attorney in Philadelphia and as a senator in the 2004 reprise of The Manchurian Candidate. He also played the director in season 3 of Friends in an episode titled "The One with All the Jealousy". Other TV shows he has had recurring roles on include The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Chicago Hope, Rocket Power, Static Shock, and Karen Sisco. He played a small but pivotal role as a doorman/bellhop in the film That Thing You Do! and also appeared in The Wild Thornberrys Movie as the voice of Boko. He played a famous producer known as Gordy Berry on two episodes of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. In the 1998 miniseries, The Temptations, he played the founder of Motown Records Berry Gordy. Babatundé is adept at American sign language and had used this talent in many roles including on one NYPD Blue. His recorded work includes a performance with the New York pianist Onaje Allan Gumbs on the 2007 album Sack Full of Dreams. The actor/producer is also an avid horseman and is a highly regarded rider and trainer in the Rodeo Circuit, including the annual Bill Pickett Rodeol. ​From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


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The Notebook

as Band Leader
Released: 2004-06-25

An epic love story centered around an older man who reads aloud to a woman with Alzheimer's....

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How High

as Dean Carl Cain
Released: 2001-12-21

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The Silence of the Lambs

as TV Anchor Man
Released: 1991-02-14

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Material Girls

as Craig
Released: 2006-08-18

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Life

as Willie Long
Released: 1999-04-16

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The Manchurian Candidate

as Senator Wells
Released: 2004-07-30

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Philadelphia

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Scooby-Doo! Music of the Vampire

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as The Face of Justice
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All Star Superman

as Judge / Bibliobot (voice)
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Necronomicon

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Undercover Blues

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Miami Blues

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Lap Dance

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The Watcher

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Carpool

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Born to Be Wild

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Leonard Part 6

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Released: 1999-08-21

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Death's Door

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Kangaroo Jack: G'Day, U.S.A.!

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Miss Evers' Boys

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Pup Star: Better 2Gether

as Big Ears (voice)
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King: Man of Peace in a Time of War

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God Bless the Child

as Raymond Watkins
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Hollywood Singing and Dancing: A Musical History

as Self
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as Mesmer
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Soul of the Game

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Joy Road

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Redeemer

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Fatal Pursuit

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TV in Black: The First Fifty Years

as Self
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as Ikliff
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The Visit

as Tony
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Noble Intentions

as Pastor Stevens
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Cover

as Attorney Miller
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The Tomorrow Man

as Brian Parish
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Jingle Belle

as Charles Williams
Released: 2018-11-25

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I Do... I Did!

as Mr. Johnson
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M.A.N.T.I.S.

as Cornell
Released: 1994-01-24

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Dorothy Dandridge: An American Beauty

as Host
Released: 2003-06-24

Actor Obba Babatundé hosts this biopic showcasing the life of acclaimed African-American singer...

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Baryshnikov on Broadway

as Dancer
Released: 1980-04-24

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The Last Fall

as uncredited
Released: 2012-03-09

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Revival!

as Nicodemus
Released: 2019-04-19

A unique visual and musical experience based on the Gospel of John. Originally a Passion play,...

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American Bad Boy

as Pastor Lovely
Released: 2015-06-02

Samuel's dream of buying a recording studio, making a hit record, and becoming a famous hip-hop...

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The Millennial

as Mr. Burke
Released: 2022-01-27

A young privileged African American millennial recently receives his master' degree from a...

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Trigger

as Chief Keaton
Released: 2020-10-22

Collin escaped the hood and found his wife and fortune. His brother Trey is paroled from a...

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Dolls of Voodoo

as Iklif
Released: 2013-08-13

Two worlds collide when a successful Haitian American attorney marries the love of his life only...

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The Importance of Being Earnest

as Lane
Released: 1992-05-14

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One Special Moment

as uncredited
Released: 2001-06-01

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April Fools

as Detective Combs
Released: 2007-09-11

A year ago, DeAnna a young hottie, seduces Melvin the class nerd, only to set him up for a cruel...

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Treemonisha

as Zodzetrick
Released: 1982-01-01

A 1982 production of Scott Joplin's American Opera TREEMONISHA preformed at the Houston Grand...

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Grey's Anatomy

as Dan Gates
First aired: 2005-03-27

Follows the personal and professional lives of a group of doctors at Seattle’s Grey Sloan...

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S.W.A.T.

as Daniel Harrelson, Sr.
First aired: 2017-11-02

A locally born and bred S.W.A.T. lieutenant is torn between loyalty to the streets and duty to...

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Friends

as Director
First aired: 1994-09-22

Six young people from New York City, on their own and struggling to survive in the real world,...

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Psych

as David Gaffney
First aired: 2006-07-07

Thanks to his police officer father's efforts, Shawn Spencer spent his childhood developing a...

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Chicago Med

as Dr. James Coleman
First aired: 2015-11-17

An emotional thrill ride through the day-to-day chaos of the city's most explosive hospital and...

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Goliath

as Ivan Tillinger
First aired: 2016-10-13

Once a powerful lawyer, Billy McBride is now burned out and washed up, spending more time in a...

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Chicago Hope

as uncredited
First aired: 1994-09-18

Chicago Hope is an American medical drama television series, created by David E. Kelley. It ran...

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The Good Fight

as Danny Quinn
First aired: 2017-02-19

Picking up one year after the events of the final broadcast episode of "The Good Wife", an...

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Dawson's Creek

as Principal Howard Green
First aired: 1998-01-20

Dawson's Creek is an American teen drama that portrays the fictional lives of a close-knit group...

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Sliders

as Cezanne Brown
First aired: 1995-03-22

In his basement in San Francisco, boy-genius Quinn Mallory unlocks the doorway to an infinite...

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Ballers

as J.D. Pritchard
First aired: 2015-06-21

Looking at the lives of former and current football players, the show follows former superstar...

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A Different World

as Frank Benning
First aired: 1987-09-24

A Different World is a spin-off series from The Cosby Show and originally centered on Denise...

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Everwood

as Jason
First aired: 2002-09-16

After the death of his wife, world-class neurosurgeon Dr. Andrew Brown leaves Manhattan and...

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Touched by an Angel

as Carter Evans
First aired: 1994-09-21

Monica, an angel, is tasked with bringing guidance and messages from God to various people who...

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Static Shock

as Singer (voice)
First aired: 2000-09-23

The adventures of a teenage superhero who fights crime in Dakota City.

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Static Shock

as Watch Store Salesman (voice)
First aired: 2000-09-23

The adventures of a teenage superhero who fights crime in Dakota City.

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Tales from the Crypt

as Lieutenant Jamison
First aired: 1989-06-10

Cadaverous scream legend the Crypt Keeper is your macabre host for these forays of fright and...

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The Outer Limits

as Dr. Joseph Lennox
First aired: 1995-03-26

Anthology series of composed of distinct story episodes, sometimes with a plot twist at the end,...

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The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air

as Gordy Berry
First aired: 1990-09-10

Will, a street-smart teenager, moves from the tough streets of West Philly to posh Bel-Air to...

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Family Law

as Philip Hamilton
First aired: 1999-09-20

Family attorney and mom Lynn Holt has had to scramble to keep her family and her law firm...

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For The People

as Philip Kaws
First aired: 2018-03-13

Brand new lawyers work for both the defense and the prosecution as they handle the most high...

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Kingdom

as Detective Gaines
First aired: 2014-10-08

A raw family drama set against the world of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) in Venice, California....

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Dear White People

as Dean Fairbanks
First aired: 2017-04-28

At a predominantly white Ivy League college, a diverse group of students navigate various forms...

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The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.

as Mongoose
First aired: 1993-08-27

A tough-as-rawhide cowpoke, debonair ladies' man and Harvard-educated smarty-britches roams from...

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Max Steel

as (voice)
First aired: 2000-02-25

A teenage boy with accidental body enhancements fights the enemies of peace as a super-powered...

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Little Fires Everywhere

as George Wright
First aired: 2020-03-18

The intertwined fates of the picture-perfect Richardson family and an enigmatic mother and...

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Enlisted

as General Murray
First aired: 2014-01-10

Enlisted is based on Kevin Biegel's relationship with his siblings. The comedy follows three...

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Forever

as Gregory
First aired: 2018-09-14

June and Oscar live a comfortable but very predictable wedded life when suddenly they find...

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M.A.N.T.I.S.

as uncredited
First aired: 1994-08-26

M.A.N.T.I.S. is an American science fiction television series that aired for one season on the...

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The Temptations

as Berry Gordy
First aired: 1998-11-01

Biography of the singers who formed the hit Motown musical act, The Temptations.

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