
Billy Dee Williams was born in He began his acting career when he first appeared on Broadway in 1945 in The Firebrand of Florence. He returned to Broadway as an adult in 1960 in the play version of The Cool Word. He appeared in A Taste of Honey in 1961. A 1976 Broadway production, I Have a Dream, starred Williams as Martin Luther King, Jr. His most recent Broadway appearance was in August Wilson's Fences in 1988. He made his film debut in 1959 in The Last Angry Man, starring Paul Muni, in which he portrayed a juvenile delinquent. His first big break was in the biographical TV movie, Brian's Song (1971), in which he played Chicago Bears star football player Gale Sayers, who stood by his friend Brian Piccolo (played by James Caan), during his struggle with terminal cancer. Both Williams and Caan were nominated for Emmy Awards for their performances. In 1972, he played Billie Holliday's husband Louis McKay in Motown Productions' Holiday biopic Lady Sings the Blues. Diana Ross starred in Lady Sings the Blues opposite Williams; Motown paired the two of them again three years later in Mahogany. His most widely recognized role is that of Lando Calrissian, which he played in Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back and in Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi. He reprised this role when he lent his voice for the character in the 2002 video game Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast, as well as the audio dramatization of Dark Empire, the National Public Radio adaptation of Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, and two productions for the Star Wars Battlefront series: Star Wars Battlefront II and Star Wars Battlefront: Elite Squadron. Williams had originally auditioned for the role of Han Solo during the casting of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. Another notable role was in 1989's Batman as district attorney Harvey Dent. In 1992, he portrayed Berry Gordy in The Jacksons: An American Dream Williams has had several television appearances as a guest star or recurring character, some of which include; Gideon's Crossing, General Hospital, The Jeffersons, 227, The Cosby Show, A Different World, In Living Color, The Hughleys, Scrubs Season 5, That '70s Show, Lost, The Boondocks and White Collar. He is also well-known for his appearance in advertisements for Colt 45 (a brand of malt liquor) in the 1980s and early 1990s, for which he received much criticism. Williams has been married three times.
Movie | Star Wars: Episode IX | Lando Calrissian | 2019-12-18 |
Movie | The Lego Batman Movie | Two-Face / Harvey Dent (voice) | 2017-02-08 |
Movie | Dirty Dancing | Tito | 2017-05-24 |
Movie | Star Wars Rebels: The Siege of Lothal | Lando Calrissian (voice) | 2015-04-18 |
Movie | The Man in 3B | Cain | 2015-11-06 |
Series | The Rebels | Coach Paysinger | 2014-02-06 |
Movie | The Lego Movie | Lando (voice) | 2014-02-06 |
Movie | Lego Star Wars: The Yoda Chronicles - The Phantom Clone | Lando Calrissian / Lando's Father (voice) | 2013-05-04 |
Movie | The Perfect Age of Rock 'n' Roll | Ace Millstone | 2011-08-05 |
Movie | Barry Munday | Lonnie Green | 2010-03-13 |
Movie | Robot Chicken: Star Wars Episode III | Lando Calrissian (voice) | 2010-12-19 |
Movie | Fanboys | Judge Reinhold | 2009-02-06 |
Series | White Collar | Ford / Bradford Toman | 2009-10-23 |
Movie | iMurders | Robert Delgado | 2008-08-09 |
Movie | Constellation | Helms Boxer | 2007-02-01 |
Series | Private Practice | Unknown | 2007-09-26 |
Series | General Hospital: Night Shift | 2007-07-12 | |
Movie | Hood of Horror | Pastor Charlie | 2006-06-27 |
Series | Black in the 80s | 2005-02-01 | |
Movie | Shadows of the Bat: The Cinematic Saga of the Dark Knight | Himself | 2005-10-18 |
Series | Bring Back... | Unknown | 2005-05-10 |
Series | Mind of Mencia | Unknown | 2005-07-06 |
Movie | Empire of Dreams: The Story of the Star Wars Trilogy | Himself | 2004-09-12 |
Movie | When Star Wars Ruled the World | Himself | 2004-09-18 |
Series | Lost | Unknown | 2004-09-22 |
Series | NCIS | Leroy Jethro Moore | 2003-09-23 |
Movie | Epoch: Evolution | Ferguson | 2003-11-29 |
Movie | Undercover Brother | Gen. Warren Boutwell | 2002-05-31 |
Series | Street Time | Unknown | 2002-06-23 |
Series | Half & Half | Unknown | 2002-09-23 |
Movie | Good Neighbor | Sgt. Paul Davidson | 2001-01-01 |
Series | Scrubs | Unknown | 2001-10-02 |
Series | Double Dare | 2000-01-22 | |
Series | 18 Wheels of Justice | Burton Hardesty | 2000-01-12 |
Movie | Fear Runs Silent | Sheriff Hammond | 2000-03-10 |
Movie | The Ladies Man | Lester | 2000-10-13 |
Movie | The Contract | Senator Harmon | 1999-05-29 |
Series | That '70s Show | Unknown | 1998-08-23 |
Movie | Woo | Himself | 1998-05-08 |
Series | The Hughleys | Unknown | 1998-09-22 |
Movie | Hard Time | Leo Barker | 1998-12-12 |
Series | The View | Unknown | 1997-08-11 |
Movie | The Fourth King | Gasparre | 1997-12-27 |
Movie | Steel Sharks | Adm. Jim Perry | 1996-01-01 |
Movie | Moving Target | Detective Don Racine | 1996-11-26 |
Movie | Mask of Death | Agent Jeffries | 1996-05-25 |
Movie | Falling For You | Lieutenant Frank Lazaro | 1995-02-21 |
Movie | Triplecross | Agent Oscar Pierce | 1995-05-28 |
Series | Lonesome Dove: The Series | Unknown | 1994-09-09 |
Movie | Message from Nam | Felix | 1993-10-17 |
Movie | Alien Intruder | Commander Skyler | 1993-01-01 |
Movie | Marked for Murder | Capt. Jack Reilly | 1993-01-17 |
Series | Martin | Unknown | 1992-08-27 |
Series | The Jacksons: An American Dream | Berry Gordy | 1992-11-15 |
Movie | Driving Me Crazy | Max | 1991-05-16 |
Series | In Living Color | Unknown | 1990-04-15 |
Movie | Secret Agent 00 Soul | Secret Agent Zero | 1990-01-01 |
Movie | Dangerous Passion | Lou | 1990-02-28 |
Movie | Batman | Harvey Dent | 1989-06-23 |
Movie | The Return of Desperado | Daniel Lancaster | 1988-02-15 |
Movie | Number One with a Bullet | Det. Hazeltine | 1987-02-27 |
Series | Wiseguy | Unknown | 1987-09-16 |
Movie | Deadly Illusion | Hamberger | 1987-10-16 |
Movie | Oceans of Fire | Jim McKinley | 1986-01-01 |
Movie | Courage | Bobby Jay | 1986-09-24 |
Movie | Marvin & Tige | Richard Davis | 1985-03-08 |
Movie | Time Bomb | Jake Calahan | 1984-03-25 |
Movie | Fear City | Al Wheeler | 1984-07-18 |
Movie | Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever | 1983-05-16 | |
Movie | Return of the Jedi | Lando Calrissian | 1983-05-23 |
Movie | Shooting Stars | Douglas Hawk | 1983-07-28 |
Movie | Classic Creatures: Return of the Jedi | Narrator/Himself | 1983-11-21 |
Series | Chiefs | Tyler Watts | 1983-11-13 |
Series | Dynasty | 1981-01-12 | |
Movie | Nighthawks | Det. Sgt. Matthew Fox | 1981-03-17 |
Movie | Children of Divorce | Walter Williams | 1980-11-24 |
Movie | The Empire Strikes Back | Lando Calrissian | 1980-05-20 |
Movie | The Hostage Tower | Clarence Whitlock | 1980-09-19 |
Movie | Scott Joplin | Scott Joplin | 1977-12-30 |
Movie | The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings | Bingo Long | 1976-07-16 |
Series | The Jeffersons | Unknown | 1975-01-18 |
Movie | Mahogany | Brian | 1975-10-08 |
Movie | The Take | Sneed | 1974-05-01 |
Movie | The Conversation | Man in Yellow Hat (uncredited) | 1974-04-07 |
Movie | Hit! | Nick Allen | 1973-09-18 |
Movie | The Glass House | Lennox | 1972-02-04 |
Movie | The Final Comedown | Johnny Johnson | 1972-05-31 |
Movie | Lady Sings the Blues | Louis McKay | 1972-10-12 |
Movie | Brian's Song | Gale Sayers | 1971-11-30 |
Movie | Carter's Army | Lewis | 1970-01-27 |
Movie | Lost Flight | Merle Barnaby | 1970-08-13 |
Movie | The Out of Towners | Clifford Robinson, Lost & Found Clerk | 1970-05-28 |
Series | The Mod Squad | Unknown | 1968-09-24 |
Series | Mission: Impossible | Unknown | 1966-09-17 |
Series | The F.B.I. | Unknown | 1965-09-19 |
Series | The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson | Unknown | 1962-10-01 |
Movie | The Last Angry Man | Josh Quincy | 1959-10-22 |
Series | The Academy Awards | Unknown | 1953-03-18 |