HillHarper
“I want young women and men to have knowledge of the things that can bring them true empowerment: education, a strong sense of purpose, compassion, confidence and humility...” – Hill Harper2008 has been a banner year for Hill Harper, as if being one of the stars of one of television’s top dramas CSI:NY wasn’t enough, Hill recently starred in the Fox Film, Mama I Wanna Sing, with recording artist Ciara and Billy Zane (Titanic). Hill also received the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series, an Usher Raymond Altruism Award from The Trumpet Awards, The Reclaim Our Youth Award from Jesse Jackson and the Rainbow Push Coalition as well as the prestigious American Library Association Award, naming his New York Times bestselling book, Letters To A Young Brother: Manifest Your Destiny, the BEST BOOK FOR YOUTH AND TEENS in 2007.
As an accomplished film, television and stage actor, Hill Harper captivates audiences with his charismatic and authentic style, which he dedicates to each eclectic character he portrays. A Magna Cum Laude graduate from Brown University and a Cum Laude graduate of Harvard Law School, he also has a master’s degree in Public Administration from Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government. Hill continues to excel by receiving nominations and countless awards for his acting in independent film, international film and television projects. Selected as one of People magazine’s “Sexiest Men Alive” (2004), Hill emits the classic “guy next door” image, but also exudes a seriousness that commands roles embodying depth and intelligence rarely offered to young black actors. Hill has the opportunity to defeat the stereotypes of black males by starring in the hit CBS drama series, CSI: NY alongside Gary Sinise, where he portrays Dr. Sheldon Hawkes, a forensic pathologist who is also a crime scene investigator.
Prior to CSI: NY, Hill co-starred as an ambitious undercover FBI operative on the CBS series, The Handler, alongside Emmy Award nominee Joe Pantoliano. The role earned him a 2004 Golden Satellite Award nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series.
Hill also starred in the HBO movie Lackawanna Blues, which was based on the critically acclaimed stage play by Ruben Santiago-Hudson. This film, fueled by rhythm & blues, went on to win the Image Award in 2006 for “Outstanding TV Movie” and won an Emmy Award for “Outstanding Casting in a Movie.” Other recent film roles include the lead in the independent film, Love, Sex and Eating the Bones, which was accepted into the Toronto, Palm Springs, and Pan African film festivals. This intriguing film won “Best Canadian First Feature Film” in the 2003 Toronto Film Festival and both “Best Feature” and Audience Favorite” in the 2004 Pan African Film Festival. He also starred in the independent film American Brown, which was accepted into the 2004 Tribeca Film Festival.
Hill received critical acclaim for his performance in the independent film, The Visit, directed by Jordan Walker-Pearlman, which tells the story of two brothers who are forced to come together when the HIV positive younger sibling (played by Hill) is sentenced to death row for a crime he seemingly did not commit. His performance, which Daily Variety called “riveting”, earned him a Best Actor nomination by the Independent Spirit Awards. In 2006, he re-teamed with Walker-Pearlman in the independent feature, Constellation, which chronicled the lives and loves of a family in the Deep South. That same year, Hill also starred in the Wes Craven produced independent horror film The Breed co-starring Michelle Rodriguez, Taryn Manning and Oliver Hudson.
Hill’s other screen credits include: Loving Jezebel, The Nephew (with Pierce Bronsan), The Skulls (with Joshua Jackson), In Too Deep (with Omar Epps, L.L. Cool J and Nia Long), Beloved, Hav’ Plenty, He Got Game (with Denzel Washington), and Get on the Bus(with Ossie Davis). He also appeared in Zooman (with Louis Gossett J
