Andre Braugher (Born July 1, 1962 in Chicago) is an American movie and television actor. He has a background in Shakespearean theater and attended the Juilliard School's Drama Division graduating with a Master of Fine Arts degree.
His first movie role was freed, educated black man Cpl. Thomas Searless in Glory. His Star-Making Role was as Ensemble Dark Horse Det. Frank Pembleton in Homicide: Life on the Street which he won multiple awards for. Braugher had a resurgence in popularity when he became a recurring guest character in House playing House's therapist Dr. Darryl Nolan. Despite the fact the episode he debuted in was a massive Genre Shift (having absolutely no medical jargon whatsoever) and fans were split on that, Braugher's performance was universally praised. He was also a main character on Brooklyn Nine-Nine, where he played The Comically Serious Captain Holt.
Notable Works:
- Glory as Thomas Searles
- Primal Fear as Tommy
- Get on the Bus as Flip
- City of Angels as Cassiel
- Homicide: Life on the Street as Frank Pembleton
- Gideon's Crossing as Ben Gideon
- Hack as Marcellus Washington
- 'Salem's Lot as Matt Burke
- Poseidon as Captain Bradford
- Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer as General Hadger
- Live as Don
- House as Darryl Nolan
- The Mist as Frank Nolan
- Salt as Secretary of Defence
- Men of a Certain Age as Owen Thoreau
- Superman/Batman: Apocalypse as Darkseid
- Last Resort as Marcus Chaplin
- Law & Order: Special Victims Unit as Bayard Ellis
- Brooklyn Nine-Nine as Captain Raymond Holt
- Bojack Horseman as Woodchuck Coodchuck-Berkowitz
Tropes Associated with Braugher:
- Casting Gag: Once again he's playing a hypercompetent cop in a crapsack precinct. But rather than the Cowboy Cop that he was in Homicide, in Brooklyn Nine-Nine he plays Reasonable Authority Figure and Trickster Mentor to the competent Cowboy Cop. Flashbacks reveal him to have been not unlike Pembleton when he was a Detective.
- Classically-Trained Extra: In many of his roles. He's taken many minor roles throughout his career, despite having a Masters of Fine Arts from the prestigious Julliard School.
- The Comically Serious: Most of his previous roles, and certainly his most well-known ones, have been quite stoic, serious men, so this is played for laughs on Brooklyn Nine-Nine where his character is so stoic, serious and impassive that the other characters literally cannot tell what emotion he might be feeling at any given moment.
- Crossover: Appeared in Law & Order as Det. Pembleton, The Practice as Dr. Ben Gideon, and an episode of New Girl as Captain Holt.
- Genius Bruiser: Braugher is a physically imposing man, but he often plays well-educated, well-spoken characters (having a Shakespearean background really helps for that).
- Large Ham: He can be very theatrical when the situation calls for it as almost any episode of Homicide: Life on the Street and more than a few of Brooklyn Nine-Nine can attest.
- Playing with Character Type: Captain Holt in Brooklyn Nine-Nine isn't incredibly different from many of his previous roles, being a rather serious, stoic authority figure. He is, however, Played for Laughs instead of drama, and is one of the major roles that demonstrated to a wider audience that, in addition to his undeniable dramatic abilities, he has some pretty hefty comic chops as well.
- Real-Life Relative: Pembleton's wife Mary was played by Braugher's own wife Ami.
- Star-Making Role: His role as Frank Pembleton in Homicide: Life on the Street established him as a well-regarded character actor, but Brooklyn Nine-Nine made him into an almost household name.
