Biography
Who is Omar Epps?
Early life and education
Omar Epps grew up in Brooklyn, New York. He lived in several different areas including East Flatbush, East New York, and Bedford-Stuyvesant. His mother, Bonnie Maria Epps, worked as an elementary school principal and raised him after his parents divorced. At age ten, he wrote poetry and songs. He attended the selective Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School. In 1991, he formed a rap group called Wolfpack with his cousin.
Early film career
Omar made his first movie appearance in 1992. He played a DJ in the crime drama Juice alongside Tupac Shakur. He then played a running back in the college football film The Program. In 1994, he starred in Major League II as center fielder Willie Mays Hayes. He played a track star in the film Higher Learning, which examined racial tensions in college. He won a best actor award at the Monte Carlo Television Festival for his role as Kingsley Ofusu in the film Deadly Voyage.
Television roles
The actor guest starred as Dr. Dennis Gant in the medical drama ER during its third season. He later played Dr. Eric Foreman on the Fox show House from 2004 to 2012. This role earned him three NAACP Image Awards for his work as a supporting actor in a drama in 2007, 2008, and 2013. He played agent J. Martin Bellamy in the ABC series Resurrection starting in 2014. From 2016 to 2018, he appeared as Isaac Johnson in Shooter. Since 2021, he has played Detective Malcolm Howard in Power Book III: Raising Kanan.
Other films and writing
Omar appeared as a moviegoer in the horror sequel Scream 2 in 1997. He played a criminal in the HBO movie First Time Felon that same year. In 1999, he acted in The Mod Squad as Linc. He also played Mike Tarver in the comedy The Wood. That year, he starred in In Too Deep as an undercover detective. He played Quincy in the 2000 film Love and Basketball. Other movie roles include Dracula 2000, Big Trouble, and the movie Brother. He played Luther Shaw in Against the Ropes in 2004. He starred in the 2020 thriller Fatal Affair and the 2024 horror film The Deliverance.
Family and activism
He married singer Keisha Spivey from the group Total in 2006. The couple has two children together. He also has one daughter from a previous relationship. He is a cousin of the rapper 2 Chainz. Omar denied rumors that he is related to Mike Epps. He was high school classmates with Marlon Wayans and helped produce the theme song for The Wayans Brothers between 1997 and 1999. In June 2018, he published an autobiography called From Fatherless to Fatherhood. He works with the nonprofit RepresentUs to help pass anti-corruption laws and narrated a video about the criminal justice system.
Birthday and age
Omar Epps was born on July 20, 1973, which makes Omar 53 years old today. That birthday falls under the Cancer sign. Omar shares the date with 31 other famous people.
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