David Harewood

A gifted theatrical and screen actor, David Harewood graduated from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and became a West End sensation for his controversial turn in the play "Entertaining Mr. Sloane." Simultaneously praised and pilloried as a rising black English actor, Harewood overcame considerable personal demons to build an impressive career, notching roles on such TV projects as "Always and Everyone" (ITV, 1999-2002), "The Vice" (ITV, 1999-2003), "Fat Friends" (ITV, 2000-05) and "The Palace" (ITV, 2008). Scoring stage triumphs as Shakespeare's "Othello" and Martin Luther King, Jr. in "The Mountaintop," he was equally impressive in "The Merchant of Venice" (2004), "Blood Diamond" (2006) and "Mrs Mandela" (BBC, 2010). Chafing at the lack of substantial roles for non-Caucasian actors in the U.K., Harewood achieved even greater notice when he landed the juicy supporting part of David Estes, the hard-edged director of the CIA's Counterterrorist Center whose allegiance to unpredictable agent Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes) constantly shifted on the international smash "Homeland" (Showtime, 2011- ). Appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for his services to drama and reminding many of Hollywood's Golden Age-era leading men, David Harewood was recognized as one of the most versatile actors working on either side of the pond.