Where are the young African-American actors?

I really can't think of a single up and coming young African-American leading man in films, TV or the NY theater. None have even emerged from SNL into major comedy careers. I mean, one in his twenties. Are there any out there I'm forgetting? Is there really some sort of discrimination in show biz? And just forget about the actresses!

You mean "black" actors, hon?
Donald Glover is on his way to a great career.
Idris Alba is in his 30s but he is about to get really big in the next year or so.
http://cdn.lightgalleries.net/4bd5ebf6a7a74/images/idris2-1.jpg
Fuck you, R1.
Not%20OP
They are there. I'd like to see them in something over than supporting roles or in Tyler Perry movies, but they are out there. Elba is one of the better ones.
Anthony Mackie, The Hurt Locker.
Jeremy Renner
Anthony Mackie? He's thirty-two. I think of him as a youngish actor on the cusp. And he's got a mix of high profile & critically well received films on his imdb like the Half Nelson, Hurt Locker and Gangster Squad.
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1107001/
Stop saying African American you twat. It's Black.
The ? in my previous post makes it look like I'm questioning r6, whose post hadn't appeared yet. I question marked because, I wasn't sure OP would count Mackie as he's not twentysomething. I absolutely do count him.
They're working in Tyler Perry crap (e.g. Lance Gross) or are unheralded small-time, bit-part, actors, or stage actors.
Will Smith's son has racked up an impressive resume.
[quote]None have even emerged from SNL into major comedy careers. Maybe because SNL is unfunny shit.
The Smiths are the new Joseph Jacksons. Disgraceful!
There are plenty of talented upcoming black (I say black because they might not be American) actors and actresses who are in bit parts in movies and tv shows. You won't know who they are until they hit it big. If you look to E!, Entertainment Tonight, Access Hollywood or mags like People, EW and especially Vanity Fair, your not gonna see young hot upcoming black actors until they already hit the top of the box office or win awards. And even then.....
Tristan Wilds Nate Parker Jurnee Smollett
Who are the up and coming Asian actors?
[quote]Who are the up and coming Asian actors? You mean "yellow" actors, hon?
[quote]Is there really some sort of discrimination in show biz? Please tell me you are joking. Hollywood is quite racist. It is very hard for anyone to have a successful career in the business, it is absurdly harder for minority actors as all the good roles are for white actors. Talented black actors/actresses are generally relegated to bit supporting roles to prop up their white leads. None of this is ground breaking info and should be quite obvious.
At least there are roles for black actors. Asians have it much much worse.
[quote]Asians have it much much worse. Funny how they never make a Federal case of it.
You took the words right out of my mouth! So true.
"And just forget about the actresses!" You're kidding, right? There are a ton of black actresses now currently working continuously, they might not be getting leading roles in movies, but they are working, which is the operative word here: WORKING. You seem to forget MANY actors and actresses, of any race, creed, religion or color, have active showbiz careers. The public only hears about the very famous ones: Cruise, Smith, Kidman etc. There are ton of character roles and these actors, and actresses, are filling them. I worked with an actress years ago, in an art department, she was a Fashion Illustrator besides being a working actress. This woman did a lot of Off-Off and Off Broadway work, she was lucky to get even that, btw, she was white. Say what you will about Tyler Perry, he keeps black actors and actresses WORKING. Robin Givens and Anne Marie Johnson were semi-regulars on "House of Payne". ANY work in their field for any actor or actress is better than NO work at all!
My question is about up and coming young LEADING MEN. Stars. In their twenties. Not grateful working actors who are lucky enough to appear in Tyler Perry movies. Like the dozens of white ones we talk about here daily. Is there a new TV show this season that stars a black actor in his twenties? Has there been a Broadway play or musical recently that stars a black actor in his twenties? There are none.
OP
Of course there's discrimination in show biz. It's even harder for out-gay actors to break through. At least women, blacks and Asians get to play the Asian, black and female roles that do get written. Gays don't.
Ever since the WB stopped producing ethnic comedies young black talent seems to have dried up. I can't imagine what black people are watching these days. WB and UPN went out of their way to very successfully serve the black programming niche. Wait, I forgot the Tyler Perry sitcoms, not to mention his films. Look to the casts of those projects to see the next black male superstar.
R22, then name some. Robin Givens hardly qualifies as an up and comer, which is the topic of this thread.
[quote]Tristan Wilds Don't even get me started. I LOVED this guy on THE WIRE and the best they could find for him is 90210? Such a waste.
Dule Hill
Times have changed.
Harry Belafonte
Idris Alba is British, R2.
Idris Elba has his own detective show on the BBC.
Idris is great but he's not in his 20s and he's not American. And few people in the US know who he is, anyway. Who will be the next Poitier, Belafonte, Will Smith, Eddie Murphy?
[quote]Funny how they never make a Federal case of it. Right.
Jonathan%20Pryce
Mechad Brooks
Texas Battle.
Asians have it much much worse. Funny how they never make a Federal case of it. So anytime black folks speak up on anything we're making a federal case and making poor you uncomfortable? Don't you long for the old days where you don't see minority people anywhere in pop culture and you can pretend like we don't exist cause that would make you uncomfortable.
There's an attractive guy named Justin Alston out of L.A. who's done a number of national commercials and small parts on shows; he's one of a group of up-and-coming black actors.
Donald Glover is a great talent. Acting, singing, stand up. Plus, he's so young yet it looks effortless from him. He and Danny Pudi (Asian) are amazing on Community. Sadly, Community which features 2 black actors and 2 Asians in primary roles is on hiatus while shit like Whitney and 90% of bad sitcoms continue to be promoted and kept on the air.
r38 Leave Nippy out of it, hussy!
Miss Dionne
For those who want to be "politically correct" and call people "African American", what would you call Idris Alba or Chiwetel Ejiofor- African British? Puhleeze. I have 2 friends who are Domincan and hate being called African American.
Not%20all%20black%20people%20are%20from%20Africa.
"They're working in Tyler Perry crap (e.g. Lance Gross) or are unheralded small-time, bit-part, actors, or stage actors." Lance Gross is hot as hell. "Donald Glover is on his way to a great career." Love him on Community
What's become of Daniel Sunjata? He must have the worst agents and management in the business.
Take Me Out!!!
[quote]Stop saying African American you twat. It's Black.[/quote] Not if they'rr not American, R8.
Anonymous
"Not all black people are from Africa." Who said they were? And who cares what your "Dominican friends" say they want to be called according to you? Either stop trolling or get better at it.
The black guy from 'Community' is the only afro-American male youth on tv that I watch. I could see him becoming the next Wesley Snipes or Chris Tucker.
Donald Glover is an awful rapper and kind of lame at standup but he is pretty much delightful as a comic actor - he's going to have a lot of success in movies if he gets the chance. I like Spider-Man more than is healthy for an adult and I think he would have been a fantastic Peter Parker.
Glover's supposed to be an awful rapper, that's the gimmick for his 'rap albums'. His rap persona is supposed to be a joke. He's a good singer though as evidenced by the 'Somewhere Out There' rendition with Danny Pudi on Community.
r40 -- Dominicans will do *anything* to avoid being labelled as black -- they're terrified of being connected to Haitians, who share the island of Hispaniola with DR.
I love Donald Glover. He is nerdy adorable. He started as a writer on 30 Rock. The problem with him may be he doesn't look or act like what Hollywood thinks you black men are suppose to look and act. Same with Danny Pudi. I'm sure when the both of them were cast in Community no one gave them a second glance but they kind of broke out as a comedy duo/bromance that I'm sure no one expected.
Thank you R36.
What about Damon Wayans Jr.? He's on 'Happy Endings' and has great comedic abilities like his father and is really handsome to boot.
r51 Ive never seen anything he's been in but he's a hottie!
Gabourey Sidibe will rival Meryl Streep
O (please watch OWN, please...I'll send a check)
[quote]What's become of Daniel Sunjata? He must have the worst agents and management in the business. I don't get it either. He's a great actor, but gets crappy parts.
r48- they WANT to be labeled Black, not African-American. As a matter of fact, one of them did her thesis on this cultural phenomenon at Howard and her prominent professor rejected it entirely, saying that no matter where your family comes from- South America, the Islands, Australia, UK- that you're still African, many times removed. Whatever- the bulk of my black friends want to be called black, so that's what I call them.
[quote]What's become of Daniel Sunjata? He must have the worst agents and management in the business. I agree - there is no reason this gorgeous man should not have been a star by now (and not just because of his looks, but he really is a good actor). He's supposed to be on a new show on USA called "Graceland", but who knows if it'll be a hit or not. Hollywood only gives you good roles if you're light and bright, regardless if you have talent or not. Otherwise, Hollywood wants to give you "Gone With The Wind" mammy-type characters that play up stereotypes.
http://www.contactmusic.com/pics/lf/2013_winter_tca_5_070113/daniel-sunjata-nbcuniversals-2013-winter-tca-tour_20043225.jpg
Sunjata is gorgeous and could also play Middle Eastern and Mediterranean men. I don't know that he's a "great" actor, though.
"African-American" implies that the person's ancestors were in the United States prior to 1865.
[quote]Sunjata is gorgeous and could also play Middle Eastern and Mediterranean men. I don't know that he's a "great" actor, though. Compared to some of the no-talents today who somehow get rave reviews, he's a great actor. And he's played a variety of different characters unlike some people in Hollywood.
R56
It's not a good situation when the only up and coming "young" black actor people can name is 40-year-old Idris Elba who has been working steadily for 20 years.
Michael B Jordan (Wallace in The Wire / Vince in Friday Night Lights) has been getting some great reviews for his performance in Fruitvale at Sundance.
dipshit at r40, your black Dominican friends ancestors came from Africa too.
Idris Elba and too many other black actors currently on US TV are Brits.
[quote]Idris Elba and too many other black actors currently on US TV are Brits. WTF is Hollywood's obsession with these fucking Brits? They didn't used to bother me, but the last several years Hollywood seems to be pushing them in our faces as if American actors aren't good enough. So sick of this shit!
Even the white ones. Actors from the UK, Australia and NZ seem to be getting the good meaty roles.
R61 - That Jordan was also good in Parenthood as Haddie's boyfriend.
[quote]"African-American" implies that the person's ancestors were in the United States prior to 1865. What about Obama? Should he be called Kenyan-American?
r56 I have no idea why Daniel hasnt had more success either. Just looking at that picture, the guy is exceptionally handsome, he is almost too good looking to be taken really seriously in a leading role. You have to have great acting skills for people to forget about how pretty are you are and focus on your character. Idris Elba probably went through the same thing years ago. Im happy that Meagan Good's show is getting such a good response from audiences on NBC. I didnt think she would make a comeback but she is really holding her own on Deception. Laz Alonzo is also great on the show. Black people are LEADING primetime shows again! And this is partly wishful thinking, but Daniel and Laz Alonso are single and they could very well be gay or bisexual. That also could be a factor in their careers and what they are willing to do. Shemar Moore has made a nice life for himself and maybe they want a career like his.
[quote]Will Smith's son has racked up an impressive resume. Which is tragic as the kid really is not talented just being pushed on us by daddy.
I've had my eye on Anthony Mackie for a long time. He's very talented. Check out an indie movie he did called "Brother to Brother" where he plays a young black gay man who develops a mentor relationship with an older black gay man. It's on Netflix streaming and he gives a beautiful, understated performance. He's one great role away from breaking out, the problem is that the roles for black actors simply aren't there. Lance Gross is beautiful, but he's not very talented. Laz Alonzo is gorgeous but shockingly bad on Deception. That show's ratings are nosediving so I expect it to be quietly dumped. But it's sad that we will never have the great black stars we had in the 90's. Wesley Snipes, Samuel L., etc. Besides Denzel, the only man of color they'll let get near a potential action franchise is ambiguously biracial Dwayne Johnson. It really boils down to the fact that we live in a society that seems to be obsessed with perpetuating whiteness in a way that I cannot remember in recent history. The world is getting more and more diverse, yet our media is getting more and more white. It's bizarre.
Lamourne Morris from New Girl.
anonymous
R67 -- obviously, the prez is an exception as it was his WHITE ancestors who were here then! But, no I don't consider him specifically as "African-American" in that sense.
"The bulk of my black friends". Really r55?
I liked the wheelchair kid in Malcolm in the Middle. What is he up to lately?
I thought Tequan Richmond from "Everybody Hates Chris" could be a star when he was older. Tyler James Williams will probably have his own TV show in a few years.