← Back

Morris Chestnut

Morris Chestnut

Born: 1969-01-01 • Cerritos, California, USA

Morris Lamont Chestnut is an American film and television actor. He is known for his roles as teenage father Ricky Baker in the 1991 film Boyz n the Hood, groom-to-be Lance Sullivan in the 1999 film The Best Man, as NBA star Tracy Reynolds in the 2002 film Like Mike, and as the Visitor Ryan Nichols in the TV series V (2009).

His first professional acting role was as Jadon in Freddy's Nightmares: A Nightmare on Elm Street: The Series in the episode "A Family Affair" (season 2, episode 19) which aired on February 18, 1990.

His first feature film role was as Ricky Baker in Boyz n the Hood (1991). He followed with roles in various TV movies. Chestnut also played a role on Patti LaBelle's short-lived sitcom Out All Night. His career continued to rise steadily with co-starring roles in standard big-budget studio films like Under Siege 2 (1995) and G.I. Jane (1997). In 1998, he won the annual Madden Bowl video game competition.

In 1999, he starred in The Best Man with Taye Diggs and Nia Long in which he played a professional football player on the eve of his wedding. He reprised his role in Best Man Holiday. For both of his performances, he earned NAACP Image Award nominations. He then starred in The Brothers (2001), another film centering on the themes of fidelity and success among urban professionals. He has worked with Steven Seagal three times in Under Siege 2: Dark Territory, Half Past Dead and Prince of Pistols.

He starred In Two Can Play That Game (2001), Breakin' All the Rules (2004), and Ladder 49 (2004). He again played a football player in The Game Plan (2007). He produced and starred in the film Not Easily Broken (2009). He starred as Ryan Nichols in the TV series reboot of V (2009). He then appeared in the films Think Like a Man (2012), and, in 2013, the films Identity Thief, Kick-Ass 2, and The Call.

In 2013, he joined the cast of HBO's Nurse Jackie, playing war veteran Dr. Ike Prentiss. The following year, he won the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. In 2015, Morris Chestnut played Derrick Dog Prince in the movie Heist; and People magazine named him as one of the "Sexiest Men Alive" in 2015. He then starred in the films The Perfect Guy (2016) and When the Bough Breaks (2017).

He played the lead role of pathologist Dr. Beaumont Rosewood Jr. in the series Rosewood, receiving another NAACP image Award nomination. He had recurring roles in the TV series Legends, The Enemy Within, and Our Kind of People. He had a starring guest role on the medical drama The Resident.

Filmography
Halloween in Hollywood poster
Halloween in Hollywood
2022 • Self
No Image
Saving OurSelves: BET COVID-19 Relief Effort
2020 • Self
Girls Trip poster
Girls Trip
2017 • Morris Chestnut
When the Bough Breaks poster
When the Bough Breaks
2016 • John Taylor
Heist poster
Heist
2015 • Dog
The Perfect Guy poster
The Perfect Guy
2015 • Dave King
The Best Man Holiday poster
The Best Man Holiday
2013 • Lance Sullivan
Kick-Ass 2 poster
Kick-Ass 2
2013 • Detective Marcus Williams
The Call poster
The Call
2013 • Officer Paul Phillips
Identity Thief poster
Identity Thief
2013 • Detective Reilly
Think Like a Man poster
Think Like a Man
2012 • James
The Enduring Significance of 'Boyz n the Hood' poster
The Enduring Significance of 'Boyz n the Hood'
2011 • Self
Love in the Nick of Tyme poster
Love in the Nick of Tyme
2009 • Marcelles Wynters
Not Easily Broken poster
Not Easily Broken
2009 • Dave Johnson
No Image
The Prince of Motor City
2008 • Leo Moore
The Perfect Holiday poster
The Perfect Holiday
2007 • Benjamin Armstrong
The Game Plan poster
The Game Plan
2007 • Travis Sanders
The N Word poster
The N Word
2006 • Self
The Cave poster
The Cave
2005 • Top Buchanan
Ladder 49 poster
Ladder 49
2004 • Tommy Drake
Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid poster
Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid
2004 • Gordon Mitchell
Breakin' All the Rules poster
Breakin' All the Rules
2004 • Evan
Friendly Fire: Making of an Urban Legend poster
Friendly Fire: Making of an Urban Legend
2003 • Self
Confidence poster
Confidence
2003 • Travis
Half Past Dead poster
Half Past Dead
2002 • Donald Robert Johnson
Like Mike poster
Like Mike
2002 • Tracey Reynolds
Scenes of the Crime poster
Scenes of the Crime
2002 • Ray
The Killing Yard poster
The Killing Yard
2001 • Shango
Two Can Play That Game poster
Two Can Play That Game
2001 • Keith Fenton
The Brothers poster
The Brothers
2001 • Jackson Smith
The Best Man poster
The Best Man
1999 • Lance Sullivan
G.I. Jane poster
G.I. Jane
1997 • McCool
No Image
Firehouse
1996 • Andre
Under Siege 2: Dark Territory poster
Under Siege 2: Dark Territory
1995 • Bobby Zachs
Higher Learning poster
Higher Learning
1995 • Track Anchor
The Inkwell poster
The Inkwell
1994 • Harold Lee
The Ernest Green Story poster
The Ernest Green Story
1993 • Ernest Green
In the Line of Duty: Street War poster
In the Line of Duty: Street War
1992 • Prince Franklin
The Last Boy Scout poster
The Last Boy Scout
1991 • Locker Room Kid
Boyz n the Hood poster
Boyz n the Hood
1991 • Ricky Baker