Terry Crews
About
Biography
Filmography
Family & Companions
Biography
Athlete-turned-actor Terry Crews was an easy choice for traditional tough-guy roles, but his fearless approach to comedic material soon earned him the admiration of fans and critics alike. Following a career in the National Football League, Crews turned his attention to acting, making his debut in the Arnold Schwarzenegger sci-fi actioner "The 6th Day" (2000). A formidable figure surprisingly comfortable flexing his funny bone, he began to make a name for himself with several small but memorable turns in comedies like "Friday After Next" (2002) and "The Longest Yard" (2005). A regular role as comedian Chris Rock's dad, Julius, on "Everybody Hates Chris" (UPN, 2005-06/The CW, 2006-09) and a sidesplitting turn as the president of a painfully stupid future society in Mike Judge's "Idiocracy" (2006) cemented his growing reputation as a comedic talent. Roles in deadly serious fare like the crime drama "Street Kings" (2008), the apocalyptic action-adventure sequel "Terminator Salvation" (2009), and the Sylvester Stallone tribute to testosterone, "The Expendables" (2010), made sure Crews kept one foot firmly rooted in the action genre. With his media visibility at nearly combustible levels, the actor was simultaneously seen in a popular series of TV ads for Old Spice, his own reality show, "The Family Crews" (BET, 2010-11), a sitcom, "Are We There Yet?" (TBS, 2010-13), and the rip-roaring sequel "The Expendables 2" (2012). The versatile Crews continued to deliver the goods as funny man, action hero, and, frequently, a combination of the two.
Born Terry Allen Crews on July 30, 1968 in Flint, MI, he was the son of Patricia and Terry Crews, Sr., who, by all accounts, ran an extremely disciplined household. A physically imposing figure, even from a young age, the young Crews' love of sports was only equaled by his interest in drawing. After earning his high school diploma from Flint Southwestern Academy, he received a Chrysler-sponsored art scholarship at the prestigious Interlochen Center for the Arts in Northern Michigan. This achievement was soon followed by an equally impressive Art Excellence scholarship and a full-ride athletic scholarship for football at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, MI. As a defensive end for the WMU Broncos, Crews earned All-Conference honors and helped his team win the Mid-American Conference Championship in 1988.
In 1991, Crews was drafted into the NFL as an 11th round pick by the Los Angeles Rams. After two relatively unremarkable years in L.A., Crews was traded to the San Diego Chargers for another couple of seasons, before being handed off to the Washington Redskins and finally the Philadelphia Eagles, where he finished his NFL career in 1996. Maximizing his time spent on and off the gridiron, the still artistically inclined Crews created a line of lithographs that were licensed to the NFL. After retiring from professional football, Crews set his sights on a second career as an actor and relocated to Los Angeles. Two years later, he made an explosive appearance on "Battle Dome" (syndicated, 1999-2001) - a short-lived extreme sports competition - where he took the nom de guerre of "T-Money." The following year the budding thespian made his feature film debut with a small role as a hired killer in the Arnold Schwarzenegger sci-fi thriller "The 6th Day" (2000).
After an uncredited appearance as a gang member opposite Denzel Washington in director Antoine Fuqua's intense crime drama "Training Day" (2001), the sportsman-turned-actor quickly popped up in bit parts in a number of films. Typically cast as the beefcake bad guy, Crews was seen in projects as diverse as the romantic-comedy "Serving Sara"(2002) and the urban comedy sequel "Friday After Next" (2002), starring writer-producer Ice Cube. Similar parts came his way in the battle-of-the-sexes comedy "Deliver Us from Eva" (2003) and the lowbrow Jamie Kennedy spoof "Malibu's Most Wanted (2003), prior to a somewhat meatier role in "Baadasssss!" (2003). Written, directed and starring Mario Van Peebles, it was a somewhat fictionalized account of his father, Melvin Van Peebles' ground-breaking and controversial blaxploitation film "Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song" (1971). From there he rotated through more familiar tough guy roles in features like "Soul Plane" (2004), "Starsky & Hutch" (2004) and "White Chicks" (2004).
With a somewhat larger role, Crews was given the opportunity to flex a bit more of his comedic muscle - and past NFL experience - in the Adam Sandler comedy hit, "The Longest Yard" (2005). A remake of the Burt Reynolds prison football classic, it brilliantly cast Crews as "Cheeseburger" Eddy, a thoroughly fearsome footballer with a soft side. Crews so impressed his "Longest Yard" co-star, Chris Rock, that the comedian handpicked him to play the integral role of his father on his semi-autobiographical sitcom, "Everybody Hates Chris" (UPN, 2005-06/The CW, 2006-09). A fictionalized depiction of Rock's misadventures as a child growing up in 1980s-era Brooklyn, the show debuted to solid ratings and critical praise. While earning kudos for his portrayal of Julius Rock on the series, Crews continued to appear in feature film projects, including a cameo as a poker-playing bully in the Rob Schneider baseball comedy, "The Benchwarmers" (2006), produced by Sandler.
Beginning to acquire a solid reputation as a comedic actor, Crews was given one of his more memorable roles in Mike Judge's sci-fi satire "Idiocracy" (2006). Cast as President Dwayne Elizondo Mountain Dew Herbert Camacho, the leader of a future dystopian society in which the population has become incredibly stupid and lazy due to the effects of rampant consumerism, Crews was an outrageous highpoint in the under-seen film. Almost as laugh-out-loud funny was his brief turn as the doomed Freddy "Fingers" Wilson, a player in a deadly ping-pong competition in the Bruce Lee parody "Balls of Fury" (2007). Crews was also given the chance to show he could play it straight in roles like a formerly corrupt LAPD officer targeted for assassination in "Training Day" writer David Ayer's gritty crime drama "Street Kings" (2008). Of course, comedy was still Crews' bread and butter, as evidenced by his hammy turn as Agent 91 in the big screen adaptation of the classic spy comedy "Get Smart" (2008), starring Steve Carell as CONTROL Agent Maxwell Smart.
By now, Crews' grittier roles were nearly equaling his comedic turns and he played Resistance fighter Captain Jericho opposite Christian Bale in the third sequel in the popular sci-fi action franchise "Terminator Salvation" (2009). He saw even more action as Hale Caesar, a big mercenary with an even bigger gun, in writer-director-star Sylvester Stallone's action ensemble "The Expendables" (2010), featuring an all-star roster of classic and contemporary macho movie heroes, including Jason Statham, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Mickey Rourke and Bruce Willis. Seemingly everywhere, Crews began appearing in a series of hilariously bizarre commercials for Old Spice "Odor Blocker Body Wash," directed by the off-the-wall comedy team of Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim. Busier than ever, he did double duty as the star of his own reality series "The Family Crews" and the sitcom "Are We There Yet?" The reality show followed Crews and his unconventional clan as they dealt with the career of their muscle-bound patriarch and the needs of the continuously changing family dynamic, while the sitcom was a spin-off based on the popular Ice Cube family feature franchise.
Crews briefly appeared as an atrociously abusive fitness-boot-camp trainer in the comedy smash "Bridesmaids" (2011) then returned as Hale Caesar in the blood-soaked sequel "The Expendables 2" (2012), the latter of which added the likes of Chuck Norris and Jean-Claude Van Damme to its roster, along with an expanded role for Crews' old "6th Day" co-star, Arnold Schwarzenegger. On television, Crews picked up a recurring role on Aaron Sorkin's topical drama "The Newsroom" (HBO, 2012-14) as Lonny Church, a bodyguard and personal life coach assigned to look after controversial cable news anchor Will McAvoy (Jeff Daniels). He also briefly appeared as a celebrity contestant on the military-themed competition show "Stars Earn Stripes" (NBC, 2012), only to be eliminated in the second round. In 2013, Crews had a particularly busy year, appearing in the fifth "Scary Movie" installment and turning up in the revitalized sitcom "Arrested Development" (Fox/Netflix, 2003-06, 2013). He also joined the cast of the cop comedy "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" (Fox, 2013- ), starring Andre Braugher and Andy Samberg, and took over for Mr. T in voicing the law-enforcing character of Earl Devereaux in the wacky animated hit "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2."
Filmography
Cast (Feature Film)
Music (Feature Film)
Misc. Crew (Feature Film)
Life Events
1991
After two years playing at the college level, he was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams
1993
During his NFL career he played with the Green Bay Packers (1993), San Diego Chargers (1993-1994), Rhein Fire (Germany, 1995), Washington Redskins (1995-1996), and the Philadelphia Eagles (1997)
1996
Co-wrote and co-produced the independent feature film "Young Boys Incorporated"
1997
Retired from the NFL and moved to Los Angeles to pursue a film career
1999
Became a series regular as the urban warrior, T-Money on the extreme sports show called "Battledome"
2000
Made big screen debut opposite Arnold Schwarzenegger in the Futuristic film "The 6th Day"
2001
Had a small role as a gang member in "Training Day"
2002
Appeared in the comedy "Serving Sara"
2003
Cast as a Bartender in "Deliver Us from Eva"
2003
Starred as Big T in Mario Van Peebles's homage to his father, "Baadasssss!"
2003
Appeared in Todd Phillips' "Starsky & Hutch" starring Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson
2004
Played the Thug Flight Attendant in the comedy "Soul Plane"
2004
Cast in the Keenen Ivory Wayans' comedy "White Chicks"
2005
Cast as Cheeseburger Eddy in the remake of "The Longest Yard," opposite Adam Sandler
2005
Played the father in the NBC sitcom "Everybody Hates Chris"
2006
Co-starred with Luke Wilson in the Mike Judge sci-fi comedy "Idiocracy"
2006
Cast opposite Christian Bale and Freddy Rodriguez in the indie "Harsh Times"; the directorial debut of David Ayer
2007
Joined Eddie Murphy for the comedy "Norbit"
2008
Played Agent 91 in the film adaptation of Mel Brooks' spy parody series, "Get Smart"
2009
Played Captain Jericho in "Terminator Salvation"
2009
Co-starred with Gerard Butler in the action thriller, "Gamer"
2010
Starred in the TBS sitcom "Are We There Yet?" from producer Ice Cube
2010
Co-starred with Sylvester Stallone in "The Expendables," an 80s-style action adventure about a group of mercenaries who attempt to overthrow a South American dictator; film featured a Who's Who of action stars including Bruce Willis, Jet Li, and Arnold Schwarzenegger
2011
Appeared briefly in "Bridesmaids"
2012
Starred in "The Expendables 2"
2012
Had a recurring part on the Aaron Sorkin show "The Newsroom"
2013
Featured on episodes of "Arrested Development"
2013
Voiced the character of Earl in "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2"
2013
Joined the cast of the police comedy show "Brooklyn Nine-Nine"
Family
Companions
