Tyler James Williams

For other people named Tyler Williams, see Tyler Williams (disambiguation).

Tyler James Williams (born October 9, 1992) is an American actor. He began his career as a child actor, making several appearances on Saturday Night Live, Little Bill, and Sesame Street.^[2] Williams later rose to prominence for playing the role of Chris Rock on the UPN/CW sitcom Everybody Hates Chris (2005–09). Following this, he starred as songwriter Cyrus DeBarge in the Disney Channel film Let It Shine (2012), and Noah on the AMC horror television series The Walking Dead (2014–15).^[3]

Tyler James Williams
Williams in 2012
Born	(1992-10-09) October 9, 1992 (age 30) Westchester County, New York, U.S.^[1]
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1999–present
Relatives	Tyrel Jackson Williams (brother) Tylen Jacob Williams (brother)

He currently stars as Gregory Eddie on the ABC sitcom Abbott Elementary, for which he received critical acclaim as well as a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award and two nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.

Additionally, Williams has also appeared in films such as Detroit (2017) and The United States vs. Billie Holiday (2021).

Early life

Williams was born in Westchester County, New York, and grew up in Yonkers, New York.^[4] His mother, Angela Williams, is a counselor, and his father, Le'Roy Williams, is a teacher and retired police sergeant.^[4][5] Williams has two younger siblings; Tyrel Jackson Williams (b. 1997) and Tylen Jacob Williams (b. 2001), both are actors.

Career

Williams began his acting career at age 4.^[6] He later starred in Little Bill as the voice of Bobby, briefly replacing Devon Malik Beckford in 2000, and played himself (or an eponymous character, "Tyler") on the PBS series Sesame Street from 2000 to 2005. He rose to fame in September 2005 by playing the title character in the hit series Everybody Hates Chris,^[7] which finished in May 2009. He won a Young Artist Award in 2007 for his work on the show. He was also a guest star in Two for the Money, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and the show Hi-Jinks.^{[citation needed]} In late 2009, Williams appeared in the second season of True Jackson, VP as True's love interest Justin "Lil' Shakespeare" Weber in the two-part episode "Flirting with Fame."^[8]

In 2012, Williams got the role of Owen in the series Go On.^[9] He also played the lead role of Cyrus DeBarge in the Disney Channel film Let It Shine^[10] alongside Coco Jones, Trevor Jackson, and Brandon Mychal Smith. Williams was also featured on nine songs on the film's soundtrack, showing off his rapping skills. The film premiered on June 15, 2012, and his songs "Don't Run Away," "Me and You," "Guardian Angel," "Let It Shine" and "Moment of Truth" all received airplay on Radio Disney.^[11] The videos were also played frequently on the Disney Channel. Williams also guest starred in the Disney XD series Lab Rats as a future version of the character played by his younger brother Tyrel Jackson Williams.^[12]

In 2014, Williams starred in Justin Simien's independent film Dear White People as Lionel Higgins,^[13] and was cast as the recurring character Noah on the television series The Walking Dead.^[14][15] In 2016, Williams played Russ "Monty" Montgomery in the Criminal Minds spin-off Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders.^[16][17] In 2017, Williams was diagnosed with Crohn's disease after experiencing symptoms for three years. Since his diagnosis, he has undergone treatment, including multiple surgeries.^[18] In 2019, Williams was cast as Jake in The Wedding Year, a teen romantic comedy film directed by Robert Luketic and starring Sarah Hyland, Jenna Dewan, Matt Shively, and Anna Camp.^[19]

In 2020, Williams played the role of Paul in The Argument.^[20] In 2021, he began playing the role of Gregory Eddie in the ABC Mockumentary sitcom Abbott Elementary.^[21] At the 74th Primetime Emmy Awards, Williams earned a nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series for the role.^[22]

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2005	Two for the Money	Guest at Party	Uncredited
2006	The Ant Bully	Blue Teammate #1	Voice
	Unaccompanied Minors	Charlie Goldfinch
2013	Tyler Perry Presents Peeples	Simon Peeples
2014	Dear White People	Lionel Higgins
2017	Detroit	Leon
2019	The Wedding Year	Jake Riddick
2020	The Argument	Paul
2021	The United States vs. Billie Holiday	Lester 'Prez' Young

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1999–2003	Saturday Night Live	Jack Black's adopted son / Young Boy / Entari Shakunte	3 episodes
2000	Sesame Street	Tyler	10 episodes
2000–2002	Little Bill	Bobby	Voice, 6 episodes
2004	Judge Mooney	Melvin
2005	Law & Order: Special Victims Unit	Kyle McGovern	Episode: "Parts"
2005–2009	Everybody Hates Chris	Chris	Lead role; 88 episodes^[23]
2009	The Cleaner	Kenji Simon	Episode: "Last American Casualty"
	True Jackson, VP	Justin	2 episodes
2010	Batman: The Brave and the Bold	Jason Rusch / Firestorm	Voice, 3 episodes
	Our Show		Television film
2011	House	Landon	Episode: "Carrot or Stick"
2012	Lab Rats	Future Leo	Episode: "Back from the Future"
	Let It Shine	Cyrus DeBarge / Truth	Television film
2012–2013	Go On	Owen Lewis	Series regular
2014	Key & Peele	Jaleel White	Episode: "Family Matters"
2014–2015	The Walking Dead	Noah	Recurring role; season 5
2015	Criminal Minds	Russ "Monty" Montgomery	Episode: "Beyond Borders"
	Ballers	Water boy	Episode: "Raise Up"
	Instant mother	Jamal	Episode: "Jamal in the Family"
	Comedy Bang! Bang!	Temptation	Episode: "Brie Larson Wears a Billowy Long-Sleeve Shirt and White Saddle Shoes"
2016	RePlay	Nate	Main role, web series
2016–2017	Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders	Russ "Monty" Montgomery	Main role
2018	Dear White People	Carson Rhodes	2 episodes
2019	Whiskey Cavalier	Edgar Standish	Main role
	A Black Lady Sketch Show	Rome	Episode: "Where Are My Background Singers?"
2021–present	Abbott Elementary	Gregory Eddie	Main role^[3]
2023	Harley Quinn	Hawkman	Voice, episode: "A Very Problematic Valentine's Day Special"

Awards and nominations

Black Reel Awards

Year	Category	Nominated work	Result
2015	Best Breakthrough Performance	Dear White People	Won

Golden Globe Awards

Year	Category	Nominated work	Result
2023	Best Supporting Actor - Television Series	Abbott Elementary	Won

Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards

Year	Category	Nominated work	Result
2022	Best Supporting Actor in a Broadcast Network or Cable Series, Comedy	Abbott Elementary	Nominated

NAACP Image Award

Year	Category	Nominated work	Result
2006	Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series	Everybody Hates Chris	Nominated
2007	Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series		Won^[24]
2008	Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series		Nominated
2009	Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series		Nominated
2010	Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series		Nominated
2018	Outstanding Independent Motion Picture	Detroit	Won
2023	Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series	Abbott Elementary	Won

Primetime Emmy Awards

Year	Category	Nominated work	Result
2022	Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series	Abbott Elementary	Nominated
2023	Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series		Pending

Screen Actors Guild Awards

Year	Category	Nominated work	Result
2023	Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series	Abbott Elementary	Nominated

Teen Choice Awards

Year	Category	Nominated work	Result
2006	Choice Actor: Comedy	Everybody Hates Chris	Nominated

Young Artist Awards

Year	Category	Nominated work	Result
2006	Leading Young Actor (Comedy or Drama)	Everybody Hates Chris	Nominated
2008	Best Performance in a TV Series – Leading Young Actor		Won

Peabody Award

Year	Category	Nominated work	Result
2022	Entertainment	Abbott Elementary	Won

Discography

• Let It Shine Soundtrack (2012)
• Me, My Brother, And A Mic (2015)

References

1. "Toledo Blade - Google News Archive Search". google.com.
2. "Tyler James Williams: From Child Actor to Hollywood Hunk + Nina Parker on 'Tamron Hall' | WATCH". EURweb. February 17, 2022. Retrieved July 12, 2022.
3. Thomas, Carly (March 24, 2023). "Tyler James Williams Says 'Everybody Hates Chris' Producer Told Him He Would "Probably Never Work Again"". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved April 19, 2023.
4. Tyler James Williams filmreference.com
5. Tyler James Williams Biography. Tvguide.com. Retrieved on June 18, 2012.
6. "Tyler James Williams: star of Everybody Hates Chris". Ebony. January 1, 2006.^{[dead link]}
7. "Everybody Hates Chris". teacher.scholastic.com. Retrieved September 21, 2016.
8. J-14 Magazine (May 6, 2013). "Natasha Bedingfield and Tyler James Williams Guest Star in New True Jackson, VP Movie!". J-14. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
9. "Tyler James Williams Cast in 'Criminal Minds' Spinoff". January 28, 2015.
10. "Tyler James Williams Reveals His Musical Talents In Disney's 'Let It Shine'". HuffPost. June 15, 2012. Retrieved June 20, 2020.
11. Walt Disney Records (May 22, 2012). "Walt Disney Records' Let It Shine Soundtrack Boasts Songs By Coco Jones, Tyler James Williams And Other Stars From The Disney Channel Original Movie". PR News Wire. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
12. jaej (September 6, 2017). "6 Fantastic Facts About Actor and Hip Hop Recording Artist, Tyler Williams". On the Black List. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
13. ""Dear White People" Actor Tyler James Williams Talks To BOSSIP About Race & Sexuality". bossip.com. October 26, 2014. Retrieved September 21, 2016.
14. Lesley Goldberg (September 24, 2014). "'Walking Dead' Adds 'Go On' Alum in New Mystery Role". The Hollywood Reporter.
15. "'Walking Dead's' Latest Fatality: Savage Death Will "Rock" Glenn". www.hollywoodreporter.com. March 15, 2015. Retrieved September 21, 2016.
16. "'Criminal Minds' Episode 10.19 Photos: Meet the FBI's International Unit". www.buddytv.com. March 27, 2015. Retrieved January 30, 2016.
17. Andreeva, Nellie (January 28, 2015). "Tyler James Williams Cast In 'Criminal Minds' Spinoff". Deadline. Retrieved January 30, 2016.
18. Crohn's and Colitis Foundation (December 1, 2018). "#myIBD: Tyler James Williams' Story". Facebook. Retrieved November 16, 2020.
19. "The Wedding Year". Rotten Tomatoes.
20. "'The Argument': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. September 4, 2020.
21. "'Abbott Elementary': Tyler James Williams Explains Moment He Knew Show Was a Hit". IndieWire. February 16, 2022. Retrieved July 12, 2022.
22. Schneider, Jordan Moreau,Michael; Moreau, Jordan; Schneider, Michael (July 12, 2022). "Emmys 2022: The Complete Nominations List". Variety. Retrieved July 12, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
23. "Everybody Hates Chris". IMDB. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
24. "It's All About Image - Image 9 from Everybody Loves Tyler James Williams". BET (Black Entertainment Television). Retrieved January 20, 2022.

External links

• Tyler James Williams at IMDb