Lyriq Bent (born January 3, 1979) is a Jamaican-Canadian actor. He is known for his roles in the ''Saw'' films, the television series ''

Rookie Blue ''Rookie Blue'' is a Canadian police drama television series starring Missy Peregrym and Gregory Smith. It was created by Morwyn Brebner, Tassie Cameron, and Ellen Vanstone. The series premiered on June 24, 2010, at 9:00 p.m. Eastern/8:00 ...

'', and '' The Book of Negroes''. Bent portrays Jamie Overstreet in the

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

series ''

She's Gotta Have It ''She's Gotta Have It'' is a 1986 American black-and-white comedy-drama film written, produced, edited and directed by Spike Lee. Filmed on a small budget and Lee's first feature-length film to be released, it earned positive reviews and lau ...

'', based on the film of the same name.

Early life

Bent was born in Kingston,

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

, and moved to

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, Canada, when he was six years old. He grew up in Toronto and later attended

Seneca College Seneca College of Applied Arts and Technology is a multiple-campus public college in the Greater Toronto Area, and Peterborough, Ontario, Canada regions. It offers full-time and part-time programs at the baccalaureate, diploma, certificate and ...

North York North York is one of the six administrative districts of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located directly north of York, Old Toronto and East York, between Etobicoke to the west and Scarborough to the east. As of the 2016 Census, it had a popu ...

Career

Bent has starred in various lead and supporting roles both in film and television since he began his acting career in the early 2000s. Prior to landing a co-starring role in the drama series ''

Angela's Eyes ''Angela's Eyes'' is an American crime drama series that aired from July 16 until October 15, 2006 on Lifetime, running for 13 episodes. The show aired Sundays at 10 p.m. Lifetime announced that the show would not be picked up for a second ...

'', he guest starred on the UPN series ''

Kevin Hill ''Kevin Hill'' is an American legal drama that aired on UPN from September 29, 2004 to May 18, 2005. It was filmed and produced in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Synopsis The series stars Taye Diggs as the title character, a lawyer who has to balanc ...

'' opposite

Taye Diggs Scott Leo "Taye" Diggs (born January 2, 1971) is an American stage and film actor. He is known for his roles in the Broadway musicals ''Rent'' and '' Hedwig and the Angry Inch'', the TV series ''Private Practice'' (2007-2013), ''Murder in the ...

, and USA Network's ''

Kojak ''Kojak'' is an American action crime drama television series starring Telly Savalas as the title character, New York City Police Department Detective Lieutenant Theodopolis "Theo" Kojak. Taking the time slot of the popular ''Cannon'' series, it ...

'' opposite

Ving Rhames Irving Rameses Rhames (born May 12, 1959) is an American actor. He is best known for his supporting roles as IMF Agent Luther Stickell in the ''Mission: Impossible'' film series and gang kingpin Marsellus Wallace in ''Pulp Fiction''. He also ap ...

. After appearing on several television shows, '' Playback Magazine'' listed him as one of Canada's top rising stars. Bent attracted further attention when he co-starred in the hit horror films ''

Saw II ''Saw II'' is a 2005 horror film directed by Darren Lynn Bousman and written by Leigh Whannell and Bousman. It is the sequel to 2004's ''Saw'' and the second installment in the ''Saw'' film series. The film stars Donnie Wahlberg, Franky G, Gl ...

'' and ''

Saw III ''Saw III'' is a 2006 horror film directed by Darren Lynn Bousman from a screenplay by Leigh Whannell and a story by Whannell and James Wan. It is the third installment in the ''Saw'' film series and sequel to 2005's ''Saw II''. The film stars T ...

'' as Officer Daniel Rigg. He later starred as one of the central characters in ''

Saw IV ''Saw IV'' is a 2007 horror film directed by Darren Lynn Bousman from a screenplay by Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan, and a story by Melton, Dunstan, and Thomas Fenton. It is the fourth installment in the ''Saw'' film series and sequel to 2 ...

''. From 2010 to 2014 he co-starred in the Canadian television series ''

'', portraying Staff Sergeant Frank Best. In 2015 Bent portrayed Chekura Tiano in the television miniseries '' The Book of Negroes'', based on the best-selling novel by

Lawrence Hill Lawrence Hill (born January 24, 1957) is a Canadian novelist, essayist, and memoirist. He is known for his 2007 novel '' The Book of Negroes,'' inspired by the Black Loyalists given freedom and resettled in Nova Scotia by the British after the A ...

. For this role, Bent won the award for Best Actor in a Television Film or Miniseries at the 2016

4th Canadian Screen Awards Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'' (1972 film), a Sovie ...

. He was a Canadian Screen Award nominee for Best Lead Performance in a Web Program or Series at the

10th Canadian Screen Awards The 10th Canadian Screen Awards were held on April 10, 2022, to honour achievements in Canadian film, television and digital media production in 2021.Etan Vlessing"Maitreyi Ramakrishnan to Receive Canadian Screen Awards Special Honor" ''The Hollyw ...

in 2022 for the web series '' For the Record''.Brent Furdyk
"2022 Canadian Screen Award Nominees Announced, ‘Sort Of’ & ‘Scarborough’ Lead The Pack"
''

ET Canada ''ET Canada'' (previously referred to as ''Entertainment Tonight Canada'') is a Canadian entertainment news television series, using the same format as the American entertainment newsmagazine ''Entertainment Tonight''. ''ET Canada'' is a broadcas ...

'', February 15, 2022.

Filmography

Film

Television

Video Games

References

External links

*
Lyriq Bent official website

Lyriq Bent Twitter Account
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bent, Lyriq Jamaican emigrants to Canada Black Canadian male actors Canadian male film actors Canadian male television actors Canadian male voice actors Living people Male actors from Toronto People from Kingston, Jamaica 21st-century Canadian male actors Seneca College alumni 1979 births