Mekhi Phifer (; born December 29, 1974
) is an American actor. He portrayed Dr.
Greg Pratt
Gregory Pratt, M.D. is a fictional character from the medical drama series '' ER'', portrayed by Mekhi Phifer. He first appears as a recurring character towards the end of the eight season, becoming the main character from the start of the nint ...
on
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
's long-running medical drama ''
ER'' until 2008 and had a co-starring role opposite actor/rapper
Eminem
Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing Hip hop music, hip hop in Middle America (United Sta ...
in the 2002 feature film ''
8 Mile''. He was a recurring cast member on the
Fox crime show ''
Lie to Me
''Lie to Me'' (stylized as ''Lie to me*'') is an American crime drama television series. It originally ran on the Fox network from January 21, 2009, to January 31, 2011. In the show, Dr. Cal Lightman (Tim Roth) and his colleagues in The Lightma ...
'' in the role of Ben Reynolds before season 3, and also starred as CIA officer
Rex Matheson in ''
Torchwood: Miracle Day''.
Early life
Phifer was born in
Harlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater Ha ...
, New York City. He grew up in a single-parent household with his mother, Rhoda Phifer, a high-school teacher.
Career
In 1994, 18-year-old Phifer attended an open-casting call for director
Spike Lee
Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee (born March 20, 1957) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. His production company, 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks, has produced more than 35 films since 1983. He made his directorial debut ...
's ''
Clockers'', beating over a thousand others to get the lead role as a narcotics dealer embroiled in a murder cover-up.
He followed that role with another in the comedy spoof feature ''
High School High'' (which also starred his former wife
Malinda Williams) and continued by co-starring in the horror film ''
I Still Know What You Did Last Summer
''I Still Know What You Did Last Summer'' is a 1998 slasher film directed by Danny Cannon and written by Trey Callaway. Jennifer Love Hewitt, Freddie Prinze Jr. and Muse Watson reprise their roles, with Brandy, Mekhi Phifer and Matthew Settle ...
'', starring
Jennifer Love Hewitt
Jennifer Love Hewitt (born February 21, 1979) is an American actress and singer. Hewitt began her career as a child actress and singer, appearing in national television commercials before joining the cast of the Disney Channel series '' Kids I ...
and
Freddie Prinze Jr. He also starred in the film ''
Paid in Full'' in 2002.
He portrayed Dr.
Gregory Pratt
Gregory Pratt, M.D. is a fictional character from the medical drama series '' ER'', portrayed by Mekhi Phifer. He first appears as a recurring character towards the end of the eight season, becoming the main character from the start of the nint ...
on the NBC medical drama ''
ER'', which he introduced in April 2002. Phifer left the show in September 2008, in the first episode of
Season 15. His character died during the conclusion of the
season 14 finale cliffhanger involving an ambulance explosion that was rigged to kill an injured FBI informant (
Steve Buscemi
Steven Vincent Buscemi ( ,As stated in interviews by Buscemi himself, some may insist that his pronunciation of his own name is "wrong" because it does not match the original Italian pronunciation as well. It is not uncommon for people to pronou ...
). During his six years in the show, he was nominated twice for an
NAACP Image Award.
Phifer's television credits include the movies ''
The Tuskegee Airmen
''The Tuskegee Airmen'' is a 1995 HBO television movie based on the exploits of an actual groundbreaking unit, the first African-American combat pilots in the United States Army Air Corps, that fought in World War II. The film was directed by Ro ...
'' (1995),
HBO's ''
Subway Stories: Tales from the Underground'' (1997), and ''
Brian's Song (2001 film)
''Brian's Song'' is the 2001 remake of the 1971 television film ''Brian's Song'', telling the story of Brian Piccolo (Sean Maher), a white running back who meets, clashes with and befriends fellow Chicago Bears running back Gale Sayers ( Mekhi ...
'' as former
Chicago Bear Gale Sayers
Gale Eugene Sayers (May 30, 1943September 23, 2020) was an American professional football player who was both a halfback and return specialist in the National Football League (NFL). In a relatively brief but highly productive NFL career, Sa ...
. He received additional notice for his performance opposite singer
Beyoncé Knowles
Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to ...
(from
Destiny's Child) on MTV's alternative take on the ''
Carmen'' legend with the movie ''
Carmen: A Hip Hopera'' (2001).
Phifer had a recurring guest role in the fifth and sixth seasons of ''
Homicide: Life on the Street'', portraying "Junior Bunk", the troubled nephew of Baltimore drug lord Luther Mahoney, and also guest-starred in ''
New York Undercover
''New York Undercover'' is an American police drama that aired on the Fox television network from September 8, 1994, to February 11, 1999. The series starred Malik Yoba as Detective J.C. Williams and Michael DeLorenzo as Detective Eddie Torre ...
''. He earned an
NAACP Image Award nomination for the TV movie, ''
A Lesson Before Dying'', opposite
Don Cheadle
Donald Frank Cheadle Jr. (; born November 29, 1964) is an American actor. He is the recipient of multiple accolades, including two Grammy Awards, a Tony Award, two Golden Globe Awards and two Screen Actors Guild Awards. He has also earned nom ...
. In 2009, Phifer began a guest-starring arc on the
Fox drama ''
Lie to Me
''Lie to Me'' (stylized as ''Lie to me*'') is an American crime drama television series. It originally ran on the Fox network from January 21, 2009, to January 31, 2011. In the show, Dr. Cal Lightman (Tim Roth) and his colleagues in The Lightma ...
''.
Among Phifer's other big-screen credits are ''
Soul Food
Soul food is an ethnic cuisine traditionally prepared and eaten by African Americans, originating in the Southern United States.Soul Food originated with the foods that were given to enslaved Black people by their white owners on Souther ...
'', ''The Biography of
Spud Webb
Anthony Jerome "Spud" Webb (born July 13, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player. Webb, who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA), is known for winning a Slam Dunk Contest despite being one of the shortest players ...
'', ''
Hell's Kitchen, NYC'', ''Tears of a Clown'', ''
O'' (as the titular character Odin a.k.a. O), and the thriller ''
Uninvited Guest'' (as Silk). He appeared in ''
Impostor'' as well as ''
Paid in Full'', an urban classic, that has given him notorious recognition as he portrayed Mitch and director
Curtis Hanson
Curtis Lee Hanson (March 24, 1945 – September 20, 2016) was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. His directing work included the psychological thriller '' The Hand That Rocks the Cradle'' (1992), the neo-noir crime film ''L. ...
's ''
8 Mile'', opposite
Eminem
Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing Hip hop music, hip hop in Middle America (United Sta ...
. He is mentioned in the
Grammy- and
Academy Award
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
-winning song "
Lose Yourself
"Lose Yourself" is a song by American rapper Eminem from the soundtrack to the 2002 motion picture '' 8 Mile''. The song was composed and produced by Eminem, longtime collaborator Jeff Bass, one half of the production duo Bass Brothers and Lui ...
" by Eminem.
In June 2011, Phifer starred alongside
John Barrowman
John Scot Barrowman (born 11 March 1967) is a Scottish-American actor, author, presenter, singer and comic book writer. He is known for his role as Captain Jack Harkness in ''Doctor Who'' and '' Torchwood'', and as Malcolm Merlyn in the Arrowv ...
and
Eve Myles
Eve Myles (born 26 July 1978) is a Welsh actress. She is best known for her television roles portraying Ceri Lewis in the long-running BBC Wales drama series '' Belonging'' (2000–2009), Gwen Cooper in the BBC science-fiction series ''Torchw ...
as CIA agent
Rex Matheson in ''
Torchwood: Miracle Day'', the fourth series of the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
''. In December of that year, he also starred on
'' in its second season.
. His second son was born to Oni Souratha in Los Angeles in 2007. On March 30, 2013, Phifer married his longtime girlfriend Reshelet Barnes in Beverly Hills, California.
Phifer was the 2004 winner of the Celebrity Poker Showdown Championship, defeating
during the fourth season. Phifer plays on the
in the Hollywood Home games for the Love Our Children USA charity. Phifer is chairman of the board of trustees of The Vine Group USA. a non-profit organization established in 2000 to provide educational resources to universities in Africa. He has signed up with
. He has his own well on the poker forum 2+2.
Phifer is an owner of a number of
athletic shoe-store franchises in California.
In January 2011, Phifer launched Third Reel Films.