The Wire
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The Wire

Clarke Peters, born Peter Clarke in New York City, New York, USA in April 7, 1952, is an actor, singer, and writer. He stars as Lester Freamon in the second, third, fourth, & fifth seasons. He initially appeared as a recurring guest star in the first season. He has appeared in The Wire creator David Simon's other series The Corner, Treme, Show Me a Hero and The Deuce. He has been active since 1979 and has also appeared in the films Mona Lisa (1986), Notting Hill (1999), and Marley & Me (2008).

Biography[]

Early life[]

Born in New York City, Clarke Peters grew up in Englewood, New Jersey and graduated from Dwight Morrow High School in 1970.

Career[]

Peters earned a Tony Award nomination for Best Book of a Musical for writing the revue Five Guys Named Moe. As an actor, he has appeared on Broadway in The Iceman Cometh (1999), which won him the Theatre World Award, and as shady lawyer Billy Flynn in the revival of Chicago in 2000 and 2003. His West End theatre credits include Blues in the Night, Porgy and Bess, The Witches of Eastwick, and Chicago. In regional theatre he has appeared in Driving Miss Daisy, The Wiz, Bubbling Brown Sugar, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, Carmen Jones, and The Amen Corner.

Fat Curt

Peters as "Fat" Curt in The Corner

He played "Fat" Curt, a homeless drug addict, in The Wire creator David Simon's earlier miniseries The Corner. He worked closely with The Wire star Reg E. Cathey on The Corner. Also in 2000 he had a guest starring role in the HBO drama Oz as Afsana.

Peters is familiar to television viewers as Detective Lester Freamon in the HBO series The Wire. He played the role in all five seasons of the show, joining the starring cast from the third season onwards. He appeared in 59 out of the series 60 episodes between 2002 and 2008. His screen credits include Notting Hill, K-Pax, and Freedomland (2006). Freedomland was written by The Wire writer Richard Price.

In 2009 he had a recurring guest starring role in the third season of the FX drama Damages as Dave Pell.

Big Chief Albert Lambreaux

Peters as Big Chief Albert Lambreaux in Treme.

He stars in Treme as Big Chief Albert Lambreaux. Treme was co-created by Simon and The Wire producer Eric Overmyer. The series ran for four seasons from 2010 to 2013. His character was the big chief of an Indian tribe.

Peters guest starred in the HBO crime anthology series True Detective in 2014. He appeared as a minister in the first season episode "The Long Bright Dark". Also in 2014 he had a role in the action movie series John Wick as Harry, an assassin and friend of the title character played by Keanu Reeves. He also had a starring role in the short lived legal drama The Divide, reuniting him with Reg E. Cathey and Isiah Whitlock, Jr..

He had a guest starring role as Ace in The Deuce, reuniting him with Simon and The Wire producer George Pelecanos. Peters appeared in the first season episode "My Name is Ruby" in 2017.

The Master

Peters as The Master in His Dark Materials

He played The Master in the BBC miniseries His Dark Materials in 2019. His character was the leader of an academic college at Oxford University.

He starred in Da 5 Bloods by director Spike Lee in 2020. The film also featured The Wire actor and frequent collaborator Isiah Whitlock Jr.

When not on set, Peters is an avid horseback rider.

Clarke Peters lives in London.

Credits[]

Guest star[]

Season 1 credits
"The Target" "The Detail" "The Buys" "Old Cases" "The Pager"
"The Wire" "One Arrest" "Lessons" "Game Day" "The Cost"
"The Hunt" "Cleaning Up" "Sentencing"

Star[]

Season 2 credits
"Ebb Tide" "Collateral Damage" "Hot Shots" "Hard Cases" "Undertow"
"All Prologue" "Backwash" "Duck and Cover" "Stray Rounds" "Storm Warnings"
"Bad Dreams" "Port in a Storm"
Season 3 credits
"Time after Time" "All Due Respect" "Dead Soldiers" "Amsterdam" "Straight and True"
"Homecoming" "Back Burners" "Moral Midgetry" "Slapstick" "Reformation"
"Middle Ground" "Mission Accomplished"
Season 4 credits
"Boys of Summer" "Soft Eyes" "Home Rooms" "Refugees" "Alliances"
"Margin of Error" "Unto Others" "Corner Boys" "Know Your Place" "Misgivings"
"A New Day" "That's Got His Own" "Final Grades"
Season 5 credits
"More with Less" "Unconfirmed Reports" "Not for Attribution" "Transitions" "React Quotes"
"The Dickensian Aspect" "Took" "Clarifications" "Late Editions" "-30-"

References[]


External links[]

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