Jay Ellis

Wendell Ramone "Jay" Ellis Jr.[1] (born December 27, 1981) is an American actor. Born in Sumter, South Carolina, he started with modeling, before moving to Los Angeles and starting his acting career. In 2013, he received his first major role on BET's series The Game. In 2015, he joined the cast of HBO's series Insecure, which premiered in 2016. He also had a lead role in the horror film Escape Room (2019).

Jay Ellis
Ellis in February 2017
Born
Wendell Ramone Ellis Jr.

(1981-12-27) December 27, 1981
Sumter, South Carolina, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
Alma materConcordia University (Oregon)
OccupationActor
Years active2005–present
Partner(s)Nina Seničar (2015–2020)
Children1

Life and career

Early life

Wendell Ramone Ellis Jr. was born on December 27, 1981, in Sumter, South Carolina.[2] His father worked for the Air Force, while his mother worked as a finance executive.[3] He is the only child of the family.[4] He went to 12 schools in 13 years, before attending Concordia University in Oregon, where he played basketball.[5][6] Ellis worked as a public relations intern for the Portland Trail Blazers during their infamous "Jail Blazers" era.[7] After completing his internship, Ellis switched his focus to modeling and started working with Portland-based sportswear companies such as Nike, Adidas and Columbia Sportswear.[8]

Acting

In 2004, Ellis moved to Los Angeles to focus on his acting career.[8] He launched his career as a professional actor in 2005, when he appeared briefly in single episodes of the television series Invasion and Related. In 2011-2012, he made appearances on the series Grey's Anatomy, NCIS and How I Met Your Mother.[9][10]

His first major acting role was in 2013, starring in BET's series The Game.[8] In August 2015, it was announced that Ellis has joined the cast of HBO's comedy series Insecure, which premiered in October 2016.[11] He plays the role of Lawrence Walker, who has a long-term relationship with main character Issa Dee played by Issa Rae.[8] For his work on the show, Ellis received the Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series award at the 49th NAACP Image Awards.[12]

The Untold Story: Policing

In 2020, Ellis started hosting The Untold Story: Policing, a four-part podcast series co-produced by Campaign Zero[13] and Lemonada Media. Through interviews with academics, data scientists, and community organizers, the podcast demystifies police union contracts and investigates how they contribute to violent police misconduct across the United States. Ellis serves as the series’ host, as well as an executive producer alongside DeRay Mckesson, Stephanie Wittels Wachs, and Jessica Cordova Kramer.[14]

Philanthropy

In 2017, Ellis partnered with leading HIV/AIDS research organization, amfAR, to help eradicate the staggering rates of HIV cases in the black community.[15]

Personal life

Ellis has been in a relationship with Serbian model and actress Nina Seničar since 2015. Their daughter was born in November 2019.[16]

Filmography

Films
YearTitleRoleNotes
2010Triple StandardLewisShort film
2011Hatched: A Tale of Great Egg-spectationsJayShort film
2011Let's Do This!Ugandan Thug #1 / Ceiling Mop UgandanTV movie
2012Election EveJeffShort film
2013Movie 43Lucioussegment "Victory's Glory"
2013Dear Secret SantaBradTV movie
2014Mass Shooting News TeamUnknownShort film
2014The Black BachelorUnknownShort film
2015My Favorite FiveJonathan Colburn
2015November RuleJames Avedon
2015Breaking ThroughQuinn
2015Twelve StepsRayShort film
2016Like Cotton TwinesMicha Brown
2016ShortwaveRobert
2018In a RelationshipDexter
2019Escape RoomJason Walker
2020Top Gun: MaverickPost-production
TBABlack BoxN/APost-production; Producer[17]

Television series
YearTitleRoleNotes
2005InvasionSoldier (uncredited)Episode: "Watershed"
2005RelatedCollege studentEpisode: "Hang in There, Baby"
2010The Bold and the BeautifulOrderlyEpisode: "Episode #1.5922"
2011Grey's AnatomyDJEpisode: "White Wedding"
2011NCISMarine PFC Thomas 'Tommy' HillEpisode: "Restless"
2012How I Met Your MotherSound GuyEpisode: "Tailgate"
2012Hart of DixieResidentEpisode: "Heart to Hart"
2012iCarlyFriend #1Episode: "iFind Spencer Friends"
2012Crash & BernsteinDerekEpisode: "Coach Crash"
2013–15The GameBryce "Blueprint" WestbrookMain, 45 episodes
2013NCIS: Los AngelesNaval Flight Officer Randall BakerEpisode: "Purity"
2014Masters of SexDr. Cyril FranklinEpisode: "Giants"
2016Grace and FrankieDanEpisode: "The Anchor"
2016–20InsecureMartin “Lawrence” WalkerMain (season 1-2); guest (season 3, 17 episodes) (season 4)
2020Mrs. America (TV series)Franklin ThomasRecurring role

Awards and nominations
Year Awards Category Nominated work Result
2014 Golden Raspberry Awards Worst Screen Combo Movie 43 Nominated
2017 Black Reel Awards for Television[18] Outstanding Supporting Actor, Comedy Series Insecure Nominated
2018 NAACP Image Awards[12] Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series Won

References
  1. "Jay Ellis on Working with Tom Cruise in New Top Gun Movie". youtube. Retrieved 22 July 2019.
  2. "Jay Ellis Talks His Crush On Tatyana Ali, Stereotypical Black Roles & His Dating Rules". MadameNoire. May 8, 2014. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
  3. "Jay Ellis". amfAR. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
  4. "Insecure's Jay Ellis Is a Dream Guy in Real Life". LA Weekly. July 24, 2017. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
  5. "After 'The Game' With Jay Ellis". The Trending Report. April 29, 2014. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
  6. "Chop-Up: Jay Ellis, star of The Game, talks his hooping skills, making an NFL practice squad and more". USA Today High School Sports. February 18, 2015. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
  7. "Jay Ellis from HBO's "Insecure" Tells Jimmy Kimmel About PR Work for Trail Blazers: "It Was Crazy"". Blazersedge.com. August 19, 2017. Retrieved October 5, 2017.
  8. "HBO 'Insecure' Star Jay Ellis Opens Up About Life After the Backshot Heard Around the World". Complex. July 17, 2017. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
  9. "The Game's Jay Ellis Reveals His Pop Culture Obsessions, First TV Crushes, Hidden Talent and More". E!. March 18, 2014. Retrieved February 12, 2018.
  10. "Insecure Star Jay Ellis: 'I Want to Change the Narrative Around Young Black Men'". Out. June 20, 2017. Retrieved February 12, 2018.
  11. "Issa Rae's HBO pilot 'Insecure' adds Jay Ellis and Yvonne Orji to cast". Rolling Out. August 27, 2015. Retrieved August 14, 2017.
  12. "2018 NAACP Image Award Winners: Complete List". The Hollywood Reporter. January 14, 2018. Retrieved January 15, 2018.
  13. "[Check This Out] The Untold Story: Policing". www.radio.com. Retrieved 2020-12-01.
  14. Dansby, Andrew (2020-08-14). "Stephanie Wittels Wachs' growing podcast company provides comfort". HoustonChronicle.com. Retrieved 2020-12-01.
  15. "Jay Ellis On His Personal Mission To Fight HIV/AIDS In The Black Community". HuffPost. February 6, 2017. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
  16. https://people.com/parents/jay-ellis-nina-senicar-welcome-first-child-daughter-nora-grace/
  17. Verhoeven, Beatrice (February 27, 2020). "Phylicia Rashad, Mamoudou Athie to Star in 'Black Box' for Amazon, Blumhouse TV (Exclusive)". TheWrap. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  18. "Black*ish Paces the Black Reel Awards for Television Field". Black Reel Awards. June 15, 2017. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
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