Actor Omar Hashim Epps was born on July 23, 1973 in Brooklyn, New York to a single mother, who worked as a school principal. At the age of 10, he began to write screenplays while attending the Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts. He later made his acting debut in the film, Juice. He next appeared in the college football drama, The Program. Moving on to play another sports star, he appeared in the baseball film Major League II and Higher Learning.
On television, Epps appeared on the medical drama ER in 1997, subsequently working on the HBO film, First Time Felon. Two years later, he worked on The Mod Squad, which became very popular in the box office. His other film credits include The Wood, Love and Basketball, Dracula 2000, Big Trouble, Conviction and Against the Ropes.
In 2004, Epps played Dr. Eric Foreman in House, the television series starring Hugh Laurie. For his work on the series, he won the 2007 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series after garnering nominations in the same category in 2005 and 2006.
In talking about his character's relationship with the central character, Dr. Gregory House, Epps said, "I think House sees a bit of himself in Foreman, and I think Foreman sees the same. But at the end of the day, House is a genius at what he does, and Foreman is trying to be the best doctor he can be. So House is the best to learn from. House digs into Foreman, but he is sort of the guy who stands up to him."
Epps added that he is devoted to the show, saying, "I'll be with [House] until the end, and hopefully we'll have a nice run."
Other appearances of Epps are those in 2004’s Alfie, where he played Marlon, and on A Day in the Life, as O. In 2008, he signed on to portray Mark Lord in Love Can’t Hide.
Theatrical - Best Actor
for: Love & Basketball (2000)
Image Awards
Year Result Award Category/Recipient(s)
2008 Won Image Award Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
for: "House M.D." (2004)
2007 Won Image Award Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
for: "House M.D." (2004)
2006 Nominated Image Award Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series
for: "House M.D." (2004)
2005 Nominated Image Award Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
for: "House M.D." (2004)
2003 Nominated Image Award Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special
for: Conviction (2002) (TV)
2001 Nominated Image Award Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture
for: Love & Basketball (2000)
MTV Movie Awards
Year Result Award Category/Recipient(s)
2001 Nominated MTV Movie Award Best Male Performance
for: Love & Basketball (2000)
Monte-Carlo TV Festival
Year Result Award Category/Recipient(s)
1997 Won Silver Nymph Best Actor
for: Deadly Voyage (1996) (TV)
Teen Choice Awards
Year Result Award Category/Recipient(s)
2000 Nominated Teen Choice Award Film - Choice Actor
for: Love & Basketball (2000)
Film - Choice Chemistry
for: Love & Basketball (2000)
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Sanaa Lathan