Gaius Charles (born May 2, 1983) is an American

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), lit ...

known for his portrayal of Brian "Smash" Williams in the television drama, ''Friday Night Lights''. He also played Dr. Shane Ross on the ABC medical drama series '' Grey's Anatomy'' and a recurring role on the NBC historical-drama series ''

Aquarius Aquarius may refer to: Astrology * Aquarius (astrology), an astrological sign * Age of Aquarius, a time period in the cycle of astrological ages Astronomy * Aquarius (constellation) * Aquarius in Chinese astronomy Arts and entertainment ...

'', as

Black Panther A black panther is the melanistic colour variant of the leopard (''Panthera pardus'') and the jaguar (''Panthera onca''). Black panthers of both species have excess black pigments, but their typical rosettes are also present. They have been ...

leader

Bunchy Carter Alprentice "Bunchy" Carter (October 12, 1942 – January 17, 1969) was an American activist. Carter is credited as a founding member of the Southern California chapter of the Black Panther Party. Carter was shot and killed by a rival group, Ron ...

. He also played a role on '' NCIS''s ninth season as Jason King, an arson investigator for the Baltimore Police Department.

Early life

Charles was born on May 2, 1983 in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. He was raised in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

and Teaneck,

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...

. Charles graduated from Teaneck High School in 2001. He attended

Carnegie Mellon University Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. One of its predecessors was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools; it became the Carnegie Institute of Technology ...

's College of Fine Arts, earning a

Bachelor of Fine Arts A Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) is a standard undergraduate degree for students for pursuing a professional education in the visual, fine or performing arts. It is also called Bachelor of Visual Arts (BVA) in some cases. Background The Bachel ...

degree in drama. He also studied at the

National Institute of Dramatic Art The National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) is an Australian educational institution for the performing arts is based in Sydney, New South Wales. Founded in 1958, many of Australia's leading actors and directors trained at NIDA, including Cat ...

(NIDA) in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mounta ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

. He earned a Master of Arts degree in Religious Studies from Drew University.

Career

In 2017, Charles starred in the first season of NBC's television drama series '' Taken'', based on the ''Taken'' film franchise. He has appeared in multiple television series, including '' Friday Night Lights, Grey's Anatomy'', and ''

'', in which he portrayed Civil Rights Activist and Black Panther

, and '' Necessary Roughness.'' Charles made guest appearances on '' Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Blindspot'', Comedy Central's ''

Drunk History ''Drunk History'' is an American educational comedy television series produced by Comedy Central, based on the Funny or Die web series created by Derek Waters and Jeremy Konner in 2007. They and Will Ferrell and Adam McKay are the show's ...

'', in which he portrayed

Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and activist. Nicknamed "The Greatest", he is regarded as one of the most significant sports figures of the 20th century, ...

, '' NCIS,

Pan Am Pan American World Airways, originally founded as Pan American Airways and commonly known as Pan Am, was an American airline that was the principal and largest international air carrier and unofficial overseas flag carrier of the United State ...

,'' and '' Law & Order: SVU.'' His film credits include the independent features '' The Stanford Prison Experiment,'' ''Toe To Toe'', and ''The Messenger''. He's also worked on studio films like ''Salt'' and ''Takers.'' In addition to film and television, Charles starred in the

Labyrinth Theater Company LAByrinth Theater Company is a non-profit, Off-Broadway theater company based in New York City. Led by Philip Seymour Hoffman and John Ortiz for many years, its artistic director is Ortiz. The New York Times described it in 2014 as "an ethnica ...

's production of ''Othello'' alongside

Philip Seymour Hoffman Philip Seymour Hoffman (July 23, 1967 – February 2, 2014) was an American actor. Known for his distinctive supporting and character roles—typically lowlifes, eccentrics, underdogs, and misfits—he acted in many films and theatrical produc ...

and John Ortiz. He received positive reviews for originating the roles of “EZ” in Beau Willimon's play ''Lower Ninth'' and “Malcolm” in director Thomas Kail's ''Broke-ology''.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Charles, Gaius 1983 births Living people Male actors from New Jersey Male actors from New York City African-American male actors African-American Christians American male film actors American male stage actors American male television actors Carnegie Mellon University College of Fine Arts alumni People from Manhattan Teaneck High School alumni 21st-century American male actors