Lyriq Bent (born Martin Lyriq Bent) is a Jamaican-Canadian actor. He is known for his roles in the ''Saw'' films, the television series ''

Rookie Blue ''Rookie Blue'' is a Canadian police procedural television series starring Missy Peregrym and Gregory Smith. It was created by Morwyn Brebner, Tassie Cameron, and Ellen Vanstone. The series premiered on June 24, 2010, and aired on Global in ...

'', and '' The Book of Negroes''. Bent portrays Jamie Overstreet in the

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

series ''

She's Gotta Have It ''She's Gotta Have It'' is a 1986 American black-and-white comedy drama film written, directed, produced, and edited by Spike Lee in his feature-length directorial debut. It stars Tracy Camilla Johns, Tommy Redmond Hicks, John Canada Terrell ...

'', based on the film of the same name.

Early life

Martin Lyriq Bent was born in

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

, and moved to

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, Canada, when he was six years old.

Career

Bent has starred in various lead and supporting roles both in film and television since he began his acting career in the early 2000s. Prior to landing a co-starring role in the drama series ''

Angela's Eyes ''Angela's Eyes'' is an American crime drama series that aired from July 16 until October 15, 2006 on Lifetime (TV network), Lifetime, running for 13 episodes on Sunday evenings. Lifetime announced that the show would not be picked up for a seco ...

'', he guest starred on the UPN series ''

Kevin Hill Kevin Hill may refer to: * ''Kevin Hill'' (TV series), a TV series on UPN * Kevin Hill (footballer), English association football player * Kevin Hill (snowboarder), Canadian snowboarder {{Dab ...

'' opposite

Taye Diggs Scott Leo "Taye" Diggs (né Berry; born January 2, 1971) is an American actor. He is known for his roles in the Broadway musicals '' Rent'' and '' Hedwig and the Angry Inch'', the TV series '' Private Practice'' (2007–2013), '' Murder in ...

, and USA Network's ''

Kojak ''Kojak'' is an American Action film, action Crime film, crime Drama (film and television), drama television series starring Telly Savalas as the title character, New York City Police Department Detective Lieutenant Theophilus "Theo" Kojak. Tak ...

'' opposite

Ving Rhames Irving Rameses Rhames ( ; born May 12, 1959) is an American actor. He is best known for portraying IMF Agent Luther Stickell in the Mission: Impossible (film series), ''Mission: Impossible'' film series (1996–2025) and crime boss Marsellus Wal ...

. After appearing on several television shows, ''

Playback Magazine ''Playback'' is an online Canadian film, broadcasting, and interactive media trade journal owned by Brunico Communications. It was previously published biweekly as a print magazine for the Canadian entertainment industry. History The first ...

'' listed him as one of Canada's top rising stars. Bent attracted further attention when he co-starred in the hit horror films ''

Saw II ''Saw II'' is a 2005 horror film directed by Darren Lynn Bousman and written by Leigh Whannell and Bousman. It is the sequel to ''Saw (2004 film), Saw'' (2004) and the second installment in the Saw (franchise), ''Saw'' film series. The film sta ...

'' and ''

Saw III ''Saw III'' is a 2006 horror film directed by Darren Lynn Bousman from a screenplay by Leigh Whannell and a story by Whannell and James Wan. A sequel to ''Saw II'' (2005) and the third installment in the ''Saw'' film series, it stars Tobin Bel ...

'' as Officer Daniel Rigg. He later starred as one of the central characters in ''

Saw IV ''Saw IV'' is a 2007 horror film directed by Darren Lynn Bousman from a screenplay by Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan, and a story by Melton, Dunstan, and Thomas Fenton. A sequel to '' Saw III'' (2006) and the fourth installment in the ''Sa ...

''. From 2010 to 2014 he co-starred in the Canadian television series ''

'', portraying Staff Sergeant Frank Best. In 2015 Bent portrayed Chekura Tiano in the television miniseries '' The Book of Negroes'', based on the best-selling novel by

Lawrence Hill Lawrence Hill (born January 24, 1957) is a Canadian novelist, essayist, and memoirist. He is known for his 2007 novel '' The Book of Negroes'', inspired by the Black Loyalists given freedom and resettled in Nova Scotia by the British after the A ...

. For this role, Bent won the award for Best Actor in a Television Film or Miniseries at the 2016

4th Canadian Screen Awards The 4th Canadian Screen Awards was held on March 13, 2016, to honour achievements in Canadian film, television, and digital media production in 2015. Nominations were announced on January 19, 2016. Throughout the week before the main ceremony, aw ...

. He was a Canadian Screen Award nominee for Best Lead Performance in a Web Program or Series at the

10th Canadian Screen Awards The 10th Canadian Screen Awards were presented by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television from 4–10 April 2022 to honour achievements in Canadian film, television, and digital media production in 2021. The presentations were held as a ...

in 2022 for the web series '' For the Record''.Brent Furdyk
"2022 Canadian Screen Award Nominees Announced, ‘Sort Of’ & ‘Scarborough’ Lead The Pack"
''

ET Canada ''Entertainment Tonight Canada'' (commonly shortened to ''ET Canada'') is a Canadian entertainment news television series that aired on the Global Television Network from 2005 to 2023. Its branding and format were based on the American entertainm ...

'', February 15, 2022.

Filmography

Film

Television

Video games

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bent, Lyriq Jamaican emigrants to Canada Black Canadian male actors Canadian male film actors Canadian male television actors Canadian male voice actors Living people Male actors from Toronto Male actors from Kingston, Jamaica 21st-century Canadian male actors Seneca College alumni Canadian Screen Award winning actors Harry Jerome Award winners Year of birth missing (living people)