Derek Luke

Derek Luke was born on 24 April 1974 at Jersey City in New Jersey. He was the son of former actor Maurice Luke from Guyana and pianist Marjorie Dixon.

His parents divorced when he was in third grade and since then he grew up along with his two brothers Maurice Luke, Daniel Luke and mother. As a child, he travelled frequently owing to his mother’s occupation.

He shifted six schools before attending Linden High School during freshman year. He later graduated from the performing arts school Henry Snyder High School in Jersey City. After graduating from school in 1992, he attended the Jersey State College to study acting.

In 1995, Derek Luke moved to Hollywood with an aspiration to become an actor. He began life in Hollywood doing odd jobs to support himself. During the day, he used to attend auditions and at night he attended acting classes.

He began his career in acting through appearances in television series like ‘The King of Queens’ (1999 and 2000) and ‘Moesha’ (2001).

In 2002, he was selected for the titular role of the feature film ‘Antwone Fisher’, which was directed and produced by American actor, producer and director Denzel Washington.

He was known to play versatile characters on screen. In 2004, he essayed the role of high school football player James Earl "Boobie" Miles, Jr. in ‘Friday Night Lights’.

In 2006, he acted in the much acclaimed feature film ‘Glory Road’, in which he played the character of basketball player Tyrone Bobby Joe Hill.

Derek Luke is an actor who is known for his versatility. His ability to portray real life characters earned him much critical and commercial recognition. His most acclaimed works are feature films ‘Antwone Fisher’ (2002), ‘Friday Night Lights’ (2004) and ‘Notorious’(2009).