5 screen roles that prove why Colman Domingo is one of the most talented actors working today

If Colman Domingo isn’t already considered a household name, he’s about to be.

Over the past three decades, Domingo’s established himself as one of our most reliable character actors (as well as a formidable writer, director, and producer)—the kind of performer that can disappear into almost any role, who never fails to surprise.

After getting his start in theater, he gradually broke his way into film and television projects in the late ’90s and 2000s, including a brief but memorable stint on Logo’s groundbreaking The Big Gay Sketch Show (we’ll never forget his randy Maya Angelou impression).

Since then, Domingo hasn’t let up the momentum, becoming one of the most prolific Black, gay actors in Hollywood. Even though he’s one of the busiest men in the biz, he remains an outspoken advocate for the LGBTQ+ community and a champion of underrepresented voices everywhere.

(We’d also like to point out he’s got an adorable husband, Raúl, and their meet-cute is one of the sweetest love stories we’ve ever heard.)

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As his career continues to snowball, 2023 is destined to be his biggest year yet. He currently serves as a producer on the Tony Award-nominated Fat Ham, and this month he’ll return for the final season of AMC’s hit zombie series Fear The Walking Dead. Later this year, Domingo will take the lead in Netflix‘s Rustin, a buzzy biopic about gay civil rights activist Bayard Rustin, and then he’ll cap things off in the highly anticipated movie musical adaptation of The Color Purple, due out this holiday season.

Whether you’re just catching up with this hard-working star or are eager to revisit some of his best work to date, we’ve outlined five screen roles that prove why Colman Domingo is a once-in-a-generation talent.

Ali in Euphoria

Even in a cast full of hot, young rising stars, Domingo makes a major impression as Ali, a former addict who becomes Rue’s (Zendaya) Narcotics Anonymous sponsor and mentor. Ali’s been around the block, bringing a welcome wisdom to the wild teen drama, but he’s not without his faults, and Domingo delivers a lined-in performance that’s achingly human. The actor earned his first Emmy for the drama’s second season, but we’re especially fond of his understated work in the intimate, one-off pandemic episode, “Trouble Don’t Last Always.”

Streaming exclusively via HBO Max.

Joseph Rivers in If Beale Street Could Talk

Filmmaker Barry Jenkins followed up the Oscar-winning Moonlight with an equally beautiful adaptation of gay writer James Baldwin’s 1974 novel. When a young woman (Kiki Layne) discovers she’s pregnant with her wrongfully incarcerated partner’s (Stephan James) child, her family rallies around her to clear his name, including Domingo as her loving and supportive father, Joseph. It’s a smaller part, but the actor radiates warmth every time he’s on screen, especially opposite his longtime friend Regina King, who plays his wife.

Streaming on Netflix. Available for digital rental via Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Google Play, and YouTube TV.

Cutler in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom

Domingo is an essential piece of this SAG Award-nominated ensemble alongside the great Viola Davis and Chadwick Boseman in his final on-screen performance. Based on August Wilson’s play of the same name, the story takes place over the course of a tumultuous recording session for real-life queer blues singer Ma Rainey and her jazz band. Domingo’s turn as Cutler, the band’s trombonist, is quiet yet forceful and especially sparkles in a late-in-the-film monologue that brings him to blows with Boseman’s headstrong character.

Streaming on Netflix.

Mr. Franklin Jones / Joop / Mr. Venus in Passing Strange

Passing Strange is the show that Domingo credits with changing his life. He was with it from the very beginning back in 2006, and then remained part of the cast when it opened on Broadway in 2008, which was eventually immortalized on film by the great Spike Lee. With three different supporting roles—playing a closeted churchgoer, a flamboyant street artist, and a free-spirited nudist—the performer showed off his range and his ability to command a live audience. Even early in his career, it’s clear Domingo was destined for big things.

Streaming via AMC+, Tubi, and Pluto TV. Available for digital rental via Amazon Prime Video.

X in Zola

Last but not least is the dark yet colorful stripper odyssey, Zola, which was famously based off of a Twitter thread. Alternately charming and fearsome, Domingo is a force to be reckoned with as X, the shady pimp with an even shadier past. From scene to scene, moment to moment, you never quite know what Domingo’s going to do next—and you simply can’t take your eyes off of him. Hitting theaters a few month after Man Rainey’s Black Bottom debuted, the role further solidified Domingo as one of our most electrifying, versatile actors.

Streaming via Plez, and Pluto TV. Available for digital rental via Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Google Play, and YouTube TV.