Billy Porter
Biography
William Ellis Porter II (born September 21, 1969) is an American actor and singer. Porter gained notice performing on Broadway before starting a solo career as a singer and actor. For his role as Lola in Kinky Boots, Porter won the 2013 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical, the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical and the Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical. He credits the part for "cracking open" his feminine side to confront toxic masculinity. Porter also won the 2014 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album for the musical's accompanying album. Porter starred in all three seasons of the television series Pose, for which he was nominated for three Golden Globe Awards and won the 2019 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, becoming the first gay black man to be nominated and win in any lead acting category at the Primetime Emmys. In 2020, he was included on Time's list of the 100 most influential people in the world. In 2022, he won another Tony Award for Best Musical as a producer for the musical A Strange Loop. He made his directorial debut in 2022 with the romantic comedy film Anything's Possible. Porter received the Isabelle Stevenson Award at the 77th Tony Awards for his humanitarian work with the Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation and Entertainment Community Fund. Description above from the Wikipedia article Billy Porter, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Movies (37)
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping
2026
Billy Preston: That's the Way God Planned It
2026
Christmas Karma
2025
I Was Born This Way
2025
Disco's Revenge
2024
Eric André Live Near Broadway
2024
Queen of New York
2023
Our Son
2023
Truth Be Told
2023
Let the Canary Sing
2023
Carol Burnett: 90 Years of Laughter + Love
2023
Little Richard: I Am Everything
2023
80 for Brady
2023
Mariah Carey: Merry Christmas to All!
2022
Homeward Bound: A Grammy Salute to the Songs of Paul Simon
2022
PRIDE: To Be Seen - A Soul of a Nation Presentation
2022
Cinderella
2021
Smoke, Lilies and Jade
2021
Where Love Lives: A Story of Dancefloor Culture & Expression
2021
25 Years of Rent: Measured in Love
2021
Pose-a-Thon for Pride
2020
Together in Pride: You Are Not Alone
2020
Like a Boss
2020
Every Act of Life
2018
The Humbling
2014
Heart of Broadway: The Ensemble Behind Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS
2011
Indie Sex: Teens
2008
All Aboard! Rosie's Family Cruise
2006
Fabulous! The Story of Queer Cinema
2006
Noel
2004
The Broken Hearts Club: A Romantic Comedy
2000
Intern
2000
Colorz of Rage
1999
Anastasia
1997
Twisted
1996
Raquel: Total Beauty and Fitness
1984
Broadway: The Next Generation
TV Shows (66)
My Happy Place
2025
Live from the Other Side with Tyler Henry
2024
Who's Talking to Chris Wallace?
2022
The Jennifer Hudson Show
2022
Sherri
2022
The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder
2022
RuPaul's Drag Race UK vs The World
2022
That's My Jam
2021
Never Mind the Buzzcocks
2021
The Circuit
2021
Middlemost Post
2021
Gossip Girl
2021
That Damn Michael Che
2021
Equal
2020
The Drew Barrymore Show
2020
Dear...
2020
Stars in the House
2020
Visible: Out on Television
2020
Tamron Hall
2019
The Kelly Clarkson Show
2019
The Twilight Zone
2019
Glow Up: Britain's Next Make-Up Star
2019
Desus & Mero
2019
POSE
2018
Big Mouth
2017
Big Mouth
2017
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
2015
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
2015
Close Up with The Hollywood Reporter
2015
Celebrity Family Feud
2015
The Late Late Show with James Corden
2015
Variety Studio: Actors on Actors
2014
Trailblazer Honors
2014
Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
2014
Late Night with Seth Meyers
2014
Late Night with Seth Meyers
2014
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
2014
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
2014
American Horror Story
2011
Who Do You Think You Are?
2010
Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen
2009
Keeping Up with the Kardashians
2007
Indie Sex
2007
The Graham Norton Show
2007
Dancing with the Stars
2005
Project Runway
2004
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
2003
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
1999
The View
1997
The View
1997
The Daily Show
1996
The Rosie O'Donnell Show
1996
MTV Movie & TV Awards
1992
Shake, Rattle and Roll: An American Love Story
1991
Law & Order
1990
The Simpsons
1989
LIVE with Kelly and Mark
1988
MTV Video Music Awards
1984
Olivier Awards
1981
Newsnight
1980
Saturday Night Live
1975
People's Choice Awards
1975
Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest
1972
The Grammys
1959
The Oscars
1953
Golden Globe Awards
1944