Marcus Chong
| Marcus Chong | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Marcus Wyatt July 8, 1967 Seattle, Washington, USA |
| Known for |
|
| Parent(s) |
Juanita Wyatt |
| Awards | 1991 Theatre World Award |
Marcus Chong (born Marcus Wyatt;[1] July 8, 1967)[2] is an American actor. His best-known roles are Huey P. Newton in Panther (1995), directed by Mario Van Peebles, and Tank the Operator in The Matrix (1999).
Early life
Chong was born Marcus Wyatt in Seattle, Washington to an African American father and a Chinese American mother. His father, Martin Wyatt, was a sports reporter in San Francisco for KGO-TV.[3] Chong was adopted in 1978 by Tommy Chong and his second wife Shelby Fiddis.
Career
Chong began acting at age nine. His first role was portraying the young Frankie Warner in the 1979 miniseries Roots: The Next Generations (1979). Wyatt was a guest star in Little House on the Prairie, in "Blind Journey" part 2.[4]
Chong originated the role of student Lee Cortez in the Broadway production of Stand-Up Tragedy,[2] written by Bill Cain which opened at the Criterion Center Stage Right and closed in October 1990 after 13 performances.[5] The short-lived role never-the-less earned him a 1991 Theatre World Award; he was also nominated Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play.
In the early 1990s, Chong played lead character Miguel Mendez on the TV show Street Justice. He later appeared in the Vanishing Son action series as Fu Qua Johnson.
In 1999, Chong appeared as Tank the Operator in The Matrix. In May 2003 Chong filed a lawsuit at Los Angeles County Superior Court against Warner Bros and AOL Time Warner, saying Warner was in breach of a 1998 verbal agreement, and a 2000 contract to continue the character of Tank in the film's two sequels.[6] It was reported that a breakdown in talks caused by his salary demands prompted The Wachowskis to write Chong's character out of the second and third films in the series.[6]
In 2001, Chong appeared in Season 3 of the TV series Law & Order: Special Victims Unit ("Inheritance").
More recently he had a role in season 4 of Burn Notice.[7]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | The Reference Section | Lead | Short film |
| 1980 | Cheech & Chong's Next Movie | Johnny | |
| 1980 | Blood Beach | 2nd Kid | |
| 1988 | Evil Altar | Troy Long | |
| 1990 | The Knife and Gun Club | George | Television film |
| 1991 | Flight of Black Angel | Dragonfly | Television film |
| 1992 | Venice/Venice | Guest at Party | |
| 1992 | American Heart | Terry Cosmos | |
| 1994 | Vanishing Son | Fu Qua Johnson | Television film |
| 1994 | Vanishing Son II | Fu Qua Johnson | Television film |
| 1994 | Vanishing Son IV | Fu Qua Johnson | Television film |
| 1995 | Panther | Huey Newton | |
| 1996 | Pure Danger | Freethrow | Direct-to-video |
| 1997 | The Uncontrollable Professor | Chucky | |
| 1997 | Fatal Fight | Kevin | |
| 1998 | High Frequency | Jordan Barnes | |
| 1999 | The Matrix | Tank | |
| 2005 | The Crow: Wicked Prayer | War | |
| 2009 | Concrete River | Base | Short film |
| 2013 | Son Shine | Darrell Brown | Short film |
| 2013 | Not 4 Sale | Harry Belafonte | Short film |
TV
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | Little House on the Prairie | Samson | Episode: "Blind Journey: Part 2" |
| 1979 | Roots: The Next Generations | Frankie Warner | 2 episodes |
| 1979 | The Lazarus Syndrome | Jerry | Episode: "Peace and Love, Willie Jackson" |
| 1979 | Dallas | Jimmy Monroe | Episode: "The Heiress" |
| 1982 | The Facts of Life | Young Boy | Episode: "Starstruck" |
| 1989 | Hard Time on Planet Earth | Tim | Episode: "The Way Home" |
| 1989 | Dragnet | Billy Roberts | Episode: "The Connection" |
| 1991–1993 | Street Justice | Miguel Mendez | 24 episodes |
| 1995 | Chicago Hope | Ramsey Coleman | Episode: "A Coupla Stiffs" |
| 2000 | Linc's | Ken | Episode: "People Like Us" |
| 2001 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Darrell Guan | Episode: "Inheritance" |
| 2002 | Law & Order: Criminal Intent | John "Johnny" West | Episode: "Seizure" |
| 2009 | Numb3rs | Jones | Episode: "Ultimatum" |
| 2010 | Burn Notice | Caleb | Episode: "Brotherly Love" |
References
- ↑ "Marcus Chong Biography on filmreference.com". Retrieved 2007-05-28.
- 1 2 "Marcus Chong - Performer". The Broadway League.
- ↑ DAN RALEY, "Where Are They Now? Martin Wyatt, former Huskies running back", Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 30 January 2007, accessed 8 December 2013
- ↑ "Little House on the Prairie Season 5 Episode 13". TV.com.
- ↑ "Stand-Up Tragedy". The Broadway League.
- 1 2 "Matrix's 'Tank' sues makers over replacement". The Guardian. 20 May 2003.
- ↑ Burn Notice: Season 4, Episode 15: Brotherly Love at IMDb