Biography

who is charles f. porter?

Charles Porter has succeeded where many other newcomers have failed. He has worked his way into Hollywood, managing to secure increasingly juicy roles while avoiding becoming an archetypal typecast.

He was born Charles Frederick Porter in Oxford, England on March 13, 1979 to a British mother and American father, and saw his destiny in the National Football League (USA) until a back injury sidelined his dreams at the age of 23.

Charles lived in Oxford until age 4, when his family migrated to the United States. His parents later split, and Charles went on to have an uncomplicated middle-class childhood, attending highly credited prep schools in the North East. He excelled in his studies, and became fluent in French as a teenager. But it was in sports that his greatest passion lied, and as a boy, he dreamed of becoming a professional athlete.

Charles' athletic talents eventually got him in the top 100 recruits out of high school, earning him a scholarship to several colleges across the country. Porter chose to pursue football at Duke University (North Carolina) for the school's academic standards and starred as defensive end under his position coach, Scott Brown, someone who would become a mentor to Charles, instilling a ‘never quit’ mentality into the young star’s life.

Charles studied cultural anthropology and surfaced as a vicious college football player, winning Teammate of the year award with most valuable honors; six sacks, leading his team in tackles for a loss. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Cultural Anthropology.

Perhaps one of the highlights of Charles' career was playing against the national champions Florida State Seminoles in front of a sellout crowd of 97,000 at Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee, Florida.

While several of his opponents went on to play in the National Football League, a major injury to his lower back would seize Charles' dream, and turn his attention to an inner ambition.

Sixty-five pounds lighter, Charles settled in California to pursue a career in entertainment, it was here that he caught the attention of Executive Producer, Ben Katz.

Shortly after moving to LA in October of 2002, Charles landed a spot as a contestant on ESPN’s Beg, Borrow and Deal.

The show, which was originally called "Beg, Borrow and B.S.", featured two teams of four pitted against each other. In Europe, episodes were broadcast on the North American Sports Network in 2005 and in Canada on GameTV beginning in 2007.

Almost a year would pass before Charles would land his first television role, and it came in the form of a teenage heart throb name Eric, on the hit sitcom The Parkers, a spin-off of Brandy's sitcom 'Moesha.'

Later the same year, Charles’ career turned fashion, when he was cast in a touring runway show, The Ebony Fashion Fair (featuring up and coming as well as established Black Fashion Designers). It was here that producer Marty Casey (A House Divided); noticed, and cast Charles as a lead in the show playing in the Scottish Richt Theatre, St. Louis, Missouri. While being asked to go on tour with the show, Charles chose to appear in three shows, performing in front of 1500 people each night.

Charles continued to struggle through commercial parts and small roles until the summer of 2005, when he auditioned, and landed, a starring role in writer/director H. M. Coakley’s urban horror-comedy, Holla. The film was produced by Coakley’s wife and business partner, Camille Irons Coakley under their Rockstone Pictures banner and distributed by Lionsgate Films.

That same year, Adidas scouted the 6 foot 3” x-college football star in a two-year international campaign; featuring Charles in casual luxury to promote the apparel. Charles’ photos ranged from dark and edgy to sensually appealing, displaying a combination of elegance and masculinity to the lifestyle brand.

While continuing to model and search for the right acting gigs, Charles had a chance encounter with executive producer Ben Katz while moving into his old apartment. The meeting in the West Hollywood complex lead to Katz casting Charles in a drama he was producing called, Johnny Was. Charles’ dual citizenship allowed him to fly to Belfast, Ireland, and fit into the role of a British henchman named Digs.

While shooting the film in the summer of 2005, Charles produced and starred in another Ben Katz production, the psycho-thriller, Nailed.

Premiering in Cannes, and receiving much critical acclaim throughout its release, the project was distributed by Image Entertainment and proved to be one of the highlights of Charles’ film career.

In a departure from film, Charles returned to the United States, guest starring on The CBS legal drama, Close to Home as a police officer. He went on to guest star on House MD as a street operator, his face opening up the medical drama to some 40 million viewers. The role opened news doors for Charles, including a national campaign with American Airlines.

Just one month later, Charles landed a guest starring role on one of the biggest series in America, the CBS drama, Without A Trace, and followed up with an appearance on Fox’s dark -amusing drama BONES (ironically inspired by real-life forensic anthropologist Kathy Reichs).

Most recently, Charles was cast in the LA based Cabaret, Harlem's Night, the 1940’s themed bed time story. The young star played Joe, and hit the stage singing, dancing and acting in his guest role.

Now just 28 years old, Charles Porter appears to be on the fast track to stardom. What is interesting now is what the future will bring. His captivating screen presence and versatile performances could allow him to become this generation's Sydney Poitier. His fun nature, sense of humor and classic good looks could just as easily allow him to mature into a sort of Marlon Brando. One thing is certain, expect him to be labeled as one of the most exciting new actors to be detected by the Hollywood radar.