William Jackson Harper

Born in Dallas in 1980, William Jackson Harper was a thoughtful child, introduced to theater when his mother signed him up for some drama classes in middle school. He attended Santa Fe University of Art and Design, graduating in 2003, and in 2007 moved to New York City with the goal of being able to support himself as a New York actor. He succeeded. In addition to a number of theater productions, Harper appeared in several supporting roles onscreen in "Law & Order" (NBC, 1990-2010), the feature "All Good Things" (2010), and "30 Rock" (NBC, 2006-13), with a series regular role on the reimagined "The Electric Company" (PBS, 2009-11). On the show, he played Danny Rebus, one of the antagonists, causing problems for the literacy-promoting superheroes. In 2014, Jackson played activist Stokely Carmichael in the original Broadway production of "All the Way," the historical drama starring Bryan Cranston as Lyndon B. Johnson. He had a supporting role in in "True Story" (2015), about the killer Christian Longo, which starred Jonah Hill and James Franco. In 2016 he was set to get his most exposure to date, in a regular role on "The Good Place" (NBC, 2016-), starring Kristen Bell and Ted Danson. On the show, Harper appeared as Bell's soul mate as she navigates the afterlife.