Blair Underwood Movies

Handsome actor Blair Underwood was born into a military family and studied at Carnegie-Mellon University before moving to New York to pursue his career. Guest-starring work on The Cosby Show earned him a part on the ABC soap opera One Life to Live, followed by a reoccurring role on the short-lived series Downtown. In 1985 he made his film debut as a record producer in the rap comedy Krush Groove. This was followed by the successful TV docudramas Heat Wave and Murder in Mississippi. His breakthrough finally came about on L.A. Law, playing attorney Jonathan Rollins from 1987 to 1994. Supporting roles followed, as an accused rapist in Just Cause, a well-to-do love interest in Set It Off, and baseball legend Jackie Robinson in the HBO original movie Soul of the Game. Also during the '90s, he tried his hand at screenwriting and producing with the short film Second Coming, a contemporary take on Christ's second coming starring himself as a dread-locked Jesus accused of insanity. In 2000, he starred in the CBS medical drama City of Angels, followed by supporting roles in the military courtroom drama Rules of Engagement, as well as Steven Soderbergh's Full Frontal, and the teen movie Malibu's Most Wanted. He and wife Desiree DaCosta (two-time executive assistant to Eddie Murphy) have three children. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
2009  
R  
Add Bridge to Nowhere to QueueAdd Bridge to Nowhere to top of Queue
Four blue-collar workers join forces with a destitute streetwalker in order to establish a top-dollar escort service in actor-turned-director Blair Underwood's working class drama. They live in a rundown Pittsburgh neighborhood where every day is a struggle. Stuck in low-paying, dead end jobs that will never propel them above the poverty line. But the prostitution racket may just be the ticket to a better life. Before long, everyone is rolling in cash, and living the lifestyle that always seemed just out of their reach. But when a sudden tragedy brings reality knocking, the four friends find themselves in over their heads, and desperate to escape. Ving Rhames, Bijou Phillips, and Danny Masterson star in a gritty urban drama exploring the dark side of the criminal lifestyle. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Ving Rhames
2008  
 
Add In Treatment: Season 01 to QueueAdd In Treatment: Season 01 to top of Queue
Psychotherapy sessions are provocatively examined as Dr. Paul Weston (Gabriel Byrne) delves into the minds of his patients in this adaptation of a highly acclaimed Israeli series. Scheduled appointments include Mondays with Laura (Melissa George), an attractive anesthesiologist who wonders if her fiancé is the answer to happiness or if it lies in the arms of other men. Navy pilot Alex (Blair Underwood) relates his experiences in Iraq on Tuesdays but combats the analyst every step of the way. Midweek visits become complicated for teen Sophie (Mia Wasikowska) when Paul hesitates to sign an insurance document after a biking accident ruins her chances of joining the U.S. Olympic gymnastic team. Quarrelsome couple Amy and Jake (Embeth Davidtz, Josh Charles) seek help dealing with Amy's pregnancy but find that it is their compatibility that may be fruitless. Though the respected therapist offers them all insight, his perspective appears changed when summing up the week on Fridays with his own counselor, Gina (Dianne Wiest). Their professional history creates an open door to challenging each other's viewpoints. Paul's problems with his wife, Kate (Michelle Forbes), and children don't make things easier. But it's the doctors' opposing opinions that create the most friction, leading to a dissection of inner troubles that would otherwise never rise to the surface. ~ Mario DiMaio, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Gabriel ByrneJosh Charles, (more)
2008  
 
Add President Barack Obama: The Man and His Journey to QueueAdd President Barack Obama: The Man and His Journey to top of Queue
"Yes we can!" was more than a slogan for the Obama campaign; it became a rallying cry from all reaches of America for economic and social change throughout the country, and led to the historic election of the first African-American President of the United States. Narrated by Blair Underwood, this retrospective retraces the Obama campaign and its defining moments. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide

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2006  
PG13  
Add Something New to QueueAdd Something New to top of Queue
A woman discovers that when it comes to love, sometimes opposites really do attract in this romantic comedy-drama. Kenya (Sanaa Lathan) is a successful African-American lawyer in her mid-thirties whose personal life is not going as well as her career. While she's attractive and intelligent, Kenya has rather high standards and isn't willing to settle for a man who isn't everything she wants. While attending a party, Kenya is introduced to Brian (Simon Baker), a landscape architect who handles the gardening at her host's mansion. Brian is immediately and obviously attracted to Kenya, through she doesn't feel the same way at all. However, she likes his work and hires him to refurbish her garden; before long, he asks her out on a date, and against her better judgment she accepts. While Kenya and Brian have little in common, in time they hit it off, and a romance begins to blossom between them. However, Brian happens to be white, which ruffles some feathers among Kenya's friends and family, who try to find her a more suitable, African-American suitor. Also starring Mike Epps, Donald Faison, Blair Underwood, and Alfre Woodard, Something New was the first feature film for director Sanaa Hamri, who previously established herself by directing music videos. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Sanaa LathanSimon Baker, (more)
2006  
PG13  
Add Tyler Perry's Madea's Family Reunion to QueueAdd Tyler Perry's Madea's Family Reunion to top of Queue
Actor and playwright Tyler Perry returns as Madea, a brash but loving African-American grandmother with her own way of doing things in this screen adaptation of his popular stage comedy drama. Madea has her work cut out for her when she finds herself dealing with a handful of family crises the same weekend that she's planned a massive family reunion. Her niece Lisa (Rochelle Aytes) is engaged to marry a handsome and successful man (Blair Underwood), but the good news is blunted when she reveals to her friends that he beats her. Another niece, Vanessa (Lisa Anderson), has been having romantic problems of her own, and isn't sure she should take another chance on love with a humble but good-hearted bus driver (Boris Kodjoe). Madea's older sister dies, with the funeral landing the same weekend as Lisa's wedding. And on top of all this, a court order forces Madea to look after Nikki (Keke Palmer), a troubled and angry teenager from a broken home. Madea's Family Reunion also stars Lynn Whitfield, Jennifer Lewis, Cicely Tyson, and Maya Angelou. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Tyler PerryBlair Underwood, (more)
2006  
 
Add Robert Ludlum's Covert One: The Hades Factor to QueueAdd Robert Ludlum's Covert One: The Hades Factor to top of Queue
An unknown virus has emerged, and with time running out for all of humanity, it's up to disease expert and former secret agent Colonel Jonathan Smith (Stephen Dorff) to isolate the source of the outbreak and expose the culprit responsible in an action-packed thriller penned by Bourne Identity author Robert Ludlum. Colonel Smith is not only one of the country's best-known disease experts, he was also a top agent in the highly classified Covert One agency that reports directly to the president of the United States (Academy Award-winner Anjelica Huston). Now, as a killer virus gives way to a far-reaching conspiracy which points to corruption in the highest ranks, Colonel Smith is charged with the task of tracing the origins of the super-bug to its shocking source. In the process of saving the world, he's about to find out just how far some people are willing to go to achieve ultimate power. Blair Underwood and Academy Award-winning actress Mira Sorvino co-star. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

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2004  
 
Add How Did it Feel... ? to QueueAdd How Did it Feel... ? to top of Queue
Actor-turned-director Daniel Feraldo takes the helm for this simmering family drama about a manic alcoholic who moves in with her sympathetic sister, only to send her sibling's fragile marriage hurdling towards the abyss. A foundering playwright (Blair Underwood) and a successful self-help guru (Lucinda Clare) are trying to piece their fractured marriage back together when the latter's promiscuous sister appears on their doorstep in search of a place to stay. But while the more stable sibling can't help but accept a sister in need, trouble arises when the volatile newcomer becomes a muse for the creatively stifled scribe. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Blair UnderwoodNatasha Gregson Wagner, (more)
2004  
 
The third TV cartoon series created by Bill Cosby, the half-hour Fatherhood had less in common with its animated predecessors Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids and Little Bill than with the live-action sitcom The Cosby Show. The stories revolved around the Bindlebeep family, headed by Dr. Arthur Bindlebeep and his librarian wife Norma. Arthur was a strictly by-the-book parent with firm and unswerving views about child rearing and discipline, while Norma was a bit more relaxed and pliable. The Bindlebeep youngsters Angie, Roy, and Katherine were basically good, but they still weren't entirely problem-free. A typical situation would find the kids trying to figure out how to explain bad grades, broken toys, or rule infractions to their dad without incurring his wrath -- and the solution was generally "let's tell mom first!" Often as not, however, Walter and Norma became more understanding of their children's transgressions when they unintentionally got into trouble themselves. The series used a delicate blend of cell animation and CGI, and was particularly successful in "individualizing" its characters by giving each one a unique design. Fatherhood was added to the Nickelodeon "Nick at Nite" schedule on June 20, 2004. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Blair UnderwoodSabrina Le Beauf, (more)
2003  
R  
Add Truth Be Told to QueueAdd Truth Be Told to top of Queue
The truth doesn't come easy, and when the truth involves the mob, the police, and the vengeful survivor of a gangland massacre, it comes screaming in a hail of bullets in this tough-as-nails crime drama from King's Ransom director Jeff Byrd. Left for dead by the mob and then used by police to draw out the same men who nearly sent her to an early grave, Rayne Johnson (Regina King) is caught up in the middle of a battle that's about to blow up. As tension mounts and loyalties shift, the line between good and evil is blurred and Rayne soon learns that the only person she can trust to get her though this mess alive is herself. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

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2003  
PG13  
Add Malibu's Most Wanted to QueueAdd Malibu's Most Wanted to top of Queue
A rich kid who likes to pretend he's from the wrong side of the tracks gets a taste of the real thing in this comedy. Brad Gluckman (Jamie Kennedy) is the son of a wealthy and socially prominent couple (Ryan O'Neal and Bo Derek) and grew up in the lap of luxury in Malibu, CA. However, Brad likes to imagine he's a street-smart gangsta from the mean streets of L.A., and he's been trying to launch a career as a hardcore rapper under the name "B-Rad." Mr. Gluckman is running for Governor of California, and both he and his campaign manager (Blair Underwood) are convinced Brad's antics could have a negative impact on the election, so they come up with a scheme to change his mind about the supposed glamour of street life. Mr. Gluckman hires a pair of African-American actors (Taye Diggs and Anthony Anderson) to impersonate a pair of gang-bangers from Compton who carjack Brad's SUV and take him to the 'hood, where he'll learn just how scary the thug life can be. However, it soon becomes obvious the actors don't know much more about life in Compton than Brad does, and as Brad gets used to his new surroundings, he falls for a girl from the neighborhood (Regina Hall) who has her own plans for moving up in the world. Malibu's Most Wanted was inspired by a character Jamie Kennedy created for his sketch comedy series The Jamie Kennedy Experiment. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Jamie KennedyTaye Diggs, (more)
2002  
R  
Add G to QueueAdd G to top of Queue
Writer-director Christopher Scott Cherot (Hav Plenty) based his second feature, G, on F. Scott Fitzgerald's classic novel, The Great Gatsby. Tre (Andre Royo), a writer for a music magazine, goes out to the Hamptons to interview a wealthy and mysterious rap mogul, Summer G (Richard T. Jones), who's recently bought a home there. Tre first stops in on his cousin, Sky (Chenoa Maxwell, who also starred in Hav Plenty) and her control freak millionaire husband, Chip (Blair Underwood). Tre soon learns that Chip is brazenly cheating on Sky, and he even witnesses Chip smack his girlfriend around. Tre doesn't have much luck getting close to Summer G, until the music impresario finds out that Tre is related to Sky, whom he dated in college. Summer G asks Tre to arrange a meeting with Sky, and Tre, apparently upset with the way Chip has been treating Sky, helps Summer G connect with his old flame. Summer G tells Sky that he still loves her, and she begins an affair with him. The snobby old money Chip, already predisposed to dislike Summer G because of his hip-hop lifestyle, suspects that there's something going on, and plots to have Summer G chased from their exclusive Hamptons neighborhood. G was produced by Andrew Lauren, fashion designer Ralph Lauren's son, who also appears in the film as Adam Gordon, Summer G's manager. G was shown at the 2002 Tribeca Film Festival and at the 2002 Urbanworld Film Festival. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Richard T. JonesBlair Underwood, (more)
2002  
R  
Add Full Frontal to QueueAdd Full Frontal to top of Queue
Described as a modern-day Hollywood version of Day for Night, director Steven Soderbergh's first digital video production was also shot employing a modified version of the frills-free Dogma 95 rules set forth by Lars Von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg, allowing a relatively small budget of about two million dollars. Julia Roberts and Blair Underwood star, respectively, as Francesca and Calvin, actors performing in a motion picture directed by David Fincher and co-starring Brad Pitt (who play themselves). Woven in and out of the film production story thread are several other subplots including one about a lovelorn woman, Linda (Mary McCormack); the self-absorbed Gus (David Duchovny); and a husband, Carl (David Hyde Pierce), whose wife (Catherine Keener) is falling for Calvin. Described initially as a follow-up to Soderbergh's independent breakout hit, sex, lies and videotape, Full Frontal isn't a sequel in the strictest sense of the word and is only thematically related to the earlier film in its exploration of voyeurism and sexuality. The film also stars Brad Rowe, Enrico Colantoni, and Nicky Katt. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
David DuchovnyNicky Katt, (more)
2000  
 
Add The Wishing Tree to QueueAdd The Wishing Tree to top of Queue
In this family drama, Clara Collier (Alfre Woodard) is a lawyer who pays a visit to her hometown in the Georgia farm country when her mother (Mary Alice), a well-regarded local storyteller, dies. Mother's death has brought the family together for the funeral, and when Clara meets with her family and friends, she leans of the legend of "The Magic Man," a mysterious stranger who guides people lost in the woods back to safety. While Clara is dubious about this story, she soon learns the truth when a youngster is hurt while hiking in the brush. Directed by acclaimed Czech filmmaker Ivan Passer, The Wishing Tree also features Helen Shaver and Blair Underwood. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Alfre WoodardMary Alice, (more)
2000  
R  
Add Rules of Engagement to QueueAdd Rules of Engagement to top of Queue
In this drama, two U.S. Marines who stood side by side on the field of battle are reunited in a court of law. Attorney Hayes Hodges (Tommy Lee Jones) once aspired to a career as an officer, but a serious injury in Vietnam put an end to his military future, leaving him bitter and resentful. Col. Terry L. Childers (Samuel L. Jackson) fought alongside Hodges and once saved his life; when Childers is threatened with a court martial for ordering his troops to fire on civilians during a raid on an American embassy, Hodges is the only lawyer that he can trust, and the case gives Hodges a chance for revenge against the military system that he feels has wronged him. Rules of Engagement also features Kim Delaney, Ben Kingsley, Blair Underwood, and Anne Archer. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Tommy Lee JonesSamuel L. Jackson, (more)
1999  
 
Add Asunder to QueueAdd Asunder to top of Queue
Actor-turned-director Tim Reid follows up the success of his 1996 opus Once Upon a Time...When We Were Colored with this tense psychological thriller. The film opens with two upwardly mobile couples having a ball at a fairground. Chance (Blair Underwood) and his very pregnant wife Roberta happily board a Ferris wheel with their best friends Michael (Michael Beach) and his fashion designer wife Lauren (Debbi Morgan) when a freak accident strikes, and Roberta and the baby are killed. Michael and Lauren let Chance grieve at their luxurious abode. Soon Lauren reveals that she recently had a secret abortion because she did not know if the child was Michael's or Chance's. Grief-stricken and jealous, Chance starts stalking Lauren and doing everything in his power to wreck her marriage. This film was screened at the 1999 Chicago Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Blair UnderwoodMichael Beach, (more)
1998  
 
The men of Alaye provide a glorious alternative for the savvy African American woman who appreciates men with heart and mind. Not only are Malcolm Jamal-Warner, Shermar Moore, and Genuwine very attractive men, but they also talk about their concerns and careers, what's shaped them and put them on the path they follow. These are men of wit and sophistication who have a lot to be proud of, as you'll see when you watch them be just their plain old sexy, desirable selves; positive men of ability and smart opinions on what it means to be a black man in America. ~ Leslie Birdwell, All Movie Guide

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1998  
 
Add Mama Flora's Family to QueueAdd Mama Flora's Family to top of Queue
This four-hour miniseries is based on author Alex Haley's continuing family saga. Covering the 1920s-1970s, the story centers on Mama Flora, the matriarch of a large black family who is determined to keep her brood together and close to their God during rapidly changing and tempestuous times. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Cicely TysonQueen Latifah, (more)
1997  
PG13  
Add Gattaca to QueueAdd Gattaca to top of Queue
New Zealand screenwriter Andrew Niccol (The Truman Show) made his feature directorial debut with this science fiction drama, set in a future when one's life is determined by genetic engineering rather than education or experience. The wealthy can choose the genetic makeup of their descendants. People are designed to fit into whatever role is decided before birth. But what happens when someone desires another way of life? Citizens in this impersonal future-world are fashioned as perfect specimens, so those in the natural-born minority are viewed as inferior to the pre-planned perfect specimens (aka "Valids") who dominate. One of the natural-borns (aka "In-Valids"), Vincent Freeman (Ethan Hawke), has several defects (poor vision, emotional problems, and short 30-year life expectancy), but he also develops a different outlook on his pre-ordained fate. He yearns to break free from society's constraints, and he dreams of a journey into space as a Gattaca Corp. navigator. To accomplish his goal, he enlists the aid of DNA broker German (Tony Shalhoub) and makes contact with Jerome Morrow (Jude Law), who was paralyzed in an accident and is willing to sell his superior genetic materials. Vincent assumes Jerome's identity and is scheduled for a flying mission. However, a week before his flight, a Gattaca mission director is murdered, and all members of the program are the suspects. Meanwhile, he develops a romantic interest in a beautiful Valid, Irene (Uma Thurman), prevented from going into space because of her heart defect. Tracked by a relentless investigator who is methodically jigsawing all the pieces together, Jerome finds his aspirations dissolving into stardust. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Ethan HawkeUma Thurman, (more)
1996  
 
Add Mistrial to QueueAdd Mistrial to top of Queue
An angry cop literally kidnaps a court proceeding in a desperate bid for justice in this made-for-cable drama. Eddie Rios (John Seda) stands accused of the murder of two police officers, but he's found not guilty due to a lack of proper evidence. Steve Donohue (Bill Pullman), the detective who brought Rios in, is outraged by this decision, and in a burst of anger he pulls his gun and holds the defendant, the judge, and the jury hostage, demanding they immediately retry Rios, with Donohue presenting evidence he was forbidden to show the jury due to legal technicalities. Mistrial also stars Robert Loggia, Blair Underwood, and Roma Maffia. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

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Starring:
Bill PullmanRobert Loggia, (more)

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