Gary Dourdan Movies
Best known for his role as Warrick Brown, the detective with a marked predilection for risk (and an ongoing gambling addiction), on CBS's blockbuster series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, the easygoing, congenial, and memorably handsome African-American actor Gary Dourdan has built his life and his public image around uniqueness and originality. Six foot two inches tall, green-eyed, sporting bushy yet sculpted dreadlocks, and straddling the worlds of drama and avant-garde music, Dourdan commented to Ebony magazine, "I've always tried to be unconventional as much as I possibly could...one thing I'm trying to do with my career and with my craft is to blur the lines between what people think African-Americans should play and what I'm doing. I'm not much into fads and fashions and trying to follow things." Born December 11, 1966, in Philadelphia, PA, as the son of Robert and Sandy Durdin (his actual surname), the adolescent Dourdan attended "Freedom Theater," an inner-city program for aspiring actors, during adolescence. Success in this venue prompted him to travel to Manhattan on a weekly basis for musical training and dramatic auditions. Dourdan landed his "big break" as an actor in the early '90s, seemingly without even trying. While dating fashion model Roshumba Williams around 1991 and vacationing with her in France, Dourdan was spotted by powerhouse Debbie Allen, then the producer and director of A Different World; impressed by his looks and manner, she invited him to audition for the series. He played Shazza Zulu, the resident "con man" of Hillman College -- a role he sustained through the end of 1992 (for less than one season), before moving on to new endeavors. Dourdan debuted onscreen inauspiciously, with a bit part as the Second Cartel Man in Weekend at Bernie's II. Additional roles included that of a copy guy in Ron Howard's The Paper (1994), Christie in Alien Resurrection, and Yates in the Andy Wilson-directed medical thriller Playing God (1997). In 2000, Dourdan landed his biggest break with the CSI role, for executive producer Jerry Bruckheimer -- and (when the program instantly shot up to number one) continued the part as the series progressed. The same year that he signed with Bruckheimer and company, Dourdan played Malcolm X in the telemovie Muhammad Ali: King of the World. As mentioned, Dourdan is also a prolific alternative musician (with solo albums to his credit) and a record producer. He married African-American model Williams in 1992; the couple divorced two years later. He has two children, a son, Lyric, and a daughter, Nyla (the daughter of Jennifer Sutton, whom Dourdan dated from 1995 to 2000). ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide- 1991
In the conclusion of a two-part story, Whitley (Jasmine Guy) is outraged that her fiance Dwayne (Kadeem Hardison) has been dating an attractive science professor, and never mind that it was Whitley's own bad attitude that drove Dwayne away from her. At the same time, Whitley's mom Marion (iahann Carroll) and Dwayne's mom Adele (Patti LaBelle) meet for the first time--and detest each other on sight. Eventually, Marion and Adele negotiate a temporary detente...which, alas, is more than can be said for Whitley and Dwayne. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1991
This episode marks the first appearances of Ajai Sanders as Gina Deveaux and Gary Dourdan) as Shazza Zulu (aka Sylvester Simon). The spotlight is on Shazzu, a sixth-year undergraduate who stirs up controversy at Hillman when he publishes a book about the sexist behavior of college men. Before long, all the Hillman girls are mad at all the Hillman guys and vice versa, their mutual animosity climaxing in a wild food fight--while Shazza loftily insists that he was merely trying to bring everyone together in peace and harmony. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1991
In the first episode of a two-part story, Whitley (Jasmine Guy) is more on edge than usual just before her engagement party. When her tensions and frustrations reach the spillover point, Whitley lashes out at her fiance Dwayne (Kadeem Hardison)--who, not unexpectedly, begins having second thoughts about the wedding. Elsewhere, Freddie (Cree Summer) inaugurates a romance with Shazza (Gary Dourdan) upon his return from Africa--much to the dismay of Kim (Charnele Brown), who is unconvinced that Shazza has changed his ways. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1992
Anita Morris guest stars as Freddie's mom Joni, who insists upon interfering in her daughter's life--and in the lives of all of her daughter's friends. As for Freddie (Cree Summer) herself, she's more mixed up than ever over her feelings toward Ron (Darryl M. Bell) and Shazza (Gary Dourdan). Meanwhile, Whitley (Jasmine Guy) is forced to work at a pancake house on Christmas day in order to afford a Yuletide gift for husband Dwayne (Kadeem Hardison). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1992
Good Fight is a made-for-cable film about a small-town lawyer (Christine Lahti) who fights a tobacco company when her son's best friend is stricken with mouth cancer, due to his frequent use of chewing tobacco. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Christine Lahti, Terry O'Quinn, (more)
- 1992
In the conclusion of a three-part story, Whitley (Jasmine Guy) adamantly tries to convince everyone (especially herself) that she has fallen out of love with Dwayne (Kadeem Hardison), and IN love with handsome political candidate Byron Douglas (Joe Morton). Elsewhere, Ron (Darryl M. Bell) promises to give up his womanizing for the sake of Kim (Charnele Brown), or at least that's what he says. And Cosby Show regular Charmaine Brown (Karen Malina White) shows up at Hillman with plans of enrolling--and, possibly, breaking off her long-standing relationship with Lance Rodman (Allen Payne). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1992
Having decided to make show business his life, Ron (Darryl M. Bell) is pouring all of his money into his singing career--leaving nothing to help Dwayne (Kadeem Hardison) pay the household bills. Before long, Ron's life has been turned inside out: Not only has Dwayne kicked him out of the apartment, but the rest of his band has walked out on him en masse. Elsewhere, Freddie (Cree Summer) is so in love with Shazza (Gary Dourdan) that she can't think about anything else...driving everyone, including Shazza, absolutely crazy. Cast as the faux boy band "Mice 2 Men," real-life singing group The Boys performs "Crazy". ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1992
As a project for her sociology class, Charmaine (Karen Malina White) follows Whitley (Jasmine Guy) around at her place of employment. As it turns out, Charmaine couldn't have picked a worse time: Whitley is laid off after the company suffers a setback, and as Dwayne (Kadeem Hardison) tries to cheer up his wife, he ends up in his own deep funk upon discovering that their apartment has been burglarized. Elsewhere, Kim (Charnele Brown), Ron (Darryl M. Bell), Freddie (Cree Summer) and Shazza (Gary Dourdan) have a disastrous time trying to patch up their various romantic travails. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1992
In the first episode of a two-part story, Whitley's overbearing mother Marion (Diahann Carroll) visits Whitley (Jasmine Guy) and Dwayne (Kadeem Hardison). It's bad enough that Whitley is unable to admit that she's lost her job; it's even worse when she meets Marion's much-younger boyfriend Malik (Nestor Carbonell). But the fur doesn't really begin to fly until Dwayne's mom Adele (Patti LaBelle) shows up, still unable to forgive her son for marrying Whitley without her O.K., and absolutely unprepared to make nice-nice with Marion. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1992
In the conclusion of A Different World's two-part Season Six opener, Whitley (Jasmine Guy and Dwayne (Kadeem Hardison) continue to recall their chaotic honeymoon in riot-torn Los Angeles. At the same time, the couple's friends react to the violence (inspired by the infamous Rodney King verdict) in a variety of ways: Col. Taylor (Glynn Turman) is disillusioned over the fact that race relations haven't progressed much since the Watts riots, Lena (Jada Pinkett) places all the blame on the white population, and Freddie (Cree Summer) attempts to be level-headed--a difficult feat, inasmuch as she is being hit on by Ron (Darryl M. Bell) while his girlfriend Kim (Charnele Brown) fumes. Appearing in cameo roles are sitcom diva Roseanne and her then-husband Tom Arnold. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1992
In the conclusion of a two-part story, Thanksgiving dinner at the home of Dwayne (Kadeem Hardison) and Whitley (Jasmine Guy) degenerates into a slapstick food fight, thanks to the couple's respective mothers Adele (Patti LaBelle) and Marion (Diahann Carroll). Later on, the two warring moms land in jail after getting involved in a rally-turned-riot for starving Haitians, organized by the well-meaning Freddie (Cree Summer) and attended by Marion's new "boy toy" Malik (Nestor Carbonell). Fortunately, Adele and Marion finally settle their differences when they discover that Dwayne and Whitley are flat broke; unfortunately, the bungled rally causes a rift between Freddie and her activist boyfriend Shazza (Gary Dourdan). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1992
New student Charmaine (Karen Malina White) is so overbearing in Dwayne's statistics class that someone slaps a sign on her back reading "Digit Ho." Convinced that punkish Terrell Walker (Patrick Y. Malone) is the guilty party, Charmaine files a formal complaint against him. Taking on the task of defending Terrell in Student Court, Freddie (Cree Summer) realizes anew that in certain cases, everyone is a little bit guilty. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1992
Now that Ron (Darryl M. Bell) and Freddie (Cree Summer) are aware of their mutual attraction, things get dicey for Ron when Freddie continues seeing Shazza (Gary Dourdan)--and for Kim (Charnele Brown),who feels that Freddie is responsible when a disconsolate Ron moves in with newlyweds Whitley (Jasmine Guy) and Dwayne (Kadeem Hardison). As for that "loving couple," they're in the middle of their first real marital quarrel over how to decorate their apartment (she wants to keep her possessions and throw his out, and vice versa). Elsewhere, Lena (Jada Pinkett) manages to turn a coed "step" demonstation into a major controversy. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1992
When Freddie (Cree Summer) goes camping with Shazza (Gary Dourdan), Ron (Darryl M. Bell) tries to renew his relationship with Kim (Charnele Brown)--who at the moment is having problems in her anatomy class. Unable to participate in a dissection without becoming nauseous, Kim turns to her lab partner Spencer Boyer (Michael Ralph in his first regular series appearance) to boost her confidence. Alas, though Kim seems to have solved her classroom problem, her romantic life is still in shambles. Meanwhile, Charmaine (Karen Malina White) is the latest in a long line of series regulars to find employment at The Pit. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1992
In the conclusion of A Different World's two-part Season Five finale, Whitley (Jasmine Guy)is just about to wed Byron Douglas III (Joe Morton) when she realizes that she is still in love with Dwayne (Kadeem Hardison). Whitley's social-climbing mom Marion (Diahann Carroll) works overtime to convince her daughter to go through with the ceremony whether she wants to or not. Wackiness ensues (as wackiness often does), and the episode comes to a surprising and slightly surreal conclusion. "Saving the Best for Last" marks the final series appearance of Dawnn Lewis as Jaleesa Taylor. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
When they discover that their deceased boss had stashed away two million illegally embezzled dollars in a Caribbean safe deposit box, two co-workers decide to claim the cash. To do so, however, they must convince everyone the boss is actually alive -- a situation which seems oddly familiar to them both. This sequel to the popular 1989 comedy Weekend at Bernie's promises more of the same: slapstick with an amazingly lifelike corpse at the center. Whatever freshness the premise may have once had has vanished, however, and the occasionally clever set pieces become lost under the weight of a number of cluttered subplots. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Andrew McCarthy, Jonathan Silverman, (more)
- 1994
Also known as Keys to Her Past, Keys is an ABC made-for-TV movie from 1994. Detective Maureen Kickasola is played by Marg Helgenberger, who would go on to star on the similarly themed CBS series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation in 2000. She's looking for clues into the disappearance of a child while also feeling the dramatic effects of the crime. Keys also stars Gary Dourdan of CSI. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
Director Ron Howard's drama follows a beleaguered reporter during a hectic 24 hours at a New York City tabloid. Michael Keaton stars as Henry Hackett, a metro editor for the struggling New York Sun. Hackett is being wooed by the Sentinel, a more upscale paper, but he's addicted to the adrenaline-stimulating, breakneck pace of the Sun's newsroom, much to the consternation of his pregnant wife Martha (Marisa Tomei. Hackett is currently pursuing a story of two minority youths who have been arrested for the murders of two men. He learns that the police think that the killings may be a mob hit. In the court of public opinion, however, the innocent suspects are being judged as guilty, and the police may bow to the pressure. As Hackett and his staff desperately work all the story's angles to find the truth, several other dramas unfold. Top editor Bernie (Robert Duvall) learns that he has prostate cancer, and tough publisher Alicia (Glenn Close) wonders if her lack of popularity is due to her cost-cutting, her personality, or the fact that she's a woman. In their only collaboration, screenwriter David Koepp co-wrote the script with his brother Stephen Koepp, a senior editor at Time magazine. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michael Keaton, Robert Duvall, (more)
After losing his license to work as a surgeon, synthetic-heroin addict Eugene Sands (David Duchovny) is on a downward spiral into the Los Angeles drug scene. One night, someone is shot in a bar, and Sands performs a life-saving medical maneuver on the spot. Word travels fast. A few days later, a limo drops him off at the Malibu den of counterfeiter-smuggler Raymond Blossom (Timothy Hutton) and his cupid-lipped moll Claire (Angelina Jolie). The bleach-haired Blossom needs someone to stitch up his hemorrhaging henchmen so they won't wind up answering questions at a hospital. He sees Sands as the ideal man to stop the flow of information and blood. It's a deal with the devil, but Sands accepts. Meanwhile, Claire has her eye on Sands, and FBI agent Gage (Michael Massee) has plans to bring down Blossom. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Duchovny, Timothy Hutton, (more)
Two centuries after Ellen Ripley's death, doctors aboard the space station Auriga clone her using a blood sample taken from Fiorna 161, in hopes of harvesting the queen embryo that was incubating inside of her when she was trapped on the remote penal planet. Finally succeeding after numerous attempts, they remove the alien and repair the clone for further study. Before long, the Ripley clone has gained consciousness, and displays superhuman capabilities that suggest it possesses alien DNA. When Ripley discovers that General Perez (Dan Hedaya) is keeping the queen in a heavily fortified room of the space station, she warns the military man and his scientists that the creature cannot be contained no matter how hard they try. Meanwhile, General Perez has hired a crew of space pirates to deliver the cryogenically frozen bodies of another ship to the Auriga so they can be used to breed more aliens. The leader of the pirates is Johner (Ron Perlman), a gruff mercenary who engages Ripley to no avail. When Call (Winona Ryder), one of Johner's crewmembers, admits that she was sent to assassinate Ripley, General Perez attempts to have the pirates executed. The result is a tense standoff between the pirates and the military men, with the aliens causing havoc after breaking free of their containment cells. Attempting a daring escape, Ripley and the pirates discover the lab where she was cloned before being forced to swim through the mess hall, which has been submerged in water during the aliens' escape. Discovering a carefully guarded secret about Call's past, Ripley attempts to convince her to alter the Auruga's course, which was set to Earth when the ship went into emergency mode. With the fate of mankind hanging in the balance, Ripley is captured by the aliens and taken to their nest, where she comes face to face with the mutated results of the scientists' experiments. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sigourney Weaver, Winona Ryder, (more)
In an exclusive neighborhood in upstate New York, family and friends gather to commemorate the AIDS-related death of Tony (played in flashbacks by D.B. Sweeney), a much-loved young man. The gathering takes place at the country home of Tony's half-brother John (Jared Harris) and John's moody wife Marian (Deborah Kara Unger). John and Marian's marriage has been under some strain, due in large part to Marian's overriding worries about their year-old baby. When Tony's longtime lover and Marian's best friend Lyle (David Conrad) arrives with Robert (James Duval), his new boyfriend, tensions heighten further. Meanwhile, on the other side of the lake, wealthy widow Laura (Gena Rowlands) returns home to a surprise visit from her estranged daughter Nina (Brooke Shields), a B-movie actress whose latest attempt to shock her mother comes courtesy of Thierry (Gary Dourdan), the married, black Parisian she has brought along. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Deborah Kara Unger, Jared Harris, (more)
Trace (Stephen Baldwin) is a cop who's just been assigned to a new unit led by Lt. Devon (Chazz Palminteri). Trace is alarmed at the tactics of his new partners, who shoot criminals to kill without warning and take bets on who will kill the primary target. The unit turns out to be a team assembled to dispatch drug dealers and mobsters, similar to the ruthless cops in Mulholland Falls or L.A. Confidential. When Trace protests, his teammates tie him up in a firing range and shoot near misses at him. Later, Trace spares a tough nightclub singer/prostitute (Tia Carrere), from a deadly raid, and both become hunted by the cops as well as the mob. ~ Jonathan E. Laxamana, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stephen Baldwin, Chazz Palminteri, (more)
Love leads an innocent woman into a web of danger in this made-for-cable drama. Jade (Wendy Davis) is an attractive woman who is trying to lose herself in her work as a graphic designer following the traumatic death of her boyfriend. However, Jade learns that her lover had more than a few secrets, not the last of which were ties to organized crime, and his underworld associates are convinced she knows more about his criminal activities than she's letting on. Jade finds solace in a romance with her neighbor Jeff (Gary Dourdan), a handsome artist, but they both find themselves in danger when Jade finds something her late beau left at her home -- a suitcase containing a fortune in mob money. Rendezvous was originally produced for broadcast on the BET cable network. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Wendy Davis, Gary Dourdan, (more)
This long-delayed science fiction thriller from director Gary Fleder was actually filmed prior to his box-office hit Don't Say a Word (2001), which preceded it in theaters by several months. Based on a 1953 short story by Philip K. Dick, the film shares that schizophrenic author's long-running obsessions with concealed identity and humanity's potential inferiority to alternative life forms. Gary Sinise stars as Spencer John Olham, a respected government scientist in the year 2079 trying to devise a secret weapon that will help his fellow humans win a decade-long war with invading aliens that are cloning human subjects and using the replicas as walking time bombs. Suddenly, Olham is accused of being an alien spy and a nationwide manhunt to capture him ensues. With even his doctor wife (Madeleine Stowe) unsure that she can trust him, Olham must uncover the truth on his own, even as he's relentlessly pursued by Hathaway (Vincent D'Onofrio), a federal agent charged with destroying the clones. Imposter has a complicated history, originally produced in early 2000 as a 30-minute short to be included in an anthology entitled "The Light Years Trilogy," a project that never got off the ground. So impressed was Dimension Films with the completed piece, however, that the footage was incorporated into a new feature version. That film was then shuffled around the release schedule for more than a year as effects were completed, reshoots were ordered, and the film was recut for a PG-13 rating instead of its original R. The R-rated "director's cut" was later released on DVD. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gary Sinise, Madeleine Stowe, (more)
Atlanta attorney Jermaine (Gary Dourdan) wants to enliven his sex life with wife Jasmine (Kenya Moore) by having a threesome. Jasmine somewhat grudgingly agrees, and Jermaine's buddy Terrance (Soloman K. Smith) hooks him up with the comely Jade (Gretchen Palmer). Jermaine enters into a secret agreement with her to pay for a ménage à trois, but after the deed is done, Jade becomes increasingly unhinged as the married couple expresses no desire for further carnal commingling. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gary Dourdan, Kenya Moore, (more)
