Regina King

Regina Rene King (born January 15, 1971) is an American actress and television director. She is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and three Primetime Emmy Awards. Time magazine named King one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2019.

King first gained attention in 1985 as Brenda Jenkins in the NBC television series 227. She would go on to star in both television and film, rising to greater prominence with roles like Dana Jones in Friday (1995), Marcee Tidwell in Jerry Maguire (1996), Riley and Huey Freeman on the hit animated series The Boondocks, and Detective Lydia Adams on Southland. For Southland, she earned two Critics' Choice Award nominations for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series in 2012 and 2013. In 2018, her performance as Sharon Rivers in the film If Beale Street Could Talk won her the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

From 2015 to 2017, King starred in the ABC anthology series American Crime, for which she received three Primetime Emmy Award nominations, winning twice, and was also nominated for a Golden Globe Award. Also from 2015 to 2017, she played Erika Murphy in the HBO drama The Leftovers, for which she received a Critics' Choice Television Award nomination. In 2018, she starred in the Netflix miniseries Seven Seconds, for which she won her third Emmy Award. King had a recurring role as Janine Davis in the CBS sitcom The Big Bang Theory, and has starred in various films, including Boyz n the Hood, Poetic Justice, Legally Blonde 2, Ray and Miss Congeniality: Armed & Fabulous.

Early life and education
Regina Rene King was born on January 15, 1971, in Los Angeles and grew up in View Park-Windsor Hills. She is the eldest daughter of Gloria (Cain), a special education teacher, and Thomas King, an electrician. King's parents divorced in 1979. King's younger sister is former actress Reina King, who appeared on What's Happening Now!! King attended Westchester High School; graduating in 1988 and later attended the University of Southern California.

Career
King began her acting career in 1985 playing the role of Brenda Jenkins on the television series 227, a role she played until the show ended in 1990. She went on to appear in the John Singleton films Boyz n the Hood, Poetic Justice and Higher Learning. In 1995, she was featured in the hit comedy film Friday. In 1996, she starred in the Martin Lawrence dark comedy-romance A Thin Line Between Love and Hate as Mia. King gained fame starring in the 1996 blockbuster romantic comedy film Jerry Maguire as Marcee Tidwell, the wife of Cuba Gooding, Jr.'s character. She played Will Smith's character's wife in Enemy of the State, and was also featured in How Stella Got Her Groove Back, Mighty Joe Young, Down to Earth, Daddy Day Care, Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde, A Cinderella Story, Ray and Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous.

Beginning in the mid-2000s, she had ongoing roles on several TV series, including acclaimed work as the voice of Huey and Riley Freeman for the animated series The Boondocks and Detective Lydia Adams on the TNT police drama Southland. She also appeared in roles on 24, The Big Bang Theory, and Shameless. In 2007 she played Lisa Moore in This Christmas. She was a cast member on ABC's John Ridley-penned ensemble drama American Crime, and played a devout member of the Nation of Islam and sister to a drug addict accused of murder.

In September 2015 and September 2016, King won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or a Movie for American Crime. In 2018, she played the role of the mother of a murdered black teenager in Netflix original series Seven Seconds, winning her third Primetime Emmy Award. Her performance in the 2018 film If Beale Street Could Talk, directed by Barry Jenkins, garnered critical acclaim and earned her the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

Personal life
In 1997, King married Ian Alexander, but they divorced in 2007. They have one son, Ian Alexander Jr., born January 19, 1996. King dated actor Malcolm-Jamal Warner from 2011 until March 2013.