Isiah Whitlock Jr.
High school yearbook portrait, 1972
Born	(1954-09-13)September 13, 1954 South Bend, Indiana, U.S.
Died	December 30, 2025(2025-12-30) (aged 71) New York City, U.S.
Education	Southwest Minnesota State University (BA) American Conservatory Theater (MFA)
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1981–2025

Isiah Whitlock Jr. (September 13, 1954 – December 30, 2025) was an American actor. He is best known for his role as corrupt state senatorClay Davis on theHBO television seriesThe Wire as well as being a frequent collaborator ofSpike Lee.

Whitlock appeared in many other films and television series, accumulating over 120 acting credits throughout his career. He also acted in some theater productions. He had a unique pronunciation ofshit ("sheeeeeeeee-it") that appeared in much of his work.

Whitlock was born inSouth Bend, Indiana, on September 13, 1954,^[1] and attendedJohn Adams High School, graduating in 1972. He was a star player on that school's football team and got an athletic scholarship to play football atSouthwest Minnesota State University (SMSU) inMarshall, Minnesota. Injuries led him to stop playing football and after getting a part in a rendition ofThe Crucible he focused on acting.^[2][3] After graduating in 1976, he moved toSan Francisco and joined theAmerican Conservatory Theater.^[4][5] Fromc. 1990 until 2021 he lived inChelsea, Manhattan, New York City.^[6]

Whitlock's first notable role came in 1987, when he appeared in an episode of the police proceduralCagney & Lacey.^[1] Early in his career he had minor roles in the 1990 filmsGoodfellas andGremlins 2: The New Batch, an appearance in the soap operaAs the World Turns, and an appearance inLaw & Order, the first of multiple appearances in it and variousfranchise spinoffs.^[7] Whitlock also made appearances onChappelle's Show and had a supporting role in the 2003 filmPieces of April.^[8] He had roles in the 2007 films1408 andEnchanted.^[8] He appeared in promotional spots for the 2009Wii video gamePunch-Out!!, portraying the characterDoc Louis.^[9] Whitlock first collaborated withSpike Lee in Lee's 2002 film25th Hour and would later appear in his 2004 filmShe Hate Me, 2012 filmRed Hook Summer, 2015 filmChi-Raq, 2017 television showShe's Gotta Have It, 2018 filmBlacKkKlansman, and 2020 filmDa 5 Bloods.^[10]

Whitlock is best known for his role on theHBO television seriesThe Wire as corrupt state senatorClay Davis.The Wire premiered in 2002 and ended in 2008; Whitlock had a recurring role in the show's first four seasons and was a part of the main cast inits fifth and final season.^[4]The New York Times said that his performance in the fifth season "got to the core" of the series central themes and that a speech Whitlock imbued with "a mesmerizing, vaudevillian phoniness" had earned him anEmmy, even if all of his prior work on the show was disregarded.^[11]

After appearing inThe Wire, Whitlock became a well-knowncharacter actor.^[7] Throughout his career, he accumlated more than 120 credits in film and television.^[10] Whitlock played an insurance agent named Ronald Wilkes in the 2011 filmCedar Rapids. Wilkes is a self-described fan ofThe Wire and during the film Whitlock does an impersonation ofOmar Little, a gangster in the series. Whitlock said that the references to the series were written before he became involved.^[12] He recurred on theHBO political satire seriesVeep as George Maddox, aU.S. Secretary of Defense and presidential candidate.^[8] Whitlock was part of the main cast of the 2013 television seriesLucky 7.^[13] He played Sheriff Gene Dentler in the 2016 filmPete's Dragon, a remake of the1977 film of the same name.^[14] He had a recurring role in the 2018 television seriesThe Good Cop, with Brian Tallerico ofRogerEbert.com thinking his skills were wasted in the role.^[15] In the seriesAtlanta, he played Raleigh Marks, the father of main character Earn Marks, who was played by series creatorDonald Glover.^[16] Whitlock played a corruptNew Orleans politician in the television seriesYour Honor.^[1] Whitlock's last appearance in film was inCocaine Bear^[4] and his last appearance on television was as a part of the main cast ofThe Residence, a murder mystery set in theWhite House.^[1] He is a voice actor inHoppers and appears inThe Body Is Water, both of which will be released posthumously.^[10]

Whitlock also performed in manyoff-Broadway andBroadway plays. He made his Broadway debut in the 1989 playMastergate, was in the ensemble of the 1990 Broadway production ofThe Merchant of Venice, and understudied in the 1999 Broadway production ofThe Iceman Cometh. He was a member of theAtlantic Theater Company and starred in many off-Broadway productions, including inFarrugut North. Whitlock was nominated for theLucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play in 2002 for his performance inFour.^[17][18] Whitlock also toured nationally in a production ofThe Piano Lesson.^[19]

Whitlock is well known for the distinct way he pronouncedshit ("sheeeeeeeee-it").^[1] Whitlock said that he picked up the pronunciation from an uncle who used it. While filming25th Hour, Whitlock said that Lee heard him use it in conversation and encouraged him to use it in the film, with the phrase then making its on-screen debut in it.^[20] Soon thereafter Whitlock began filmingThe Wire, and Whitlock said that the phrase, with his distinct pronunciation indicated, was already present in the script.^[20] Whitlock's use of the phrase inThe Wire made it very popular and it became an enduring part of his legacy.^[1] Whitlock would also use it in other Lee films, such asShe Hates Me,BlacKkKlansman,^[21] andDa 5 Bloods.^[22] Whitlock created an academy to teach actors how to say the phrase and sold talkingbobbleheads of himself which said the phrase after a successfulKickstarter campaign in 2015.^[21] The campaign met its $12,500 goal in less than a day^[23] and eventually raised over $100,000 from 1,828 backers.^[24] Prior to the bobblehead's release, Whitlock said he gave the only prototype toThe Wire showrunnerDavid Simon,^[25] and Simon said that he showed it to then-PresidentBarack Obama; Simon said that Obama enjoyed and kept it.^[26] Whitlock appeared in the documentary seriesHistory of Swear Words.^[19]

SMSU now offers the Isiah Whitlock Jr. Endowed Scholarship.^[3] He was SMSU's commencement speaker in 1999 and guest artist for the school's celebration ofBlack History Month in 2007.^[5] TheMarshall Independent called Whitlock perhaps SMSU's most prominent alumni.^[27]

Whitlock died after a short illness at aNew York City hospital on December 30, 2025, at the age of 71.^[1][4]

• Official website
• Isiah Whitlock Jr. atIMDb
• Isiah Whitlock Jr. at theInternet Broadway Database
• Isiah Whitlock Jr. at theInternet Off-Broadway Database

• 1954 births
• 2025 deaths
• American male film actors
• American male stage actors
• American male television actors
• American male voice actors
• Southwest Minnesota State University alumni
• Male actors from South Bend, Indiana
• 20th-century American male actors
• 21st-century American male actors
• 20th-century African-American male actors
• 21st-century African-American male actors

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