Steven Williams (born January 7, 1949) is an American actor in films and television. He is known for his roles as Captain Adam Fuller on21 Jump Street, Lt. Jefferson Burnett onThe Equalizer, Det. August Brooks onL.A. Heat,X onThe X-Files, Russell "Linc" Lincoln inLinc's, andRufus Turner inSupernatural.

Throughout his career, Williams has appeared in numerous films, includingThe Blues Brothers (1980),Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983),Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday (1993),22 Jump Street (2014),It (2017), andBirds of Prey (2020).

He has been nominated for aScreen Actors Guild Award and oneNAACP Image Award.

Williams was born inMemphis, Tennessee, and was predominantly reared inChicago. His parents were divorced, and he was raised at separate times by his father inMichigan, his mother in Chicago and by his maternal grandparents inMillington, Tennessee.^[2] In Chicago, he attendedWendell Phillips High School. After graduating, he matriculated at theGeneral Motors Institute, an automaker's engineering school.^[1][3] Williams later worked as a postal carrier, salesman, and model.^[4][5]

He was drafted into theUnited States Army, serving in the 2nd Armored Division, stationed inGelnhausen, Germany and became Divisional Champion with the United States Army Boxing Team, Middleweight Division.^[2] Upon receiving an Honorable Discharge from the United States Army, Williams worked for theUnited States Postal Service as a mailman.^[1] After delivering the mail in subzero temperatures, he went to work in Chicago's garment district as an apparel salesman.^[1]

Williams made his acting debut in the 1975 filmCooley High.^[2] He appeared in musical comedyThe Blues Brothers (1980) as Trooper Mount,^[2] and played Lt. Jefferson Burnett on theCBS drama seriesThe Equalizer in 1985.^[2] He portrayed renegade Capt. David Nester in the 1985 filmMissing in Action 2: The Beginning,^[6]

He landed the role of Captain Adam Fuller,^[7] a senior police officer supervising younger cops,^[2] onFox Network's TV series21 Jump Street in 1987.^[8] Williams replacedFrederic Forrest, who played a similar character, early in the series.^[2] He continued playing the character until the series ended in 1991. While acting in the series, Williams played Lieutenant Gallagher inUnder the Gun (1988), which featuredVanessa Williams in the cast.^[9]

Following his stint on21 Jump Street, Williams portrayed the title character inThe 100 Lives of Black Jack Savage.^[10] He played the role of Det. August Brooks on theTNT seriesL.A. Heat in 1996. He recurred asX on theFox hitscience fiction seriesThe X-Files.^[11] He earned aScreen Actors Guild nomination forOutstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series in 1997 for his work as X.^[12]

Williams appeared as main character Russell "Linc" Lincoln, a bartender,^[13] in comedyLinc's.^[14] In 2000, he received anNAACP Image Award nomination, in the category ofOutstanding Actor in a Comedy Series.^[15] Concurrently, Williams portrayed Isaac in short-livedUPN seriesLegacy.^[16]

He portrayedRufus Turner in fantasy seriesSupernatural (2008−16),^[17] and was Quentin in dramaThe Chi (2018−present).^[18] Williams' work on the latter has been well received, with reviewers finding him "strong"^[19] and "powerful"^[20] as Quentin. Williams garnered several recurring roles in the 2010s and 2020s, including attorney Stephen Carlisle inAmbitions (2019)^[21] and teacher Joe Ridgeway inLocke & Key (2020),^[22] both dramas.

Williams has appeared extensively in guest roles on television. He portrayed an Army friend of the protagonist inMacGyver,^[23] and wasRobin Dumars' father onHangin' with Mr. Cooper.^[24] Other guest appearances includeThe Dukes of Hazzard,The A-Team,Booker,Stargate SG-1,Martin,Veronica Mars,The Bernie Mac Show,Criminal Minds andiZombie.

Other film roles include a bar patron inTwilight Zone: The Movie (1983),^[25]bounty hunter Creighton Duke inhorror filmJason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday (1993)^[26] and Carlos inAdventures of Power (2009).^[27] In TV movies, Williams was a Panamanian boat captain named Mo inDreams of Gold: The Mel Fisher Story (1986)^[28] and portrayed pitcherSatchel Paige inThe Court-Martial of Jackie Robinson (1990).^[29]

He was previously married to talent agent Ann Geddes.^[8] He has two daughters and six grandchildren.^[2] His eldest granddaughter is an artist based in Chicago and Los Angeles.

• Steven Williams atIMDb

• 1949 births
• Living people
• Male actors from Tennessee
• American male film actors
• American male television actors
• Actors from Memphis, Tennessee
• 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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