The Boroughs
2026 · TV Show
as Art Daniels
Clarke Peters
1952-04-07
•
New York City, New York, USA
Peter Clarke (born April 7, 1952), known professionally as Clarke Peters, is an American actor, writer, and director, who has spent much of his adult life in the United Kingdom. He is best known for his roles as Lester Freamon in the television series The Wire (2002–2008) and Albert Lambreaux in the television series Treme (2010–2013). He also wrote the book for the musical revue Five Guys Named Moe (1990). Peters is also known for his roles in the films Silver Dream Racer (1980), Endgame (2009), John Wick (2014), Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017), Harriet (2019), and Da 5 Bloods (2020), the lattermost of which earned him a nomination for the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. Peters was born Peter Clarke, the second of four sons, in New York City, and grew up in Englewood, New Jersey. At the age of 12, he had his first theater experience, in a school production of My Fair Lady. He began to have serious ambitions to work in the theater at the age of 14. He graduated from Dwight Morrow High School in 1970. In 1971, Peters' older brother enabled him to work as a costume designer for a production of the musical Hair in Paris, in which Peters later starred. In 1973, Peters moved to London and changed his name to Clarke Peters, because Equity already had a few namesake members. While in London, he formed a soul band, The Majestics, and worked as a backup singer on such hits as "Love and Affection" by Joan Armatrading, "Boogie Nights" by Heatwave, and some David Essex songs. However, music was not Peters' main ambition, and he preferred to work in the theater. His first West End theatre musical roles, which he received with assistance from his friend Ned Sherrin, were I Gotta Shoe (1976) and Bubbling Brown Sugar (1977). Other West End credits include Blues in the Night, Porgy and Bess, The Witches of Eastwick, Guys and Dolls, Chicago, and Chess. Peters starred in the Sean Connery space Western Outland (1981) as the treacherous Sgt. Ballard, and he played an almost wordless role as Anderson, a vicious pimp in Neil Jordan's Mona Lisa (1986). Peters is familiar to television viewers as Detective Lester Freamon in the HBO series The Wire. Peters also starred in the HBO mini-series The Corner, portraying a drug addict named Fat Curt, as well as the FX series Damages, as Dave Pell. Both The Wire and The Corner were created by writer and former The Baltimore Sun journalist David Simon. Peters also stars in Simon's HBO series Treme, in the role of Mardi Gras Indian chief Albert Lambreaux. Peters appeared in two episodes of the American time-travel/detective TV series Life on Mars (2008) as NYPD Captain Fletcher Bellow. He also appeared in the British show Holby City, as Derek Newman, the father of nurse Donna Jackson. He voiced a part in the Doctor Who animated episode Dreamland, and in the In Plain Sight episode "Duplicate Bridge" as a man in Witness Protection named Norman Baker/Norman Danzer. In 2010, Peters read Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption for BBC 7. In that year, he also had a guest appearance as Professor Mark Ramsay in the pilot episode of the USA Network TV series Covert Affairs. From 2012 to 2013, Peters had a recurring role as Alonzo D. Quinn in the CBS TV series Person of Interest.
Filmography
Small Town, Big Story
2025 · TV Show
as Chet Donald
Towards Zero
2025 · TV Show
as Frederick Treves
Watson
2025 · TV Show
as Hamish Watson
Bonhoeffer: Pastor. Spy. Assassin
2024 · Movie
as Reverend Powell Sr.
Testament: The Story of Moses
2024 · TV Show
as God (voice)
Truelove
2024 · TV Show
as Ken
Eric
2024 · TV Show
as George
Royal Crackers
2023 · TV Show
as Deshaun (voice)
Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody
2022 · Movie
as John Houston
BBC Proms - The Golden Age of Broadway
2022 · Movie
as Singer
The Man Who Fell to Earth
2022 · TV Show
as Josiah Falls
Cameron Mackintosh - The First 50 Years
2021 · Movie
as Self
Letters Live from the Archive: Freemasons’ Hall
2021 · Movie
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The Royale
2021 · Movie
as Wynton
The Irregulars
2021 · TV Show
as Linen Man
Foundation
2021 · TV Show
as Abbas
La Fortuna
2021 · TV Show
as Jonas Pierce
Come Away
2020 · Movie
as Mad Hatter
Da 5 Bloods
2020 · Movie
as Otis
Count Basie: Through His Own Eyes
2020 · Movie
as Voice of Count Basie
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Bumps
2020 · Movie
as Charles
The Mandela Effect
2019 · Movie
as Dr. Fuchs
Harriet
2019 · Movie
as Ben Ross
Christmas Under the Stars
2019 · Movie
as Clem Marshwell
An Acceptable Loss
2019 · Movie
as Phillip Lamm
The Opera Game
2019 · Movie
as Narrator
His Dark Materials
2019 · TV Show
as The Master
Bulletproof
2018 · TV Show
as Ronald Pike Snr
The Big Narstie Show
2018 · TV Show
as Self
Love Is___
2018 · TV Show
as "Wiser" Yasir
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
2017 · Movie
as Abercrombie
Division 19
2017 · Movie
as Perelman
The Blacklist: Redemption
2017 · TV Show
as Richard Whitehall
Rebirth in New Orleans
2016 · Movie
as Narrator
Fats Domino and The Birth of Rock ‘n’ Roll
2016 · Movie
as Narrator
Jericho
2016 · TV Show
as Ralph Coates
Chance
2016 · TV Show
as Carl, Carl Allan
The Benefactor
2015 · Movie
as Dr. Romano
Sean Connery: In His Own Words
2015 · Movie
as Self
Roy Orbison: One of the Lonely Ones
2015 · Movie
as Roy Orbison (Voice)
The Bad Education Movie
2015 · Movie
as Commander Andrews
London Spy
2015 · TV Show
as The American
Marvel's Jessica Jones
2015 · TV Show
as Det. Oscar Clemons
Partners in Crime
2015 · TV Show
as Julius Hersheimmer
Show Me a Hero
2015 · TV Show
as Robert Mayhawk
John Wick
2014 · Movie
as Harry
The Best of Me
2014 · Movie
as Morgan Dupree
Grace
2014 · Movie
as Father Michael
The Divide
2014 · TV Show
as Isaiah Page
True Detective
2014 · TV Show
as Minister
Forever
2014 · TV Show
as Jerry Charters
Red Hook Summer
2012 · Movie
as Da Good Bishop Enoch Rouse
Searching for Sonny
2011 · Movie
as The Narrator
Person of Interest
2011 · TV Show
as Alonzo Quinn
Death in Paradise
2011 · TV Show
as Marlon Croft
Locked In
2010 · Movie
as Frank
Legacy
2010 · Movie
as Ola Adenuga
Treme
2010 · TV Show
as Albert "Big Chief" Lambreaux
Blue Bloods
2010 · TV Show
as Nathan Anderson
Brief Interviews with Hideous Men
2009 · Movie
as Subject #31
Nativity!
2009 · Movie
as Studio Boss
Endgame
2009 · Movie
as Nelson Mandela
Chess in Concert
2009 · Movie
as Walter de Courcy
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Turnipseed
2009 · Movie
as A.B. Turnipseed
Archer
2009 · TV Show
as Popeye (voice)
Doctor Who: Dreamland
2009 · TV Show
as Night Eagle (voice)
Marley & Me
2008 · Movie
as Editor
Gigantic
2008 · Movie
as Roger Stovall
The Poker House
2008 · Movie
as Maurice
No image
Sympathetic Details
2008 · Movie
as Carson
Life on Mars
2008 · TV Show
as Captain Bellow
In Plain Sight
2008 · TV Show
as Norman Baker / Norman Danzer
The Wire: The Last Word
2007 · Movie
as Self
The Wire Odyssey
2007 · Movie
as Self
Tapping the Wire
2007 · Movie
as Self
Damages
2007 · TV Show
as Dave Pell
Meadowlands
2007 · TV Show
as Professor Campbell
Freedomland
2006 · Movie
as Reverend Longway
Law & Order: Trial by Jury
2005 · TV Show
as Rex da Silva
James Brown: Soul Survivor
2003 · Movie
Head of State
2003 · Movie
as Fundraiser Demo-Tape Man
The Wire
2002 · TV Show
as Lester Freamon
K-PAX
2001 · Movie
as Homeless Veteran
Waking the Dead
2001 · TV Show
as Howard Boorstin
The Corner
2000 · TV Show
as Fat Curt
Notting Hill
1999 · Movie
as 'Helix' Lead Actor
Hey, Mr. Producer! The Musical World of Cameron Mackintosh
1998 · Movie
as Moe
Oz
1997 · TV Show
as Afsana
Midsomer Murders
1997 · TV Show
as Frank Wainwright
Jonathan Creek
1997 · TV Show
as Hewie Harper
Chandler & Co
1994 · TV Show
as Jasper
Death Train
1993 · Movie
as Whitlock
The Nicholas Brothers: We Sing and We Dance
1992 · Movie
as Narrator
A Masculine Ending
1992 · Movie
as Theo Sykes
Between the Lines
1992 · TV Show
Murder Most Horrid
1991 · TV Show
as American
Red King, White Knight
1989 · Movie
as Jones
A Casualty of War
1989 · Movie
as Grover T. Fleming
No image
Menace Unseen
1988 · TV Show
as Mark Hallstrom
No image
Blind Justice
1988 · TV Show
as Alton Phillips
Up Line
1987 · Movie
as Alex du Bois
Mona Lisa
1986 · Movie
as Anderson
American Masters
1986 · TV Show
as Self - Narrator
King
1984 · Movie
as Stevie
Facelift
1984 · Movie
as Bob Jangles
Travelling Man
1984 · TV Show
as Alan Downing
Saigon: Year of the Cat
1983 · Movie
as Soldier
Outland
1981 · Movie
as Sgt. Ballard
Number on End
1980 · Movie
as Yankee Billy
Silver Dream Racer
1980 · Movie
as Cider Jones
The Music Machine
1979 · Movie
as Laurie
The Professionals
1977 · TV Show
as President Ojuka
Play for Today
1970 · TV Show
as Stevie
No image
Sexual Healing
· Movie
as Harvey Fuqua
