---
name: "Clarke Peters"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/clarke-peters"
fi1m_id: "clarke-peters"
imdb_id: "nm0676370"
tmdb_id: 61011
wikidata_id: "Q1095834"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "7 April 1952"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 16
average_fi1m_score: 74
average_as: "actor"
average_over: 16
updated: "2026-10-22T03:15:54.568962+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Clarke Peters

## Identity

Clarke Peters

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/clarke-peters
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** clarke-peters
- **IMDb ID:** nm0676370
- **TMDB ID:** 61011
- **Wikidata ID:** Q1095834
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarke_Peters, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1095834, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0676370/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/61011

Actor. Born 7 April 1952 in New York City, New York, USA.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 7 April 1952, New York City, New York, USA
- **Active:** 1983–present
- **Also known as:** Peter Clarke
- **Average Fi1m score:** 74, as actor, over 16 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 1980s 83 (1), 1990s 79 (2), 2000s 73 (2), 2010s 75 (8), 2020s 69 (3)
- **Fi1m against the critics:** 76 to 74 across 15 titles
- **Score spread:** 6 at 80+, 8 at 60–79, 2 under 60
- **Lead roles:** 0 of 8 acting credits billed first or second
- **Genres:** Drama 12, Crime 6, Mystery 3, Sci-Fi & Fantasy 3, Romance 2, Thriller 2
- **Screen time:** 12 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $669m across 5 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarke_Peters, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1095834, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0676370/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/61011

## Streaming the US now

- **HBO Max:** [*The Wire*](https://film.one/tv/the-wire.md) (90), [*Mona Lisa*](https://film.one/film/mona-lisa.md) (83), [*Treme*](https://film.one/tv/treme.md) (82), [*Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri*](https://film.one/film/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri.md) (74)
- **Netflix:** [*The Boroughs*](https://film.one/tv/the-boroughs.md) (73), [*Da 5 Bloods*](https://film.one/film/da-5-bloods.md) (72)
- **Amazon Prime Video:** [*Jericho*](https://film.one/tv/jericho.md) (56)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Fi1m on Clarke Peters

> Clarke Peters makes experienced men convincing without making them grand. We value his quiet authority, especially when a programme gives him work to do rather than asking him to stand about and represent wisdom.

In *The Wire* (2002), Clarke Peters makes Lester Freamon’s methodical approach worth paying attention to. He plays an overlooked detective with enough contained intelligence to make us believe in the work, without insisting that we admire the man. We recommend the programme even to those who avoid police dramas, and Peters helps explain why: patient expertise can be absorbing. His authority suits a series that gives departmental politics the weight usually reserved for gunfire. We would start here for Peters, too.

His early work in West End musicals and revues helps explain why the voice matters so much. He also wrote the book for *Five Guys Named Moe* (1990), before the screen roles that made him widely known. His partnership with writer and producer David Simon continued with Albert Lambreaux, the Mardi Gras Indian chief in *Treme* (2010). Later film parts include Police Chief Abercrombie in *Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri* (2017) and Vietnam veteran Otis in *Da 5 Bloods* (2020). These are parts in which knowing a job, a place or a community matters.

*The Boroughs* (2026) puts that quality to useful work in an older ensemble. As Art Daniels, alongside Denis O’Hare’s Wally Baker and Geena Davis’s Renee Joyce, he helps make the group worth staying with when the monster mystery becomes a chore. We warmed to these residents because their fear of death and concern for the next generation were taken seriously, rather than used as excuses for jokes. Writers including Will Matthews and Jeffrey Addiss allow those worries to coexist with the silliness. Peters contributes to the company without needing to dominate it.

There is a limit to what this steadiness can repair. In *The Boroughs*, Alfred Molina and Alfre Woodard are the main reason to follow the adventure; Peters is part of its appeal, not a cure for the tiresome mystery. It matters that his contribution stays in proportion to the group, rather than demanding a separate occasion for admiration. Give him characters with responsibilities, certainly, but not the job of making every weak script seem wise.

## Biography

Clarke Peters is an American actor, writer and director. Born Peter Clarke on 7 April 1952 in New York City, he moved to London in 1973 and adopted his professional name to avoid conflict with existing Equity members.

He is best known for his role as Detective Lester Freamon in the HBO series *The Wire* (2002–2008) and as Albert Lambreaux in *Treme* (2010–2013). Other notable screen credits include *John Wick* (2014), *Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri* (2017) and *Da 5 Bloods* (2020), for which he received a BAFTA nomination for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. He wrote the book for the musical revue *Five Guys Named Moe* (1990).

In 2026 he appeared as Art Daniels in the Netflix series *The Boroughs*.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com, theboroughs.fandom.com.*

## On Fi1m (16)

- *The Boroughs* (2026), Fi1m 73, as Art Daniels — [page](https://film.one/tv/the-boroughs.md)
- *Foundation* (2021), Fi1m 61, as Abbas — [page](https://film.one/tv/foundation.md)
- *Da 5 Bloods* (2020), Fi1m 72, as Otis — [page](https://film.one/film/da-5-bloods.md)
- *Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri* (2017), Fi1m 74, as Abercrombie — [page](https://film.one/film/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri.md)
- *Jericho* (2016), Fi1m 56, as Ralph Coates — [page](https://film.one/tv/jericho.md)
- *London Spy* (2015), Fi1m 70, as The American — [page](https://film.one/tv/london-spy.md)
- *Show Me a Hero* (2015), Fi1m 78, as Robert Mayhawk — [page](https://film.one/tv/show-me-a-hero.md)
- *John Wick* (2014), Fi1m 80, as Harry — [page](https://film.one/film/john-wick.md)
- *True Detective* (2014), Fi1m 80, as Minister — [page](https://film.one/tv/true-detective.md)
- *Person of Interest* (2011), Fi1m 78, as Alonzo Quinn — [page](https://film.one/tv/person-of-interest.md)
- *Treme* (2010), Fi1m 82, as Albert "Big Chief" Lambreaux — [page](https://film.one/tv/treme.md)
- *The Wire* (2002), Fi1m 90, as Lester Freamon — [page](https://film.one/tv/the-wire.md)
- *K-PAX* (2001), Fi1m 56, as Homeless Veteran — [page](https://film.one/film/k-pax.md)
- *Notting Hill* (1999), Fi1m 78, as 'Helix' Lead Actor — [page](https://film.one/film/notting-hill.md)
- *Oz* (1997), Fi1m 80, as Afsana — [page](https://film.one/tv/oz.md)
- *Mona Lisa* (1986), Fi1m 83, as Anderson — [page](https://film.one/film/mona-lisa.md)

## Complete filmography (109)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *The Boroughs* (2026), series, as Art Daniels — Fi1m 73, [page](https://film.one/tv/the-boroughs.md)
- *Towards Zero* (2025), series, as Frederick Treves
- *Small Town, Big Story* (2025), series, as Chet Donald
- *Watson* (2025), series, as Hamish Watson
- *Bonhoeffer: Pastor. Spy. Assassin* (2024), as Reverend Powell Sr.
- *Eric* (2024), series, as George
- *Testament: The Story of Moses* (2024), series, as God (voice)
- *Truelove* (2024), series, as Ken
- *Royal Crackers* (2023), series, as Deshaun (voice)
- *Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody* (2022), as John Houston
- *BBC Proms - The Golden Age of Broadway* (2022), as Singer
- *The Man Who Fell to Earth* (2022), series, as Josiah Falls
- *La Fortuna* (2021), series, as Jonas Pierce
- *Foundation* (2021), series, as Abbas — Fi1m 61, [page](https://film.one/tv/foundation.md)
- *The Royale* (2021), as Wynton
- *The Irregulars* (2021), series, as Linen Man
- *Letters Live from the Archive: Freemasons’ Hall* (2021), Actor
- *Come Away* (2020), as Mad Hatter
- *Count Basie: Through His Own Eyes* (2020), as Voice of Count Basie
- *Da 5 Bloods* (2020), as Otis — Fi1m 72, [page](https://film.one/film/da-5-bloods.md)
- *Bumps* (2020), as Charles
- *The Mandela Effect* (2019), as Dr. Fuchs
- *Christmas Under the Stars* (2019), as Clem Marshwell
- *His Dark Materials* (2019), series, as The Master
- *Harriet* (2019), as Ben Ross
- *The Opera Game* (2019), as Narrator
- *An Acceptable Loss* (2019), as Phillip Lamm
- *Love Is___* (2018), series, as "Wiser" Yasir
- *Bulletproof* (2018), series, as Ronald Pike Snr
- *Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri* (2017), as Abercrombie — Fi1m 74, [page](https://film.one/film/three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri.md)
- *Division 19* (2017), as Perelman
- *The Blacklist: Redemption* (2017), series, as Richard Whitehall
- *Chance* (2016), series, as Carl, Carl Allan
- *Rebirth in New Orleans* (2016), as Narrator
- *Fats Domino and The Birth of Rock ‘n’ Roll* (2016), as Narrator
- *Jericho* (2016), series, as Ralph Coates — Fi1m 56, [page](https://film.one/tv/jericho.md)
- *Roy Orbison: One of the Lonely Ones* (2015), as Roy Orbison (Voice)
- *The Benefactor* (2015), as Dr. Romano
- *Marvel's Jessica Jones* (2015), series, as Det. Oscar Clemons
- *London Spy* (2015), series, as The American — Fi1m 70, [page](https://film.one/tv/london-spy.md)
- *The Bad Education Movie* (2015), as Commander Andrews
- *Show Me a Hero* (2015), series, as Robert Mayhawk — Fi1m 78, [page](https://film.one/tv/show-me-a-hero.md)
- *Partners in Crime* (2015), series, as Julius Hersheimmer
- *Grace* (2014), as Father Michael
- *John Wick* (2014), as Harry — Fi1m 80, [page](https://film.one/film/john-wick.md)
- *The Best of Me* (2014), as Morgan Dupree
- *Forever* (2014), series, as Jerry Charters
- *The Divide* (2014), series, as Isaiah Page
- *True Detective* (2014), series, as Minister — Fi1m 80, [page](https://film.one/tv/true-detective.md)
- *Red Hook Summer* (2012), as Da Good Bishop Enoch Rouse
- *Death in Paradise* (2011), series, as Marlon Croft
- *Searching for Sonny* (2011), as The Narrator
- *Person of Interest* (2011), series, as Alonzo Quinn — Fi1m 78, [page](https://film.one/tv/person-of-interest.md)
- *Legacy* (2010), as Ola Adenuga
- *Blue Bloods* (2010), series, as Nathan Anderson
- *Locked In* (2010), as Frank
- *Treme* (2010), series, as Albert "Big Chief" Lambreaux — Fi1m 82, [page](https://film.one/tv/treme.md)
- *Nativity!* (2009), as Studio Boss
- *Doctor Who: Dreamland* (2009), series, as Night Eagle (voice)
- *Turnipseed* (2009), as A.B. Turnipseed
- *Brief Interviews with Hideous Men* (2009), as Subject #31
- *Archer* (2009), series, as Popeye (voice)
- *Chess in Concert* (2009), as Walter de Courcy
- *Endgame* (2009), as Nelson Mandela
- *Marley & Me* (2008), as Editor
- *Life on Mars* (2008), series, as Captain Bellow
- *Gigantic* (2008), as Roger Stovall
- *The Poker House* (2008), as Maurice
- *In Plain Sight* (2008), series, as Norman Baker / Norman Danzer
- *Sympathetic Details* (2008), as Carson
- *Damages* (2007), series, as Dave Pell — Fi1m 78, [page](https://film.one/tv/damages.md)
- *Meadowlands* (2007), series, as Professor Campbell
- *Freedomland* (2006), as Reverend Longway
- *Law & Order: Trial by Jury* (2005), series, as Rex da Silva
- *James Brown: Soul Survivor* (2003), Actor
- *Head of State* (2003), as Fundraiser Demo-Tape Man
- *The Wire* (2002), series, as Lester Freamon — Fi1m 90, [page](https://film.one/tv/the-wire.md)
- *K-PAX* (2001), as Homeless Veteran — Fi1m 56, [page](https://film.one/film/k-pax.md)
- *Waking the Dead* (2001), series, as Howard Boorstin
- *The Corner* (2000), series, as Fat Curt
- *Notting Hill* (1999), as 'Helix' Lead Actor — Fi1m 78, [page](https://film.one/film/notting-hill.md)
- *Hey, Mr. Producer! The Musical World of Cameron Mackintosh* (1998), as Moe
- *Oz* (1997), series, as Afsana — Fi1m 80, [page](https://film.one/tv/oz.md)
- *Jonathan Creek* (1997), series, as Hewie Harper — Fi1m 78, [page](https://film.one/tv/jonathan-creek.md)
- *Midsomer Murders* (1997), series, as Frank Wainwright — Fi1m 66, [page](https://film.one/tv/midsomer-murders.md)
- *Chandler & Co* (1994), series, as Jasper
- *Death Train* (1993), as Whitlock
- *The Nicholas Brothers: We Sing and We Dance* (1992), as Narrator
- *Between the Lines* (1992), series, Actor
- *A Masculine Ending* (1992), as Theo Sykes
- *Murder Most Horrid* (1991), series, as American
- *A Casualty of War* (1989), as Grover T. Fleming
- *Red King, White Knight* (1989), as Jones
- *Blind Justice* (1988), series, as Alton Phillips
- *Menace Unseen* (1988), series, as Mark Hallstrom
- *Up Line* (1987), as Alex du Bois
- *Mona Lisa* (1986), as Anderson — Fi1m 83, [page](https://film.one/film/mona-lisa.md)
- *Travelling Man* (1984), series, as Alan Downing
- *Facelift* (1984), as Bob Jangles
- *King* (1984), as Stevie
- *Saigon: Year of the Cat* (1983), as Soldier
- *Outland* (1981), as Sgt. Ballard
- *Silver Dream Racer* (1980), as Cider Jones
- *Number on End* (1980), as Yankee Billy
- *The Music Machine* (1979), as Laurie
- *The Professionals* (1977), series, as President Ojuka
- *Play for Today* (1970), series, as Stevie
- *Untitled Roald Dahl Series*, series, Actor
- *Sexual Healing*, as Harvey Fuqua

## Gallery

- ![Clarke Peters](https://film.one/media/person/22469/gallery-c17f0e5a14d5.jpg) Clarke Peters — Ausir, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7c/Clarke_Peters_Edinburgh_2010.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)
- !["Treme" co-creators and executive producers David Simon and Eric Overmyer, actor Clarke Peters (HBO's "The Wire," "The Corner," and Albert Lambeaux on "Treme"), (2010)](https://film.one/media/person/22469/gallery-6b80ac4bfc2f.jpg) "Treme" co-creators and executive producers David Simon and Eric Overmyer, actor Clarke Peters (HBO's "The Wire," "The Corner," and Albert Lambeaux on "Treme"), (2010) — Tulane Public Relations, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fa/Treme_%285125827151%29.jpg/1280px-Treme_%285125827151%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- !["Treme" co-creators and executive producers David Simon and Eric Overmyer, actor Clarke Peters (HBO's "The Wire," "The Corner," and Albert Lambeaux on "Treme"), (2010)](https://film.one/media/person/22469/gallery-d74382925418.jpg) "Treme" co-creators and executive producers David Simon and Eric Overmyer, actor Clarke Peters (HBO's "The Wire," "The Corner," and Albert Lambeaux on "Treme"), (2010) — Tulane Public Relations, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/47/Treme_%285125861363%29.jpg/1280px-Treme_%285125861363%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- !["Treme" co-creators and executive producers David Simon and Eric Overmyer, actor Clarke Peters (HBO's "The Wire," "The Corner," and Albert Lambeaux on "Treme"), (2010)](https://film.one/media/person/22469/gallery-e7d65d2cdf4f.jpg) "Treme" co-creators and executive producers David Simon and Eric Overmyer, actor Clarke Peters (HBO's "The Wire," "The Corner," and Albert Lambeaux on "Treme"), (2010) — Tulane Public Relations, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/17/Treme_%285126460062%29.jpg/1280px-Treme_%285126460062%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Clarke Peters](https://film.one/media/person/22469/gallery-eafb82448004.jpg) Clarke Peters — Image via TMDB
- ![Clarke Peters](https://film.one/media/person/22469/gallery-d8cdae6cd30d.jpg) Clarke Peters — Image via TMDB

## Awards

### Other awards — 2 won, 5 nominated

- NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series 2013: NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series (nominated), for *Treme*
- Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical 2007: Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical (nominated)
- Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical 1999: Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical (nominated)
- Theatre World Award 1999: Theatre World Award (won)
- Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical 1996: Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical (nominated)
- Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical 1992: Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical (nominated), for *Five Guys Named Moe*
- Laurence Olivier Award for Best Entertainment 1991: Laurence Olivier Award for Best Entertainment (won)

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/clarke-peters