---
name: "Leslie Odom Jr."
canonical: "https://film.one/person/leslie-odom-jr"
fi1m_id: "leslie-odom-jr"
imdb_id: "nm1502434"
tmdb_id: 1254614
wikidata_id: "Q18089198"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "6 August 1981"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 5
average_fi1m_score: 72
average_as: "actor"
average_over: 5
updated: "2026-10-03T01:24:42.416807+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."
---

# Leslie Odom Jr.

## Identity

Leslie Odom Jr.

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/leslie-odom-jr
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** leslie-odom-jr
- **IMDb ID:** nm1502434
- **TMDB ID:** 1254614
- **Wikidata ID:** Q18089198
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leslie_Odom_Jr., https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q18089198, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1502434/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/1254614

Actor. Born 6 August 1981 in Queens, New York City, New York, USA.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 6 August 1981, Queens, New York City, New York, USA
- **Active:** 2011–present
- **Also known as:** Leslie Odom, Jr.
- **Academy Awards:** 2 Oscar nominations
- **Average Fi1m score:** 72, as actor, over 5 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 2010s 78 (1), 2020s 70 (4)
- **Fi1m against the critics:** 72 to 70 across 5 titles
- **Score spread:** 2 at 80+, 2 at 60–79, 1 under 60
- **Lead roles:** 1 of 3 acting credits billed first or second
- **Genres:** Comedy 2, Crime 2, Action & Adventure 1, Drama 1, Horror 1, Mystery 1
- **Screen time:** 6 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $152m across 2 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leslie_Odom_Jr., https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q18089198, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1502434/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/1254614

## Coming up

- *Get Lite* (2027-04-09)

## Streaming the US now

- **Amazon Prime Video:** [*One Night in Miami...*](https://film.one/film/one-night-in-miami.md) (84)
- **Netflix:** [*Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery*](https://film.one/film/glass-onion-a-knives-out-mystery.md) (72)
- **Peacock:** [*The Exorcist: Believer*](https://film.one/film/the-exorcist-believer.md) (42)

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

## Fi1m on Leslie Odom Jr.

> A stage actor who, on screen, does almost nothing and makes it count: Odom plays clever, careful men who hold their faces still while everything around them gets louder. The films have not yet given that stillness enough room to work.

Near the start of *The Exorcist: Believer* (2023), a father stands in flat daylight looking at trees. His daughter has walked into the woods after school and not come back, and Leslie Odom Jr. plays Victor Fielding tight and courteous, a man who would rather answer the police properly than let anyone see what he is thinking. Timothy Alverson holds the shots long enough for us to watch him not cry. We were properly uneasy, and it was because nobody was trying to frighten us yet; the whole of the fear was in a face that would not move.

That is a choice, and a surprising one for a man who came up singing. Odom made his Broadway debut at seventeen, as Paul in *Rent* (1998), spent years in recurring television parts, and then became Aaron Burr in *Hamilton* (2015), the role that made his name. Burr asked for a full voice and a brooding patience. The films that came after have wanted the patience and mostly done without the voice: Dr Arbuthnot in *Murder on the Orient Express* (2017), Sam Cooke in Regina King's *One Night in Miami...* (2020), Lionel Toussaint in *Glass Onion* (2022). He went back to the stage for *Purlie Victorious* (2023), a comedy that let him preach, and returns to Burr from September 2025.

The pattern in the films is that they hire him for credibility. In *Glass Onion* Rian Johnson gives Lionel one trait, the scientist whose good name Bron borrows and never returns, and asks him to keep hitting it. Odom hits it with more care than the part needs, while the film gives its laughs to Kate Hudson and its heart to Janelle Monáe. It is a good film and a small job. *The Exorcist: Believer* is a poor film and a much larger job, and its early stretch is the best account we have of what he does on screen. David Gordon Green and Michael Simmonds shoot him without fog or blue filter, and he gives them a grief so contained it reads as good manners. Then the exorcism arrives, the shouting starts, and the film stops needing him to be still.

Sam Cooke is the part his admirers point to, and since we have not reviewed it we will say only that a singer who is also a careful listener sounds like the right brief for him. Somebody should write him a man who has to open his mouth before he is ready. Until then, the honest recommendation is the first act of a horror sequel we would not otherwise send you to.

## Biography

Leslie Odom Jr. is an American actor and singer. He trained at Carnegie Mellon University's School of Drama and made his Broadway debut in Rent.

He originated the role of Aaron Burr in the musical Hamilton, winning the 2016 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical and a Grammy Award for the cast recording. His film roles include Dr. Arbuthnot in Murder on the Orient Express (2017), Sam Cooke in One Night in Miami... (2020), Lionel Toussaint in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022), and Victor Fielding in The Exorcist: Believer (2023). He has also appeared in television series such as Grey's Anatomy and Person of Interest.

*Sources: imdb.com, leslieodomjr.com, en.wikipedia.org.*

## On Fi1m (5)

- *The Exorcist: Believer* (2023), Fi1m 42, as Victor Fielding — [page](https://film.one/film/the-exorcist-believer.md)
- *Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery* (2022), Fi1m 72, as Lionel Toussaint — [page](https://film.one/film/glass-onion-a-knives-out-mystery.md)
- *Abbott Elementary* (2021), Fi1m 82, as Draemond — [page](https://film.one/tv/abbott-elementary.md)
- *One Night in Miami...* (2020), Fi1m 84, as Sam Cooke — [page](https://film.one/film/one-night-in-miami.md)
- *Person of Interest* (2011), Fi1m 78, as Peter Collier — [page](https://film.one/tv/person-of-interest.md)

## Complete filmography (46)

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

- *Get Lite* (2027), Actor
- *MISCAST26* (2026), Actor
- *Imperfect Women* (2026), series, as Donovan
- *Hamilton* (2025), as Aaron Burr
- *Super Bowl Champions: The 2024 Philadelphia Eagles* (2025), as Narrator
- *Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch* (2024), as Purlie · Producer
- *The Exorcist: Believer* (2023), as Victor Fielding — Fi1m 42, [page](https://film.one/film/the-exorcist-believer.md)
- *Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery* (2022), as Lionel Toussaint — Fi1m 72, [page](https://film.one/film/glass-onion-a-knives-out-mystery.md)
- *The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder* (2022), series, as Kwame (voice)
- *Lincoln's Dilemma* (2022), series, as Frederick Douglass (voice)
- *Abbott Elementary* (2021), series, as Draemond — Fi1m 82, [page](https://film.one/tv/abbott-elementary.md)
- *Needle in a Timestack* (2021), as Nick Mikkelsen
- *The Many Saints of Newark* (2021), as Harold McBrayer
- *Music* (2021), as Ebo
- *One Night in Miami...* (2020), as Sam Cooke, Songs — Fi1m 84, [page](https://film.one/film/one-night-in-miami.md)
- *Love in the Time of Corona* (2020), series, as James · Executive Producer
- *Hamilton: History Has Its Eyes On You* (2020), Actor
- *Central Park* (2020), series, as Owen (voice)
- *Bombshell in Concert* (2020), Actor
- *Only* (2020), as Will
- *Blue's Clues & You!* (2019), series, as Mo Snow (voice)
- *Harriet* (2019), as William Still
- *The Jazz Ambassadors* (2018), as Narrator
- *Murder on the Orient Express* (2017), as Dr. Arbuthnot
- *Hamilton: One Shot to Broadway* (2017), Actor
- *Sanders Sides* (2016), series, as Leslie Odom Jr.
- *We Bare Bears* (2015), series, as Dr. Leslie (voice)
- *Luna Goes Cruising* (2015), as Oscar (voice)
- *Gotham* (2014), series, as Ian Hargrove
- *Smash* (2012), series, as Sam Strickland
- *Red Tails* (2012), as Declan 'Winky' Hall
- *House of Lies* (2012), series, as James
- *Person of Interest* (2011), series, as Peter Collier — Fi1m 78, [page](https://film.one/tv/person-of-interest.md)
- *Poe* (2011), as Julian 'Jupiter' Noble
- *NCIS: Los Angeles* (2009), series, as FBI Agent Duane Lausten
- *The Good Wife* (2009), series, as Barry Pert — Fi1m 84, [page](https://film.one/tv/the-good-wife.md)
- *Big Day* (2006), series, as Freddy
- *Vanished* (2006), series, as Malik Christo
- *Close to Home* (2005), series, as Jordan Carter
- *Supernatural* (2005), series, as Guy / Crossroads Demon — Fi1m 77, [page](https://film.one/tv/supernatural.md)
- *Grey's Anatomy* (2005), series, as P.J. Walling — Fi1m 68, [page](https://film.one/tv/greys-anatomy.md)
- *CSI: Miami* (2002), series, as Joseph Kayle
- *Gilmore Girls* (2000), series, as Quentin Walsh — Fi1m 81, [page](https://film.one/tv/gilmore-girls.md)
- *Law & Order: Special Victims Unit* (1999), series, as Curtis Scott
- *Great Performances* (1971), series, as Purlie Victorious Judson
- *Untitled Sammy Davis Jr. Horror Project*, as Sammy Davis Jr · Writer

## Gallery

- ![Leslie Odom Jr. performs during a special recording of the "Coffee with Ken" podcast in the Coolidge Auditorium, November 13, 2024. Photo by Shawn Miller/Librar](https://film.one/media/person/15729/gallery-95f27a66aacd.jpg) Leslie Odom Jr. performs during a special recording of the "Coffee with Ken" podcast in the Coolidge Auditorium, November 13, 2024. Photo by Shawn Miller/Librar — Library of Congress Life, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a1/Around_the_Library_of_Congress_in_the_Fall_and_Winter_of_2024_-_22.jpg/1280px-Around_the_Library_of_Congress_in_the_Fall_and_Winter_of_2024_-_22.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Leslie Odom Jr. performs during a special recording of the "Coffee with Ken" podcast in the Coolidge Auditorium, November 13, 2024. Photo by Shawn Miller/Librar](https://film.one/media/person/15729/gallery-44906f50de91.jpg) Leslie Odom Jr. performs during a special recording of the "Coffee with Ken" podcast in the Coolidge Auditorium, November 13, 2024. Photo by Shawn Miller/Librar — Library of Congress Life, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ef/Around_the_Library_of_Congress_in_the_Fall_and_Winter_of_2024_-_23.jpg/1280px-Around_the_Library_of_Congress_in_the_Fall_and_Winter_of_2024_-_23.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Leslie Odom Jr. speaks about his career with Ken Biberaj during a special recording of the "Coffee with Ken" podcast in the Coolidge Auditorium, November 13, 20 (2024)](https://film.one/media/person/15729/gallery-d18f89b11bf0.jpg) Leslie Odom Jr. speaks about his career with Ken Biberaj during a special recording of the "Coffee with Ken" podcast in the Coolidge Auditorium, November 13, 20 (2024) — Library of Congress Life, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/48/Around_the_Library_of_Congress_in_the_Fall_and_Winter_of_2024_-_24.jpg/1280px-Around_the_Library_of_Congress_in_the_Fall_and_Winter_of_2024_-_24.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Ken Biberaj, left, and Leslie Odom Jr., center, look over a special collections display with curator Mark Horowitz in the Whittall Pavilion, November 13, 2024. ](https://film.one/media/person/15729/gallery-de743654cae0.jpg) Ken Biberaj, left, and Leslie Odom Jr., center, look over a special collections display with curator Mark Horowitz in the Whittall Pavilion, November 13, 2024.  — Library of Congress Life, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0a/Around_the_Library_of_Congress_in_the_Fall_and_Winter_of_2024_-_26.jpg/1280px-Around_the_Library_of_Congress_in_the_Fall_and_Winter_of_2024_-_26.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Leslie Odom Jr.](https://film.one/media/person/15729/gallery-d81efeeb09bf.jpg) Leslie Odom Jr. — Image via TMDB
- ![Leslie Odom Jr.](https://film.one/media/person/15729/gallery-663b1a0c9df7.jpg) Leslie Odom Jr. — Image via TMDB
- ![Leslie Odom Jr.](https://film.one/media/person/15729/gallery-4ff55e4eadc8.jpg) Leslie Odom Jr. — Image via TMDB
- ![Leslie Odom Jr.](https://film.one/media/person/15729/gallery-11ef477df82c.jpg) Leslie Odom Jr. — Library of Congress Life, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d9/Leslie_Odom_Jr._2024_%28cropped%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail_unscaled)

## Awards

### Academy Awards — 0 won, 2 nominated

- 2021: Best Supporting Actor (nominated), for *One Night in Miami...*
- 2021: Best Original Song (nominated)

### SAG Awards — 0 won, 1 nominated

- 2021: Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture (nominated), for *One Night in Miami...*

### Other awards — 1 won

- Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical 2016: Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical (won), for *Hamilton*

*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/leslie-odom-jr