---
name: "Richard Roundtree"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/richard-roundtree"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "9 July 1942"
died: "24 October 2023"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 4
average_fi1m_score: 76
updated: "2026-09-16T23:45:51.393699+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."
---

# Richard Roundtree

Actor. Born 9 July 1942 in New Rochelle, New York, USA. Died 24 October 2023.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 9 July 1942, New Rochelle, New York, USA
- **Died:** 24 October 2023
- **Active:** 1977–2006
- **Also known as:** Richard Arnold Roundtree

## Biography

Richard Roundtree was an American actor. He was best known for playing private detective John Shaft in the 1971 film *Shaft* and its sequels *Shaft's Big Score!* (1972), *Shaft in Africa* (1973), the 2000 film *Shaft* and the 2019 film *Shaft*.

Born in New Rochelle, New York, in 1942, Roundtree worked as a model before joining the Negro Ensemble Company. He received a Golden Globe nomination for New Star of the Year – Actor for *Shaft*. His later credits included roles in *Se7en* (1995), *George of the Jungle* (1997), *Speed Racer* (2008) and the television series *Heroes* (2006) and *Desperate Housewives* (2004). He played Assistant Vice Principal Trueman in the 2006 film *Brick*.

Roundtree died in Los Angeles in 2023.

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

## On Fi1m (4)

- *Brick* (2006), Fi1m 81, as Assistant V.P. Trueman — [page](https://film.one/film/brick.md)
- *Heroes* (2006), Fi1m 68, as Charles Deveaux — [page](https://film.one/tv/heroes.md)
- *Alias* (2001), Fi1m 74, as Brill — [page](https://film.one/tv/alias.md)
- *Roots* (1977), Fi1m 83, as Sam Bennett — [page](https://film.one/tv/roots.md)

## Also known for

- *Se7en* (1995), Talbot
- *The Mentalist* (2008), Floyd Benton
- *The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air* (1990), Dr. Mumford
- *Chicago Fire* (2012), Wallace Boden, Sr.
- *George of the Jungle* (1997), Kwame
- *Desperate Housewives* (2004), Mr. Shaw
- *Shaft* (2019), John Shaft, Sr.
- *Speed Racer* (2008), Ben Burns

---
© 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/richard-roundtree