Stephen McKinley Henderson
Stephen McKinley Henderson has a resume that most actors in his generation would \u2014 and probably do \u2014 envy. Trained first at Juilliard and then at UNCSA, he has been working steadily onstage for more than four decades, performing in classical and contemporary plays in theaters around the country. \nIn 1996 he originated the role of Turnbo in August Wilson\u2019s \u201cJitney\u201d in Pittsburgh and then went on to play the part many more times around the country, including in a hugely successful Off-Broadway run that netted him a Drama Desk Award. He eventually played the part at the National Theatre in London in 2001 in a production that won \u201cJitney\u201d the Olivier Award for Best Play. Since then, he has appeared on Broadway several more times, including in two August Wilson plays, \u201cKing Hedley II\u201d and \u201cFences,\u201d earning a Tony nomination for best supporting actor in the latter. \nIn recent years Stephen has also amassed an impressive film resume. When Denzel Washington directed \u201cFences\u201d for the screen, he asked his Broadway castmate Stephen to reprise his role in the film adaptation. Between 2016 and 2017 alone, Stephen was featured in three films that were nominated for the Best Picture Oscar: \u201cFences,\u201d \u201cManchester by the Sea\u201d and \u201cLady Bird.\u201d Later this year he will appear in one of the most anticipated films of recent years, Denis Villeneuve\u2019s adaptation of \u201cDune,\u201d and he recently wrapped filming in horror auteur Ari Aster\u2019s latest film, \u201cDisappointment Blvd,\u201d starring Joaquin Phoenix.\nIn this interview with Pier Carlo Talenti, Stephen reveals how as a young man a terrifying period of literal and metaphoric paralysis helped make him the artist he is today, a revolutionary optimist that renowned directors and playwrights alike know they can trust explicitly with their work.