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Leon

Biography

Credited simply as Leon, this American actor and singer got his start in film during the early 1980s. Born in New York City in 1962, he took early parts in All the Right Moves (1983) and The Flamingo Kid (1984), then appeared in Band of the Hand and in Dennis Hopper's gang film Colors. He became best known as J.T. Matthews in The Five Heartbeats (1991), Derice Bannock in Cool Runnings (1993), Shep in Above the Rim (1994), and David Ruffin in the NBC miniseries The Temptations (1998). His turn as Little Richard in a 2000 NBC biography earned an Emmy nomination, and he went on to play Jefferson Keane on HBO's Oz and Lawrence Hill on Resurrection Blvd. He hosted his own late-night BET show, headlined three national theater tours, and fronts the band Leon and the Peoples.

64years old

Turns 65 on March 8in 147 days

  • Born New York City
  • Star sign: PiscesThe sign runs February 19 to March 20
  • Also credited as Leon Preston Robinson

Movie Career

Films
19
Career span
39 years1983 to 2022

Genres

Photos

  • Leon, photo 1 of 3
  • Leon, photo 2 of 3
  • Leon, photo 3 of 3

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  1. Behind the camera

    Leon took both acting and producing duties on The Price of Kissing, a romantic drama from 1997, and TV star Pauley Perrette appeared with him in it.

  2. Beyond film

    Leon sings lead and writes songs for Leon and the Peoples. Their first CD, The Road Less Traveled, brought him an International Reggae and World Music Award nomination in 2007.

  3. Beyond film

    Leon has headlined three national tours in theater. These included Friends and Lovers in 2005, based on Eric Jerome Dickey's New York Times bestselling book, with sold-out shows at Hollywood's Kodak Theatre and NYC's Beacon Theatre.

  4. A change of course

    Leon hosted a late-night talk show of his own called The L-Bow Room, which aired on BET, though his time as host was brief.

Leon movies on Netflix

Best known for

The films on Netflix they are best known for, with the part played in each.

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  1. Cool Runnings1993 Adventure, Comedy, Familyas Derice Bannock

    IMDb rating 7.0125K votes

  2. Cliffhanger1993 Action, Adventure, Thrilleras Kynette

    IMDb rating 6.5150K votes

  3. Above the Rim1994as Shep

    IMDb rating 6.618K votes

  4. Bats1999as Jimmy Sands

    IMDb rating 4.112K votes

  5. Buffalo Soldiers2001as Stoney

    IMDb rating 6.726K votes

  6. A Day to Die2022as Pettis

    IMDb rating 3.55.7K votes

  7. The Five Heartbeats1991as J.T.

    IMDb rating 7.65.6K votes

  8. The Temptations1998as David Ruffin

    IMDb rating 8.45.9K votes

Worked with

Leon shares two films with Troy Byer, and one with each of the others. Pick a number on the chart or a name in the list to see the films they share.

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Films together

Box office

What Leon's films earned in cinemas worldwide.

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Combined worldwide box office

$526 million

9 of the 19 films have a worldwide figure.

Of the 19 films: 9 worldwide figure; 4 us gross only; 3 never in cinemas; 3 figure not found.

  • 9Worldwide figure
  • 4US gross only
  • 3Never in cinemas
  • 3Figure not found

Highest grossing

The eight biggest films earned 100% of the total. The bars are drawn to scale.

  1. 1
    Cliffhanger1993as Kynette
    $255M48.4% of the total
  2. 2
    Cool Runnings1993as Derice Bannock
    $155M29.4% of the total
  3. 3
    Waiting to Exhale1995as Russell
    $81M15.5% of the total
  4. 4
    All the Right Moves1983as Shadow
    $17M3.3% of the total
  5. 5
    Bats1999as Jimmy Sands
    $10M1.9% of the total
  6. 6
    Band of the Hand1986as Moss
    $4.9M0.9% of the total
  7. 7
    Buffalo Soldiers2001as Stoney
    $2.3M0.4% of the total
  8. 8
    Streetwalkin'1985as Jason
    $400K0.1% of the total
Friends & Lovers (1999), $94,633

$94,633from the other 1 film with a worldwide figure, 0% of the total