Phylicia Rashād
Known for: Acting
Phylicia Rashad (née Ayers-Allen; born June 19, 1948) is an American actress. She was most recently dean of the College of Fine Arts at Howard University before her three-year contract ended in May 2024. Known for her roles on stage and screen, she has received two Tony Awards as well as nominations for six Primetime Emmy Awards and a Screen Actors Guild Award. She is best known for her role as Clair Huxtable on the NBC sitcom The Cosby Show (1984–1992) which earned her two Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series nominations in 1985 and 1986. She also played Ruth Lucas on Cosby (1996–2000), and Brenda Glover in Little Bill (1999–2004). She was also Emmy-nominated for her roles in A Raisin in the Sun (2008) and This Is Us (2019–2021). On stage, Rashad became the first Black actress to win the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play, for a revival of A Raisin in the Sun (2004). She won her second Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play for Dominique Morisseau's Skeleton Crew (2022). Her other Broadway credits include Into the Woods (1988), Jelly's Last Jam (1993), Gem of the Ocean (2004), and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (2008). She has appeared in various films such as For Colored Girls (2010), Good Deeds (2012), Creed (2015), Creed II (2018), Creed III (2023), and The Beekeeper (2024). She lent her voice to the Disney-Pixar animated film Soul (2020). In the 21st century, she has directed revivals of three plays by August Wilson, in major theaters in Seattle, Princeton, New Jersey; and Los Angeles. She also directed Purpose (play) in its 2024-2025 run at the Helen Hayes Theater on Broadway.
Filmography
Series
Grey's Anatomy
Nell Timms
2005
Series
Sherri
Self - Guest
2022
Series
Psych
Winnifred Guster
2006
Series
This Is Us
Carol Clarke
2016
Series
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Jane Goodfellow (voice)
1987
Series
Station 19
Pilar
2018
Series
The Cosby Show
Clair Huxtable
1984
Series
Tony Awards
Self - Presenter
1956
Series
The Good Fight
Renetta Clark
2017
Series
Empire
Diana DuBois
2015
Series
American Playhouse
Mayor Turner
1982
Series
Tamron Hall
Self - Guest
2019
Series
Touched by an Angel
Elizabeth Jessup
1994
Series
Sofia the First
Mountain Witch (voice)
2013
Film
The Beekeeper
Eloise Parker
2024
Series
The Gilded Age
Elizabeth Kirkland
2022
Series
Everybody Hates Chris
2005
Series
A Different World
Clair Huxtable
1987
Series
Intimate Portrait
Self
1993
Film
Soul
Libba Gardner (voice)
2020
Series
Curses!
Georgia (voice)
2023
Series
Blossom
1990
Series
Reading Rainbow
Narrator (voice)
1983
Series
Diarra from Detroit
Vonda
2024
Film
Creed
Mary Anne Creed
2015
Series
Cosby
Ruth Lucas
1996
Film
Creed II
Mary Anne Creed
2018
Series
Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child
Lady Fulton (voice)
1995
Film
Creed III
Mary-Anne Creed
2023
Series
Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
1948
Series
Little America
Margaret Jean the Queen
2020
Series
In the House
1995
Series
David Makes Man
Dr. Woods-Trap
2019
Film
tick, tick... BOOM!
"Sunday" Legend #12
2021
Series
Little Bill
Brenda Glover (voice)
1999
Film
Ruth & Boaz
Naomi
2025
Series
Bull
2000
Film
Just Wright
Ella McKnight
2010
Series
The Emmy Awards
Self
1949
Series
Jean-Claude Van Johnson
Jane
2016
Series
Do No Harm
Dr. Vanessa Young
2013
Series
The Rosie O'Donnell Show
Self - Guest
1996
Film
Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey
Grandmother Journey
2020
Film
A Fall from Grace
Sarah
2020
Film
Tour de Pharmacy
Victoria Young
2017
Film
Frankie & Alice
Edna
2010
Film
Being Mary Tyler Moore
Self (voice)
2023
Series
Inside the Black Box
2022
Film
For Colored Girls
Gilda
2010
Film
The Babysitter's Seduction
Kate Jacobs
1996
Film
Good Deeds
Wilimena Deeds
2012
Film
NBC 75th Anniversary Special
Self
2002
Film
Chadwick Boseman: A Tribute for a King
Self - Actress
2020
Film
Our Son
Maya
2023
Film
The Earth Day Special
Clair Huxtable
1990
Film
Murder, She Wrote: The Last Free Man
Cassandra Hawkins
2001
Film
Black Box
Lillian
2020
Film
Emily & Tim
Emily (Segment 5)
2015
Film
Steel Magnolias
Clairee
2012
Film
VH1 Hip Hop Honors: All Hail the Queens
2016
Film
Life's Essentials with Ruby Dee
Self
2014
Film
The Broad Coalition
1972
Film
Show of Titles
"There's No Business Like Show Business" Performer
2021
Film
Uncle Tom's Cabin
Eliza
1987
Film
Mickey's 60th Birthday
Disneyland Cleaning Lady
1988
Film
Polly
Aunt Polly
1989
Film
Heaven Down Here
Nancy
2023
Film
A Raisin in the Sun
Lena Younger
2008
Film
Between the World and Me
Self
2020
Tyler Perry’s Madea’s Family Affair
Judge Elaine Carter
Film
Chadwick Boseman: Portrait of an Artist
Self
2021
Film
Once Upon a Time... When We Were Colored
Ma Ponk
1996
Film
Gods Behaving Badly
Demeter
2013
Film
The Cosby Show: A Look Back
Self / Clair Huxtable (archive footage)
2002
Film
Polly: Comin' Home!
Aunt Polly
1990
Film
The Visit
Dr. Coles
2001
Film
David's Mother
Gladys Johnson
1994
Film
August Wilson: The Ground on Which I Stand
Self
2015
Film
The Possession of Michael D.
Dr. Marion Hale (Psychiatrist)
1995
Film
False Witness
Lynne Jacobi
1989
Film
God and the Inner City
Self (voice)
2003
Film
Jailbirds
Janice Grant
1991
Film
Dreams Worth While: The Journey of "A Raisin in the Sun"
Self
2008
The Old Settler
Elizabeth Barney
2001
Film
Free of Eden
Desiree
1999
JFK: The Lost Inaugural Gala
Self - Host
2017
Film
Change of Plans
Dorothy
2011
The Debbie Allen Special
Self
1989
Hallelujah
Mayor Turner
1993
Film
We're Fighting Back
1981
Film
Angry, Raucous, and Shamelessly Gorgeous
Anna Campbell
2021
Film
Dinosaur - Preshow
Dr Helen Marsh
1998
Coretta Scott
Self - Narrator (voice)
Film
Twenty Pearls: The Story of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority
Narrator (voice)
2021
Film
Bob Hope's Four-Star Christmas Fiesta from San Antonio
Self
1992
Charlie's Place
Narrator (voice)
2018
Nell Carter... Never Too Old to Dream
1986