Mekhi Phifer
Known for: Acting
Mekhi Thira Phifer (born December 29, 1974) is an American actor. He is perhaps best known for his multi-year role as Dr. Greg Pratt on NBC's long-running medical drama ER and his co-starring role opposite Eminem in the feature film 8 Mile. He was a regular on the Fox crime show Lie to Me portraying the role of Ben Reynolds, before season 3. He was born in in Harlem, New York City, the son of Rhoda Phifer, a high school teacher; he grew up in a single-parent household with his mother. His acting career began in 1995, when Phifer attended an open casting call for director Spike Lee’s Clockers, beating over a thousand others to get the lead role as a narcotics dealer embroiled in a murder cover-up. He followed that role with another in the comedy spoof feature High School High (which also starred his former wife Malinda Williams) and continued by co-starring in the fright flick I Still Know What You Did Last Summer, starring Jennifer Love Hewitt and Freddie Prinze, Jr. Among Phifer’s other big-screen credits are Soul Food, The Biography of Spud Webb, Hell’s Kitchen, NYC, Tears of a Clown, O (as the titular character Odin a.k.a. O), and the thriller Uninvited Guest (as Silk). He appeared in Impostor as well as Paid in Full, 8 Mile, opposite Eminem and Dawn of the Dead. Phifer has a son, Omikaye, with his ex-wife, actress Malinda Williams. His second son, Mekhi Thira Phifer Jr., was born to his girlfriend Oni Souratha in Los Angeles on October 30, 2007.
Filmography
Series
Law & Order
Lyman Ross
1990
Series
The Daily Show
Self
1996
Series
Chicago P.D.
Joe Baker
2014
Series
High Potential
Arthur Ellis
2024
Series
Psych
Drake
2006
Series
ER
Greg Pratt
1994
Series
The View
Self
1997
Series
Curb Your Enthusiasm
Omar Jones
2000
Series
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
Self
2003
Series
White Collar
Kyle Collins
2009
Series
Late Night with Conan O'Brien
Self - Guest
1993
Series
Homicide: Life on the Street
Nathaniel Lee 'Junior Bunk' Mahoney
1993
Series
Lie to Me
Ben Reynolds
2009
Series
Beat Bobby Flay
Self
2013
Series
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
Self
2003
Series
Torchwood
Rex Matheson
2006
Series
Punk'd
Self
2003
Series
Love, Victor
Harold Brooks
2020
Series
Key & Peele
Cousin
2012
Series
Truth Be Told
Markus Killebrew
2019
Series
New York Undercover
Sekou
1994
Series
Miss USA
Self - Judge
1963
Film
Dawn of the Dead
Andre
2004
Film
Insurgent
Max
2015
Film
Divergent
Max
2014
Series
Match Game
Self - Panelist
2016
Series
Best Week Ever
2004
Series
On Air with Ryan Seacrest
Self
2004
Series
Hollywood Game Night
Self
2013
Film
8 Mile
Future
2002
Film
Allegiant
Max
2016
Film
I Still Know What You Did Last Summer
Tyrell
1998
Series
Frequency
Satch Reyna
2016
Series
Secret City
Ambassador Moreton
2016
Film
Honey
Chaz
2003
Series
Roots
Jerusalem
2016
Film
Shaft
Trey Howard
2000
Film
Lights Out
Max Bomer
2024
Film
Impostor
Cale
2001
Film
Paid in Full
Mitch
2002
Film
Clockers
Ronald 'Strike' Dunham
1995
Film
Obsession
Sonny
2019
Film
The Silent Hour
Mason Lynch
2024
Film
The Supremes at Earl's All-You-Can-Eat
James Henry
2024
Film
Flypaper
Darrien
2011
Film
This Christmas
Gerald
2007
Film
High School High
Griff McReynolds
1996
Film
Be Happy
Peter Mosley
2026
Film
Pandemic
Gunner
2016
Film
Slow Burn
Isaac Duperde
2005
Film
Puff, Puff, Pass
Big Daddy
2006
Film
O
Odin James
2001
Film
Girl 6
Self (uncredited)
1996
Film
The Tuskegee Airmen
Lewis Johns
1995
Film
Chocolate City: Vegas Strip
Best Valentine
2016
Film
Long Gone Heroes
Moreao
2024
Black Poker Stars Invitational
Self – Guest
2008
Black Poker Stars Invitational
Self – Player
2008
Film
NBC 75th Anniversary Special
Self
2002
Series
The Bobby Brown Story
Tommy Brown
2018
Film
Soul Food
Lem
1997
Film
Brian's Song
Gale Sayers
2001
Film
Hell's Kitchen
Johnny Miles
1998
Film
Mary J. Blige Presents Be Happy
Peter Mosley
2026
Film
A Day in the Life
King Khi
2009
Film
Carmen: A Hip Hopera
Hill
2001
Film
The Suspect
The Suspect
2013
Film
A Day Late and a Dollar Short
Lewis
2014
Film
Last Man Standing
Jeremy Davis
2011
Film
Subway Stories
Man in Hallway (segment "Fern's Heart of Darkness")
1997
Film
Uninvited Guest
Silk
1999
Film
Canal Street
Prosecutor A.J. Canton
2019
Marx
Axel Marx
Film
The Making of '8 Mile'
Self
2003
Film
Hav Plenty
Harold
1997
Film
A Lesson Before Dying
Jefferson
1999
Film
Labyrinth
2025
Film
A Talent For Trouble
Mekhi Phifer
2018
Film
Nora's Hair Salon II: A Cut Above
Maxwell Terry
2008
Film
The Love Section
James Johnson
2013
Film
The Other Brother
Martin
2002