Lyriq Bent
{{Short description|Jamaican-Canadian actor}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2024}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Lyriq Bent
| image = Lyriq_Bent.JPG
| caption = Bent in 2014
| birth_date =
| birth_place = Kingston, Jamaica
| occupation = Actor
| yearsactive = 1999–present
}}
Lyriq Bent (born Martin Lyriq Bent) is a Jamaican-Canadian actor. He is known for his roles in the Saw films, the television series Rookie Blue, and The Book of Negroes. Bent portrays Jamie Overstreet in the Netflix series She's Gotta Have It, based on the film of the same name.
Early life
Martin Lyriq Bent was born in Kingston, Jamaica,{{Cite web |date=2013-09-15 |title=Lyriq Bent Is Home Again |url=https://www.jamaicaobserver.com/local-lifestyle/lyriq-bent-is-home-again/ |access-date=2023-02-23 |website=Jamaica Observer |language=en-US}} and moved to Toronto, Ontario, Canada, when he was six years old.{{cite news|url=https://www.thestar.com/living/article/899490--strellson-is-classy-one-stop-shopping#article |title=Strellson is classy one-stop shopping |newspaper=Toronto Star|date=December 4, 2010 |accessdate=June 10, 2012}}
Career
Bent has starred in various lead and supporting roles both in film and television since he began his acting career in the early 2000s. Prior to landing a co-starring role in the drama series Angela's Eyes, he guest starred on the UPN series Kevin Hill opposite Taye Diggs, and USA Network's Kojak opposite Ving Rhames. After appearing on several television shows, Playback Magazine listed him as one of Canada's top rising stars.{{Cite web |url=http://hungryeyes.ca/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/HomeAgain-presskit_v2.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=August 19, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303234110/http://hungryeyes.ca/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/HomeAgain-presskit_v2.pdf |archive-date=March 3, 2016 |url-status=dead}}
Bent attracted further attention when he co-starred in the hit horror films Saw II and Saw III as Officer Daniel Rigg. He later starred as one of the central characters in Saw IV.{{Cite web|url=http://www.amc.com/talk/2007/10/the-horror-depa-19|title=The Horror Department: Lyriq Bent from Saw IV|website=AMC|access-date=April 28, 2016}}
From 2010 to 2014 he co-starred in the Canadian television series Rookie Blue, portraying Staff Sergeant Frank Best.
In 2015 Bent portrayed Chekura Tiano in the television miniseries The Book of Negroes, based on the best-selling novel by Lawrence Hill.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bet.com/article/ed23gg/cuba-gooding-jr-lyriq-bent-to-star-in-book-of-negroes|title=Cuba Gooding Jr., Lyriq Bent to Star in Book of Negroes|website=BET }} For this role, Bent won the award for Best Actor in a Television Film or Miniseries at the 2016 4th Canadian Screen Awards.
He was a Canadian Screen Award nominee for Best Lead Performance in a Web Program or Series at the 10th Canadian Screen Awards in 2022 for the web series For the Record.Brent Furdyk, [https://web.archive.org/web/20220215130202/https://etcanada.com/news/867531/2022-canadian-screen-awards-nominees-announced/ "2022 Canadian Screen Award Nominees Announced, ‘Sort Of’ & ‘Scarborough’ Lead The Pack"]. ET Canada, February 15, 2022.
Filmography
=Film=
| class="wikitable sortable"
|+List of films and roles |
| scope="col" | Year
! scope="col" | Title ! scope="col" | Role ! scope="col" class="unsortable" | Notes |
|---|
| 2001
| data-sort-value="Caveman's Valentine, The" | The Caveman's Valentine | Seraph Dancer | |
| rowspan="2"| 2002
| Superbob | Lepke | |
| Damaged Goods
| Eddie Barrel | |
| rowspan="2"| 2003
| Ellwood | |
| Honey
| Barber | |
| rowspan="3"| 2005
| data-sort-value="Life and Hard Times of Guy Terrifico, The" | The Life and Hard Times of Guy Terrifico | Mr. Stuff | |
| Four Brothers
| Damian | |
| Saw II
| Daniel Rigg | |
| rowspan="2"| 2006
| Easy | |
| Saw III
| Daniel Rigg | |
| rowspan="2"| 2007
| Doak | |
| Saw IV
| Daniel Rigg | |
| 2009
| Defendor | Wayne | |
| rowspan="2"| 2010
| Treshawn Jackson | |
| Perception
| Father | Short |
| 2012
| Dunston Williams | |
| 2013
| Queen City | Takiri | |
| 2015
| Jordan Reynolds | |
| rowspan="3"| 2018
| Love Jacked | Tyrell | |
| Acrimony
| Robert Gayle | |
| Nappily Ever After
| Will Wright | |
| rowspan="2"| 2019
| Benjamin | Greg | |
| Astronaut
| Jim | |
=Television=
| class="wikitable sortable"
|+List of television appearances and roles |
| scope="col" | Year
! scope="col" | Title ! scope="col" | Role ! scope="col" class="unsortable" | Notes |
|---|
| 2000
| Quelch's Guard #2 | Episode: "The Legend of the Lost" |
| rowspan="2"| 2001
| Tracker | Bartender | Episode: "The Plague" |
| Jane Doe
| Rawlins | Television film |
| rowspan="3"|2002
| Sergeant Danny Blackstone | 3 episodes |
| Pretend You Don't See Her
| Detective | Television film |
| 10,000 Black Men Named George
| Disgruntled Man | Television film |
| 2003- 2005 | {{ubl|Twist Ballard|Keith Rose}} | {{ubl|Episode: "Remington Park"|Episode: "Respect"}} |
| rowspan="2" | 2003
| Platinum | Devon | 3 episodes |
| Playmakers
| {{n/a}} | 4 episodes |
| 2003- 2004 | Mutant X | Harris/Randall Blake | {{ubl|Episode: "Within These Walls"|Episode: "Art of Attraction"}} |
| 2004
| Dante | Episode: "Pop Star" |
| 2004- 2005 | Jack Johnson | {{ubl|Episode: "Full Metal Jessie"|Episode:"Sacrificial Lambs"}} |
| 2005
| Kojak | Billy Harris | Episode: "Pilot" |
| rowspan="2"| 2006
| Leo Jetson | Main Cast |
| North/South
| Joss Colley | Regular Cast |
| 2007
| data-sort-value="Dresden Files, The" | The Dresden Files | Jake | Episode: "Bad Blood" |
| 2008
| Colin Madison | Episode: "Going Ballistic" |
| 2008- 2009 | Sophie | Andre | 7 episodes |
| 2009
| Guns | Ford Saunders | 2 episodes |
| 2010
| Haven | Ray McBreen | Episode: "Harmony" |
| 2010-14
| Frank Best | 45 episodes |
| 2013
| Rookie Blue Webisodes | Frank Best | Episode: "In Session: Frank Best" |
| rowspan="3"| 2014
| data-sort-value="Day Late and a Dollar Short, A" | A Day Late and a Dollar Short | Randall | Television film |
| data-sort-value="Good Sister, The" | The Good Sister
| Investigator | Television film |
| Aaliyah: The Princess of R&B
| Barry Hankerson | Television film |
| rowspan="2"| 2015
| Henri Toussaint | Episode: "Cassandra Complex" |
| data-sort-value="Book of Negroes, The" | The Book of Negroes
| Chekura Tiano | 5 episodes |
| rowspan="4"| 2016
| Coconut Hut | Desmond Kilpatrick | Episode: "No Wifi" |
| Shoot the Messenger
| Frank Lutz | 8 episodes |
| Ladies Book Club
| Carlyle | Television film |
| Group Home
| Winnie | Television film |
| 2017
| Detective Frank Gaines | 6 episodes |
| 2017- 2019 | Jamie Overstreet | 19 episodes |
| 2018
| data-sort-value="Man in the High Castle, The" | The Man in the High Castle | Mingus Jones | {{ubl|Episode: "Sensô Kôi"|Episode: "Sabra"}} |
| rowspan="2"| 2019
| data-sort-value="Affair, The" | The Affair | Paul | 3 episodes |
| Carter
| Joyce Boyle | 8 episodes |
| 2020
| Stefan | Episode: "Climax" |
| rowspan="3"| 2021
| Our Christmas Journey | Rick | Television film |
| An Ice Wine Christmas
| Declan Monroe | Television film |
| Delilah
| Gordon Leighton | 6 episodes |
| rowspan="2"| 2022
| Garrett Carter | 12 episodes |
| Kid's Crew
| Principal Drayton | 3 episodes |
| rowspan="2"|2023
| data-sort-value="Rookie: Feds, The" | The Rookie: Feds | Congressman Damien Roberts | Episode: "Close Contact" |
| Law & Order
| Pastor Mike Butler | Episode: "Mammon" |
=Video games=
| class="wikitable"
|+ {{sronly|List of video game voice roles}} |
| scope="col"| Year
!scope="col"| Title !scope="col"| Role !scope="col"| Notes |
|---|
| 2016
| Emmanuel Lazare (voice) | style="text-align:center;"| {{Cite web |title=Mafia III Credits |url=https://www.2k.com/mafia-iii/credits/ |access-date=2023-02-23 |website=2K Games}} |
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb name|72713|Lyriq Bent}}
- {{Twitter|lyriqbent}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bent, Lyriq}}
Category:Jamaican emigrants to Canada
Category:Black Canadian male actors
Category:Canadian male film actors
Category:Canadian male television actors
Category:Canadian male voice actors
Category:Male actors from Toronto
Category:Male actors from Kingston, Jamaica
Category:21st-century Canadian male actors
Category:Seneca College alumni
Category:Canadian Screen Award winning actors