With a diverse skill set and resume spanning both television and film, Jay Ellis is quickly becoming one of Hollywood’s most in-demand actors and producers.

Ellis is currently in pre-production on the highly anticipated sequel Top Gun: Maverick starring Tom Cruise. The film is expected to release next Summer.

On the big screen, Ellis can next be seen in A Girl, A Boy, A Dream, which premiered at the Sundance International Film Festival and can be seen in theaters on September 14th. The film is directed by Qasim Basir and also stars Omari Hardwick and Meagan Good. Ellis also recently wrapped production on the psychological thriller Escape Room in Cape Town, South Africa. Sony will release the film on February 1st of 2019, also starring Deborah Ann Woll, Taylor Russell and Tyler Labine.

Ellis was last seen on HBO’s critically acclaimed, Golden Globe nominated comedy series, Insecure opposite Issa Rae. Ellis won a 2018 NAACP Image Award in the category of “Outstanding Supporting Actor” for his role as “Lawrence” – Issa’s on-again-off-again boyfriend. Ellis’ character was a fixture in the first two seasons of the hit series – garnering him a passionate, vocal following who identify with his character, known as the #LawrenceHive.

Ellis most recently produced and starred in the independent drama Like Cotton Twines, which was selected to premiere at the 2016 LA Film Festival and the sci-fi thriller Shortwave, which premiered at the Dances with Films Festival in 2016.

His additional television credits include a starring role on the hit BET series The Game from 2013-2015 and roles on Masters of Sex, Grace and Frankie, How I Met Your Mother, Grey’s Anatomy and NCIS.

In 2016, Ellis served as the National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day Spokesman. The HIV/AIDS Awareness Days are a project of the Community Capacity Building Coalition (CCBC) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), whose mission is to provide capacity building assistance to community-based organizations and stakeholders involved in HIV/AIDS prevention. In December of 2016, Ellis was requested by the Obama administration to speak and moderate a panel at the White House for the final My Brother’s Keeper summit, an initiative created by President Barack Obama to address persistent opportunity gaps faced by boys and young men of color and ensure that all young people can reach their full potential.

Ellis is also an active volunteer at Inside Out Writers, an organization that teaches creative writing classes in Los Angeles County Juvenile Detention Centers.
Jay Ellis graduated Summa Cum Laude from Concordia University in Portland, Oregon, and currently resides in Los Angeles, California.