Donald Faison

Donald Adeosun Faison[1] (/ˈfzɒn/; born June 22, 1974)[1] is an American actor, comedian, and voice actor, best known for his leading role as Dr. Chris Turk in the ABC/NBC comedy-drama Scrubs (2001–2010), and a supporting role as Murray in both the film Clueless (1995) and the subsequent television series of the same name. He also starred as Phil Chase in the TV Land sitcom The Exes (2011–2015).

Donald Faison
Faison at Hollywood Life Magazine’s 7th Annual Breakthrough Awards in 2007
Born
Donald Adeosun Faison

(1974-06-22) June 22, 1974
NationalityAmerican
OccupationActor, comedian, voice actor
Years active1989–present
Spouse(s)
  • Lisa Askey
    (m. 2001; div. 2005)
  • CaCee Cobb
    (m. 2012)
Children6
RelativesOlamide Faison (brother)

Faison has also co-starred in the films Waiting to Exhale (1995), Remember the Titans (2000), Uptown Girls (2003), Something New (2006), Next Day Air (2009), and Kick-Ass 2 (2013).

Early life

Faison was born in Harlem in New York City, the son of Shirley, a talent agent, and Donald Faison, a building manager.[2] He is the older brother of singer/musician Olamide Faison. His middle name stems from the words "ade" (meaning "crown")[3] and "osun" (meaning "river of life”) in the west African language of Yoruba. His parents were active with the National Black Theater in Harlem. He attended the Professional Children's School in Manhattan with his best friend, actor Dash Mihok.[4]

Career

Before his debuts on Scrubs and Clueless, Faison appeared in a 1991 commercial for Folgers coffee at the age of 17, in which he played the younger brother of a soldier returning from war. The following year, he appeared with Malik Yoba in the ABC News special Prejudice: Answering Children's Questions, hosted by Peter Jennings. He also had a small role in Sugar Hill starring Wesley Snipes. He then became famous for his role as Murray Duvall in the 1995 film Clueless and the subsequent television series, which ran from 1996 to 1999. In 1995, he also appeared in Waiting to Exhale as Tarik, the son of Loretta Devine's character, Gloria. He was featured in New Jersey Drive. He also starred in Big Fat Liar alongside Frankie Muniz, Paul Giamatti, and Amanda Bynes. He had a recurring role as Tracy on Felicity, appeared in Remember the Titans as the running-back turned corner-back Petey Jones, and provided voice work for various characters in the MTV animated series Clone High. He had minor roles in the sitcoms Sister, Sister and Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, and in the film Josie and the Pussycats. In 2005, Faison produced one episode of MTV's Punk'd involving his Scrubs co-star Zach Braff. He also appeared in the music videos for Brandy's "Sittin' Up in My Room," Fall Out Boy's cover of Michael Jackson's "Beat It," and Gavin Degraw's "Chariot."

In 2008, Faison voiced Gary the Stormtrooper in Robot Chicken: Star Wars Episode II. Afterwards, he interned on the Robot Chicken show to learn more about stop motion animation, and started a Star Wars-themed Lego stop-motion show, BlackStormTrooper, on his YouTube channel, shundigga.[5][6]

On February 13, 2009, Faison participated in the NBA All-Star Weekend Celebrity Game. Other celebrities participating included NBA Hall of Famers Clyde Drexler and Dominique Wilkins, NFL wide-receiver Terrell Owens, actor Chris Tucker, and four Harlem Globetrotters.[7]

In 2010, Faison starred alongside Scottie Thompson, Brittany Daniel, Eric Balfour, Laz Alonso, and Crystal Reed in the Brothers Strause science fiction thriller Skyline.[8]

Faison was in the 2010 CBS comedy pilot The Odds.[9]

As of March 2011, Faison appeared in commercials for The Sims Medieval. In 2012, he made a cameo appearance in the movie Pitch Perfect.[10][11] In 2013, Faison hosted the short-lived TBS comedy sketch show Who Gets the Last Laugh. As of 2016, he has hosted GSN game show Winsanity.

Starting in 2018, Faison voiced pilot Hype Fazon, a character written and named for him by Dave Filoni, in Star Wars Resistance. Faison had caught Filoni's attention via his stop motion Star Wars cartoons.[12]

In the podcast Fake Doctors, Real Friends, launched in March 2020, Faison and Scrubs co-star Zach Braff share their stories and experiences of shooting the show, while rewatching the series. The podcast is distributed by iHeartRadio.[13]

Personal life

Faison with second wife Cacee Cobb at the 2010 Tribeca Film Festival

In 1997, Faison started dating Lisa Askey. The two were married from 2001 to 2005.[14] After six years of dating, Faison married his second wife, CaCee Cobb, on December 15, 2012.[15] The wedding was held at the home of Faison's former Scrubs co-star and best friend Zach Braff, who also served as a groomsman. Serving as a bridesmaid was singer Jessica Simpson, for whom Cobb formerly worked as a personal assistant.[16]

Faison has six children: son Shawn, born in 1997, with ex-girlfriend Audrey Ince; fraternal boy-girl twins Dade and Kaya born in 1999, and son Kobe, born in 2001, with first wife Lisa Askey;[17] and with second wife Cobb, a son Rocco born in 2013[18] and a daughter Wilder born in 2015. [19]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
1992 Juice Student
1994 Sugar Hill Kymie Damiels
1995 New Jersey Drive Tiny Dime Credited as Donald Adeosun Faison
Clueless Murray Duvall
Waiting to Exhale Tarik Matthews Credited as Donald Adeosun Faison
1996 The Quest Robber Uncredited
1997 Academy Boyz Glen Lewis
1998 Butter Khaleed
Can't Hardly Wait Dan
1999 Trippin' June Nelson
2000 Remember the Titans Petey Jones
2001 Double Whammy Cletis
Josie and the Pussycats D.J. Uncredited
2002 Big Fat Liar Frank Jackson
2003 Ravedactyl: Project Evolution Gunner Short film
Uptown Girls Huey
Good Boy! Wilson Voice only
2005 King's Ransom Andre
2006 Something New Nelson McQueen
Bachelor Party Vegas Ash
Homie Spumoni Renato Molina/Leroy
2007 Venus & Vegas Stu
2009 Next Day Air Leo
2010 Skyline Terry
2011 Stag Ken
2012 Pitch Perfect Older Acapella Man
2013 Kick-Ass 2 Doctor Gravity
A Snow Globe Christmas Ted
2014 Wish I Was Here Anthony
Let's Kill Ward's Wife Ward
Wonderland Ted
2016 The Perfect Match Rick
Hot Bot Mr. Huffington
2017 Little Evil Larry
2018 Game Over, Man! Himself
2019 The Wave Jeff

Television

Year Title Role Notes
1992 Sesame Street Duane Episode: "23.58"
1996 New York Undercover James Episode: "Sympathy for the Devil"
1996–2000 Sabrina, the Teenage Witch Justin
Dashiell Calzone
(Justin) Episode: "Magic Joel"
Dashiell) 7 episodes
1996–99 Clueless Murray Duvall Main role
1998 Sister, Sister Darryl Episode: "Greek to Me"
1999 Supreme Sanction Marcus Television movie
2000–02 Felicity Tracy 23 episodes
2002–03 Clone High Toots
Various characters
Voice only
12 episodes
2001–2010 Scrubs Christopher Turk Main role
Nominated - NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series (2006-2010)
Nominated - NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series (2005)
2004–05 Higglytown Heroes Firefighter Hero Voice only
2 episodes
2005–2020 Robot Chicken Various characters Voice only
10 episodes
2006 The Playbook Host 3 episodes
2007 Saturday Night Live Christopher Turk Episode: "Zach Braff/Maroon 5"
Robot Chicken: Star Wars Dr. Cornelius Evazan/Mace Windu Voice only
Television special
Kim Possible Ricky Rotiffle Voice only
Episode: "Homecoming Upset"
2008 The Boondocks Catcher Freeman/Tobias/Wedgie Rudlin Voice only
3 episodes
Robot Chicken: Star Wars Episode II Gary/Darth Maul/Imperial Pilot Voice only
Television special
2009 Scrubs: Interns Christopher Turk Episode: "Our Meeting with Turk and Todd"
American Dad! Christopher Turk Voice only
Episode: "G-String Circus"
Titan Maximum Martian Fleet Commander Episode: "Pilot"
2010 Fact Checkers Unit Donald 9 episodes
Cubed Himself Episode: "2.12"
Robot Chicken: Star Wars Episode III Gary Voice only
Television special
The Odds Tyler Television movie
2011 Love Bites Ricky 2 episodes
2011–15 The Exes Phil Chase 64 episodes
Nominated - NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series (2013)
2012 Tron: Uprising Bartik Voice only
5 episodes
Adventure Time Princess Cookie Voice only
Episode: "Princess Cookie"
2013 Wedding Band Moses Episode: "99 Problems"
Who Gets the Last Laugh? Host 9 episodes
A Snow Globe Christmas Ted Television movie
2014 Hollywood Game Night Himself 3 episodes
Jim Henson's Creature Shop Challenge Wizard Episode: "Head's Up"
2015 Undateable Donald 2 episodes
2015, 2018 Supermansion Quiplash Voice only
4 episodes
2015–18 Drunk History Joe Louis / Mansa Musa 2 episodes
2016 Winsanity Host
House of Lies Donald 2 episodes
2017 Bill Nye Saves the World Himself
2017, 2019 Ryan Hansen Solves Crimes on Television Himself 2 episodes
2017–18 Ray Donovan Antoine A'Shawn Anderson 7 episodes
2018 Unsolved: The Murders of Tupac and the Notorious B.I.G. Jacques Agnant 2 episodes
Star Wars Resistance Hype Fazon Voice only
2019 Timeline Principal Anderson Main role (Eko original series)
2019–20 Emergence Alex Evans Main role

Music videos

Video games

A dance that Faison performs during an episode of Scrubs is featured in the video game Fortnite.[21]

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Nominated work Result
2002 6th OFTA Television Awards Best Actor in a New Comedy Series
Scrubs
Nominated
2004 6th Teen Choice Awards Choice TV: Sidekick Nominated
1st BET Comedy Awards Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series Won
2005 36th NAACP Image Awards Nominated
7th Teen Choice Awards Choice TV: Sidekick Nominated
9th Prism Awards Performance in a Comedy Series Nominated
2nd BET Comedy Awards Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series Won
2006 37th NAACP Image Awards Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series Nominated
8th Teen Choice Awards Choice TV: Sidekick Nominated
2007 38th NAACP Image Awards Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series Nominated
9th Teen Choice Awards Choice TV: Sidekick Nominated
2008 39th NAACP Image Awards Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series Nominated
2009 40th NAACP Image Awards Nominated
2010 41st NAACP Image Awards Nominated
2013 44th NAACP Image Awards
The Exes
Nominated
6th L.A. Comedy Film Festival and Screenplay Competition Awards Best Actor in a Feature Film
Stag
Nominated

References

  1. "Donald Faison: Biography". TVGuide.com. Retrieved January 31, 2013.
  2. "What's Up, Doc?". People Magazine. June 17, 2002. Retrieved November 25, 2010.
  3. "Ade". Behind the Name. Retrieved April 26, 2015.
  4. Tanber, George J. (February 22, 2007). "Q&A: 'Scrubs' star as pro team owner?". ESPN. Retrieved November 25, 2010.
  5. Opam, Kwame (December 1, 2014). "'Scrubs' actor Donald Faison has been a Black Stormtrooper for years". The Verge. Retrieved November 16, 2018.
  6. Graham, Jefferson (January 21, 2014). "Talking Your Tech: Donald Faison gets animated over stop-motion". USA TODAY. Retrieved November 16, 2018.
  7. "NBA.com: Wilkins, Drexler, Owens among Celebrity Game notables". web.archive.org. March 18, 2009. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
  8. Jeremy Kay. "IM Global want buyers to see the light on Skyline". Screen Daily.
  9. Andreeva, Nellie (February 18, 2010). "Five pilots beef up casts". Associated Press via The Hollywood Reporter.
  10. Klassen, Anna. "13 Things 'Pitch Perfect' Has Ruined Forever". Bustle. Retrieved February 27, 2018.
  11. "What Donald Faison has been doing since Scrubs". Looper.com. Retrieved February 27, 2018.
  12. Asarch, Steven (October 4, 2018). "'STAR WARS' RESISTANCE' ISN'T THE MYTHICAL SPACE OPERA YOU'RE USED TO". Newsweek. Retrieved November 16, 2018.
  13. Lee, Emily (March 31, 2020). "Zach Braff & Donald Faison Launch 'Fake Doctors, Real Friends' Podcast". iHeartRadio. Retrieved April 25, 2020.
  14. Stone, Natalie. "Donald Faison and Ex-Wife Lisa Askey: A Look Back at Their Relationship Before Her Passing". People.com. Retrieved October 8, 2017.
  15. Messer, Lesley (December 15, 2012). "Donald Faison Marries Cacee Cobb". People. Retrieved January 31, 2013.
  16. Johnson, Zach (December 15, 2012). "Donald Faison Marries CaCee Cobb!". Us Weekly. Retrieved January 31, 2013.
  17. "Donald Faison- Biography". Yahoo! Movies. Retrieved January 31, 2013.
  18. Webber, Stephanie (August 24, 2013). "CaCee Cobb And Donald Faison Named Their Son Rocco!". Us Weekly. Retrieved August 24, 2013.
  19. Webber, Stephanie (April 24, 2015). "CaCee Cobb Welcomes Baby Girl Wilder Frances With Donald Faison: First Photo!". Us Weekly. Retrieved June 14, 2015.
  20. Ingrid Michaelson - “Time Machine” OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO. YouTube. February 19, 2015.
  21. Crucchiola, Jordan (November 18, 2018). "Yes, That Is The Scrubs 'Poison' Dance In Fortnite, and No, Donald Faison Is Not Getting Royalties". Vulture. Retrieved January 24, 2019.
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