Harold Perrineau

Harold Perrineau (born Harold Williams) is an American actor best known for his roles on Lost, The Matrix films and games, Oz, Sons of Anarchy, and Romeo + Juliet.

Biography
Perrineau was born in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, New York, on August 7, 1963, as Harold Williams. At some point, he decided to pursue an acting career. He legally changed his surname to his mother Sylvia's maiden name, after discovering there was already a Harold Williams in the Screen Actors Guild. Perrineau studied music and theatre at the Shenandoah University, but did not graduate. His first role was as a recurring dancer in the TV series adaptation of the 1980 hit film Fame, which he played from 1986 to 1987. In 1989, he was cast in the world premiere of Fame ' s stage adaptation, titled Fame: The Musical and held at the Walnut Street Theatre in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Early in his career, Perrineau portrayed the character of Mercutio in Romeo + Juliet, the 1996 film adaptation and modernization of William Shakespeare's tragedy Romeo and Juliet In 2004, Perrineau was cast in one of his most well-known roles, that of Michael Dawson on the ABC-produced hit adventure-drama series Lost. His character was temporarily written off when he left the island setting with his son at the end of the series' second season, and did not appear in the third season. Perrineau rejoined the main cast for the show's fourth season, but the character was killed off in the season finale. He made one guest-star appearance in the sixth and final season.

Perrineau later took the role of Link in The Matrix film series. He also starred in 30 Days of Night: Dark Days, the 2008 music video "Yes We Can", voiced the titular character in the anime series adaptation of Marvel ' s Blade comic-book series, and the fifth season of Sons of Anarchy as the antagonist Damon Pope. In addition, Perrineau starred as Stevie, the bass player, in the TBS comedy series Wedding Band, which ran from 2012 to 2013. He made his Broadway debut in the Roundabout Theatre Company production of The Cherry Orchard, which ran from September to December 2016. In his personal life, Perrineau married a woman named Brittany Robinson and had three daughters with her. His eldest, Aurora, followed in her father's footsteps and became an actress.

On Criminal Minds
Perrineau portrayed Calvin Shaw, a disgraced former FBI agent convicted of murdering a confidential informant. The recurring character becomes a confidante for Spencer Reid during his imprisonment at Millburn Correctional Facility in Season Twelve.

Filmography
For a full filmography, see here.