Afemo Omilami

Afemo Omilami is an American actor born on December 13, 1950, in Petersburg, Virginia. His surname carries ties to the Yoruba community of Nigeria, though Omilami has not made public statements regarding his paternal background.

Omilami built a substantial screen career across several decades, accumulating film credits that include Trading Places (1983), Glory (1989), The Firm (1993), Gordy (1995), Remember the Titans (2000), Ray (2004), Hounddog (2007), The Blind Side (2009), and Terminator Genisys (2015). He is perhaps most widely recognized for portraying the Drill Sergeant in Forrest Gump (1994). On television, he held a recurring role as Jimmy Dawes in In the Heat of the Night from 1989 to 1993, and his performance as Drum Eatenton in Lifetime's Steel Magnolias earned him a 2013 NAACP Image Award nomination in the category of Outstanding Actor in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special. His television guest appearances span Miami Vice, Fortune Hunter, New York News, The Shield, Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders, and Raising Dion.

In 1995, Omilami appeared on Broadway in On the Waterfront, adding a stage credit to his work across film and television.

On September 11, 1985, Omilami married Elisabeth Williams, an actress, minister, and civil rights leader. The couple has two children, a son named Awodele and a daughter named Juanita. Actor Thomas Jefferson Byrd was a longtime friend of Omilami's, and following Byrd's death, Omilami remembered him as a devoted father, husband, and master of his craft.