Eastman alum, actor Lance Reddick to deliver UR commencement address

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The University of Rochester’s commencement will be held in person on Friday, May 13 in Fauver Stadium in the Brian F. Prince Athletic Complex on River Campus.  

Actor Lance Reddick, who studied classical composition at the Eastman School of Music, and who is well known for roles in such series as “The Wire” on HBO, and Amazon’s “Bosch,” will deliver the 2022 commencement address. 

The university commencement ceremony—which will mark the conferral of academic degrees for both undergraduates and graduate students—will kick off a weekend of celebratory events for graduates, their families and friends, faculty and staff. 

“We’re delighted to welcome such an accomplished individual and talented actor as Lance Reddick back to Rochester to deliver the commencement address on May 13 as we recognize all of our graduates in-person and as one university,” said Sarah Mangelsdorf, UR president, in a statement. “It’s always special when a speaker has a connection to the university as Lance does, and I know that so many of our graduating seniors wished for him to deliver the 2022 address.” 

After studying at the Eastman School, Reddick moved to Boston where he explored a career as a contemporary musician and started a family. He then decided to pursue acting and enrolled at the Yale School of Drama where he received a master’s degree.  

Reddick came into acting prominence beginning with the role of Lt. Cedric Daniels on the critically acclaimed “The Wire.” He also starred as John Basil on HBO’s seminal drama “Oz.”

He is currently in production on the Netflix film “Shirley” starring opposite Regina King, which tells the story of trailblazing political icon Shirley Chisholm (King), the first Black Congresswoman and the first Black woman to run for president of the U.S. He will soon star as Albert Wesker in Netflix’s “Resident Evil”, debuting this July. 

Reddick is known for the John Wick films and will reprise his role as Charon in “John Wick: Chapter 4” in March 2023. Additionally, Reddick recently provided voice acting for the newly released video game, “Horizon Forbidden West” and is known for his voice work in “Destiny 2”. 

In addition to acting, he is also a television and film producer and musician. A native of Baltimore, Reddick writes and speaks about the social, cultural and economic injustices afflicting people of color in his hometown and broadly throughout the country and advocates for profound solutions to end racial inequalities. 

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