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A veteran of the Harlem streets, Phifer got his break when he attended an open casting call with only photo booth pictures of himself to give to interviewers. Displaying a rare charisma and intensity that was perfect for the role of Lee's ambitious protagonist, the novice actor beat the considerable odds against him and out-acted nearly 1,000 other applicants for the part.  

Following the success surrounding his CLOCKERS debut, Phifer appeared in THE TUSKEGEE AIRMEN, a powerful drama starring Laurence Fishburne that first aired on HBO. In 1997, Phifer made another strong impression playing the volatile but good-hearted ‘Lem’ in George Tillman Jr.'s comedy drama SOUL FOOD. The following year, he took part in the rage of teen horror films as one of the stars of I STILL KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER and further established himself as one of Hollywood's more photogenic up-and-comers by starring alongside Julia Stiles and Josh Hartnett in O, a loose adaptation of Shakespeare's Othello that saw Phifer as a high-school basketball star betrayed by his jealous best friend. 

Though a well-known performer, Phifer’s bona fide hit was as ‘Future’ alongside hip-hop star Eminem in the urban drama 8 MILE. That same year, Phifer found success on the small screen as well, joining the cast of NBC's long-running hit medical series ER as ‘Dr. Greg Pratt’, a role lasting 10 seasons. 

Mekhi currently stars as ‘Markus Knox’ in Apple TV’s crime drama series TRUTH BE TOLD, based on the book by Kathleen Barber. The show is executive produced by Octavia Spencer, Reese Witherspoon, Peter Chernin and Jenno Topping. The show is in its 2nd season. He is also currently working on 3 upcoming films – crime thriller 10-13, thriller SAINT PAUL, and western film BISON. 

Mekhi and his wife reside in Los Angeles, CA with their 2 kids, Mekhi and Omikaye. They are BBQ lovers and have taken their family RV cross country in search of America’s best BBQ.