Hassan Johnson Biography
Hassan Johnson (Hassan “Iniko” Johnson) is an American actor, model and film producer. He is famously known for his notable performance in the HBO program The Wire as Roland “Wee-Bey” Brice. Johnson got hist first acting role in 1995. He got the role in the Spike Lee film Clockers.
He also had a significant role in the film In Too Deep. The film was was based on a true story. He also had a recurring role on ER as Darnell Thibeaux. Johnson has appeared in Brooklyn’s Finest, Belly and The Devil’s Own. He has also appeared in a number of music videos.
They include; Mýa’s music video for “Fallen”, Killarmy’s music video “Fair, Love & War”, The Roots’ music video for “Break You Off” and GZA’s music video for “Knock Knock”. He has also appeared in Boyz n da Hood’s “Dem Boyz”, Obie Trice’s music video for “Snitch” among others.
He was Jennifer Hudson’s love interest in “No One Gonna Love You” video. Johnson also played a small role in Entourage as rapper Saigon’s manager. Recently Johnson has appeared as the character Lorenzo on the CBS television show Person of Interest. He has also voiced for Harold “Stretch” Joseph in the video game Grand Theft Auto V.
In 2008, Hassan Johnson appeared in the WWE Studios film Blood Brother. He owns a production company called Autumn Leaves which he named after his daughter.
Hassan Johnson Age
Hassan Johnson was born in Staten Island, New York, United States of America. He was born on 3rd October, 1972. His current age is 46 years old as of 2018.
Hassan Johnson Height
Hassan Johnson is relatively tall. We do not have his actual height or body measurements. We will update you as soon as we get the information about his height.
Hassan Johnson Net Worth
Hassan Johnson has made a huge fortune from his career. He has starred in the films Staten Island Summer, Ovum, A Talent for Trouble among others. Johnson also co-produced the film A Talent for Trouble in 2015. That same year, he won a Boston International Film Festival Award for Ovum.
He also owns the production company Autumn Leaves. For all his achievements, Hassan Johnson has an approximated net worth of $1 million. He has mainly made his net worth from his career.
Hassan Johnson Wife
Hassan Johnson has been very secretive about his personal life. It is not clear whether he is married or in a relationship. We will update you as soon as we get the factual information. It is however clear that he has a daughter called Autumn.
Hassan Johnson Movies | Hassan Johnson Clockers
- 2019 Tales (TV Series)
- 2019 Standing Up, Falling Down
- 2018 Blood Brother
- 2018 A Talent for Trouble
- 2018 No Good Gang Girls (Short)
- 2017 The Breaks (TV Series)
- 2016 Blue Bloods (TV Series)
- 2014 The Blacklist (TV Series)
- 2013 Person of Interest (TV Series)
- 2012 Dead Man’s Trigger (TV Series)
- 2010 Cold Case (TV Series)
- 2009 Dark Blue (TV Series)
- 2001-2008 Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (TV Series)
- 2005-2007 ER (TV Series)
- 2006 Entourage (TV Series)
- 2002-2004 Law & Order (TV Series)
- 2001 Sluggers (Short)
- 1995-1996 New York Undercover (TV Series)
- 1995 Clockers
- 2018 A Talent for Trouble (co-producer)
Autumn Leaves Hassan Johnson| Hassan Johnson Gif
Autumn leaves is a production company owned by Hassan Johnson. It is named after his daughter. We will update you on this information soon. We will also update the Gif.
Hassan Johnson Instagram
Hassan Johnson is very active on Instagram. We will update you on his account soon.
Hassan Johnson Interview
Q: How did you get into acting? How old were you when you started and how did you decide this is what you wanted to do for a living?
Hassan Johnson: I’ve always been interested in being on television, is what I told myself. Whether it was journalism being a news reporter or whether it was an actor, anything that could get me on TV, that’s what I wanted to do was be on television. Never really asked myself what I wanted to do on television and the acting came along when I was in high school and a friend of mine’s girlfriend basically called my bluff and challenged me to go to an open audition, which was Clockers, a Spike Lee film.
Q: You got a part in Clockers. So the first audition you went on, you got?
Hassan Johnson: Yeah, I went to the open call, they liked me, they called me back for an audition – I had several callbacks thereafter, but basically from the open call to the end of the callbacks, I was in the movie, unbeknownst to me, but I had a feeling the whole time.
Q: What was it like having your first role in a Spike Lee movie? Was it overwhelming for you?
Hassan Johnson: Yeah, definitely. Being a high school student, at that time in my life I was playing football, I was really into the ball playing, that’s what I thought I would go to school to do. And when the acting came along, I took the opportunity, of course. It was my senior summer year and I was playing ball – I was supposed to be captain, but I didn’t make it to football camp. My relationship with my coach just kind of went up like whatever and I decided, “Yeah, I think this is what I’m going to do.” Didn’t pursue going to college, the ball playing, anything like that. I just got into acting full-fledged. So it was overwhelming at first just being on set with Spike Lee and all this other talent.
Q: From there, have you had a tough time getting roles or has it been pretty easy for you?
Hassan Johnson: It’s been tough and easy at the same time. When I first got my agent after doing Clockers, something my agent explained to me was, “Since you came up on such a high tier, a high level, it’s going to be hard to face rejection.” That was one jewel that anyone could have dropped on me because most kids do come into this business and if they come into a motion picture principal role right out the gate, it’s like everything’s supposed to be good and you’re a star overnight. I guess just knowing where I was from and just being practical and realistic, she decided to just be down to earth and give me the real and not even let me run off and think it’s going to be this fantasy world where I’m going to be a Hollywood star in the next five years. So it has been a battle that I’ve been able to balance out with some good, so I appreciate everything, all the experience, for sure.
Q: You played Mark in the film Belly. What was it like being a part of that film and working with DMX, Nas and Method Man?
Hassan Johnson: That was also a hell of an experience. I was excited for that because that was another film at the time that when Hype Williams was casting for it, he had an open audition. I told myself I wasn’t going to go to the open audition again – I’ve done that once, I need to take another route to get cast in the film. I ended up getting an audition and that just worked out because Method Man, being from Staten Island, put the word in for me definitely.
Q: Were you and Method Man really close before you did the movie?
Hassan Johnson: Yeah, definitely, coming from Staten Island, Park Hill was the neighborhood. Definitely grew up with one another. Him and an older cousin of mine were real close friends. So the rapping always been in their blood and it was just a matter of time before he became a star anyway. Even from being in the neighborhood, he was a pretty popular, charismatic dude, so it was just a matter of time before he got the spotlight and ran with it. So yeah, Meth, we go way back; 80s babies like since I can remember.
Q: And now you and Method Man are both on the best show on television today, The Wire. How did you end up getting cast as Roland “Wee-Bey” Brice and how was your character described to you initially?
Hassan Johnson: Actually, it was funny, I didn’t really know what I was getting myself into because Wee-Bey’s character, along with the rest of them – Avon Barksdale, Stringer Bell – was a real character based on this true story.
Q: It’s been interesting to see your character develop. In season one, we saw you on the streets. In season two, we got to see Wee-Bey’s life in prison. And in season four, we got to see your character as a father. When did you start to get an idea of what the character was like and where he was headed?
Hassan Johnson: What happened was, Wee-Bey definitely being the significant part of the story that he was, I started to get into it around the wardrobe fitting when I actually did get the script. So I drove down to Baltimore, picked the script up and I started reading it back in Staten Island.
Q: Did you know your character would end up in prison at the end of season one? Did David Simon give you any indication of your character’s story arc in advance or were you finding out week to week?
Hassan Johnson: Yeah, week to week, we get the script, that’s definitely how I’d find out. But I wouldn’t say I was blind-sided. Some of what took place on the show with certain characters, people feel they were blind-sided by. But whatever, that’s what the show consisted of. We didn’t get the script for the next week’s episode in our hand until maybe the last day of filming the last episode.
Q: Did you know you would get to come back for season four as Namond’s father?
Hassan Johnson: Yeah, I did. I didn’t know that, but David Simon always gives you some sort of heads up. If he really has some plans for the character, David will come talk to you at his own discretion, whether it’s a phone call or he pulls you to the side on the set. And he’ll drop a line on you and basically, he said to me, “I got some shit for Wee-Bey. He’s down, but he ain’t out.” And I just had to take his word for it.
Q: Obviously, you can’t give much away, but will we be seeing much of Wee-Bey in season five?
Hassan Johnson: I do make an appearance, I’ll say, and it’s definitely just to close a chapter in a long book of the story of The Wire. I definitely love every minute of it. I don’t regret anything. It has been a hell of an experience. I definitely thank Alexa Fogel for casting me, David Simon and Ed Burns for giving me the opportunity to be a part of that history because it’s definitely history in television genre and everyone will be satisfied, I think, with the outcome, for sure.
Q: Will Wee-Bey be tied in to the storyline with Marlo visiting Avon in prison?
Hassan Johnson: No, it’s something a little more isolated, I would say, where it’s just closure, that’s really all it is. It’s just the last chapter, we close the book and know our guys, really where they are. It is what it is, we’ve got to accept it. One of those type of situations.
Q: Being a part of the show from the beginning, what was it like filming your final episode?
Hassan Johnson: I don’t know, I think me, the type of personality I have, I was ready for it to happen actually. I didn’t think we’d actually get this far to begin with, much less myself. I was told anyway from the beginning that Wee-Bey was only going to be in about three or four episodes and that was it. I had like a slightly recurring role that ended up turning into a series regular for the most part – not technically, but for the most part, I was. And I was one, along with the rest of those characters, who set the tone of the show.
Q: You also have had a reoccurring role as Darnell Thibeaux on ER. How did that part come about and what has it been like working on that show?
Hassan Johnson: That was great because of the history that ER holds. And also for a good friend of mine, Mekhi Phifer, being on the show for the past three or four seasons. So really, that’s how all of that became what it is and I got the role of Darnell Thibeaux, who’s Dr. Pratt’s longtime friend from the neighborhood. And basically, I think that was a different take on life also, playing that character. You know, street oriented, but here’s this single parent.
Q: Do you get recognized quite a bit out in public?
Hassan Johnson: Yeah, I have to say so. And at the damnedest places and times too. It might be a little kid who knows me from an old music video or it might be an old white lady. I’m serious, it comes from all over the spectrum. People do recognize me for Wee-Bey and other things. But Wee-Bey, I have to definitely credit my stardom and fame to that. A lot of people definitely pay homage to Wee-Bey. Not even Hassan, it’s all about Wee-Bey. That’s a good feeling though.
Q: What do you do to unwind? What kind of hobbies do you have?
Hassan Johnson: Basically, I like to work out. I do a lot of callisthenics. And I’m just getting into a lot of reading now. So I’ll go to the park to work out, I like to do it outdoors and get a lot of fresh air and drink a lot of water. And then, I’m getting into a lot of reading. Staying current on what’s happening, politics, anything, doing my diligence on life and history and stuff like that. I’ve never really been a moviegoer, that type of person. I study film; I have to watch a film maybe two or three times before I know what it’s about because I study the actors and what they individually bring to the table. That’s how I really hone my skills at this point and study and practice.
Q: It’s almost like you are a coach breaking down game film.
Hassan Johnson: Exactly. I’m stopping, I’m rewinding, that’s exactly what I’m doing.
Q: What would you be doing for a living if you never got into acting?
Hassan Johnson: I think I would definitely be into photography, that’s something that I also like to do. I think I take pretty good photos. I really capture what I’m trying to take a picture of. So, I think I’d be into some sort of film background if it wasn’t the acting itself.
Q: Tell us something most people don’t know about you.
Hassan Johnson: I’m pretty reserved. I’m not a shy person, I’m real social. But I’m funny in a way where I really don’t like to be around a lot of people. I like to be by myself, I like a lot of me time. And I think I read in an article where Patrick Dempsey said, and I felt just where he was coming from, “The older I’ve gotten, I’ve found myself wanting to be by myself.” I just like being by myself. Because there’s so many shady folks and I’m a real friendly guy and loveable guy, I love people and some people just really don’t deserve that good energy. They like to spew negative energy. I’m big on energy – the type of energy you put out, you get back.
SOURCE: www.hobotrashcan.com