| Nigel Shawn Williams | |
| Birth Place: | Jamaica |
| Nationality: | Canadian |
| Occupation: | film, television and stage actor, theatre director |
| Known For: | former co-artistic director of Factory Theatre |
Nigel Shawn Williams is a Canadian actor and theatre director from Toronto, Ontario.[1]
Williams was born in Jamaica and moved to Canada with his family in childhood.[2] A 1990 graduate of the University of Windsor, his early stage roles included Thomas Coyle's The Tyrant of Pontus, Suzan-Lori Parks' Imperceptible Mutabilities in the Third Kingdom, Robert E. Sherwood's The Petrified Forest and George Bernard Shaw's The Six of Calais.
Williams won the Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male in a Principal Role – Play in 1995 for his performance as Paul in John Guare's Six Degrees of Separation.[3]
He won a second Dora as an actor in 2012 for his performance as Lincoln in Obsidian Theatre's production of Suzan-Lori Parks' Topdog/Underdog,[4] and was a nominee in 2013 for his performance as Henry in Canadian Stage's production of David Mamet's Race. As a director, he won the Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding Direction of a Play/Musical in 2006 for his direction of Colleen Wagner's The Monument, and was nominated in 2011 for his direction of Anusree Roy's Brothel #9.
His film and television credits include the television series The City, The Famous Jett Jackson, The Jane Show, and The Listener, and the films Phantom Punch, Down in the Delta, Vendetta, Jett Jackson: The Movie, John Q and Brown Girl Begins.
| 2000 | Tribulation | Victor | ||
| 2002 | John Q. | News Anchor | ||
| 2008 | Phantom Punch | Toby Liston | ||
| 2017 | Brown Girl Begins | Papa Legba / Jab-Jab / Brukfoot Sam | ||
| 2020 | Two Deaths of Henry Baker | Carlos |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | E.N.G. | Candidate | Episode: "Full Disclosure" | |
| 1995 | Forever Knight | Harry | Episode: "Partners of the Month" | |
| 1997 | Stickman | Episode: "High Roller" | ||
| 1998–2001 | data-sort-value="Famous Jett Jackson, The" | The Famous Jett Jackson | Artemus / Nigel Essex | 3 episodes |
| 1999 | Vendetta | Samuel Foster | Television film | |
| 1999 | At the Mercy of a Stranger | Ben Prentiss | ||
| 1999 | data-sort-value="City, The" | The City | Detective White | 4 episodes |
| 2000 | data-sort-value="Wonderful World of Disney, The" | The Wonderful World of Disney | Merle Brady | Episode: "The Loretta Claiborne Story" |
| 2000 | Deliberate Intent | Judge Williams | Television film | |
| 2001 | Jett Jackson: The Movie | Artemus / Nigel Essex | ||
| 2002 | Odyssey 5 | Dr. Alex Stratton | Episode: "Dark at the End of the Tunnel" | |
| 2006–2007 | data-sort-value="Jane Show, The" | The Jane Show | Desmond | 14 episodes |
| 2008 | Ellery Shipley | 2 episodes | ||
| 2010 | Unnatural History | Dr. Charles Wincott | Episode: "The Griffin Gang" | |
| 2011 | data-sort-value="Listener, The" | The Listener | Wes Everdon | Episode: "Desperate Hours" |
| 2014 | data-sort-value="Day Late and a Dollar Short, A" | A Day Late and a Dollar Short | George | Television film |
| 2014 | Saving Hope | Malcolm Eldente | Episode: "The Way We Were" | |
| 2015 | Heroes Reborn | Dr. Don Mercer | Episode: "The Lion's Den" | |
| 2017 | Suits | Judge Ward | 2 episodes | |
| 2021 | Death She Wrote | Mr. Tollson | Television film |