James Pickens Jr.

James Pickens Jr.
Pickens interviewed by RealTVFilms in 2016
Born	(1954-10-26) October 26, 1954 Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1981–present
Spouse	Gina Taylor ​ (m. 1984)​
Children	2

James Pickens Jr. (born October 26, 1954) is an American actor. He is best known for his starring role as Dr. Richard Webber on the ABC medical drama television series Grey's Anatomy (since 2005), and for his supporting roles as Deputy Director Alvin Kersh on later seasons of the Fox Network science fiction series The X-Files and Chuck Mitchell on Roseanne (1990–96; 2018) and The Conners (2018–22).

Early life and education

Pickens was born in Cleveland, Ohio. He began acting as a student at Bowling Green State University. His first acting role was in a campus production of Matters of Choice by Chuck Gordone. Pickens earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from BGSU in 1976.

Career

Pickens started his professional acting career at the Roundabout Theatre in New York City playing Walter Lee in A Raisin in the Sun. In 1981, Pickens performed in the Negro Ensemble Company's production of A Soldier's Play, starring alongside Denzel Washington and Samuel L. Jackson.

In 1986, Pickens began his TV career playing Zack Edwards on the soap opera Another World from 1986 to 1990. He went on to have recurring roles on The X-Files as Deputy Director Kersh, Curb Your Enthusiasm, The West Wing, Roseanne, Beverly Hills, 90210, JAG, and Six Feet Under. He also served a role in 42. In 1997, Pickens played the role of Stevens, head of NASA, in Disney’s comedy Rocket Man.

In 2002, Pickens had a cameo appearance as the male zoo doctor in the film Red Dragon.

In 2005, Pickens was chosen to play Dr. Richard Webber on the ABC medical drama Grey's Anatomy.

In the February 28, 2007 all-star benefit reading of "The Gift of Peace" at UCLA's Freud Playhouse, he portrayed a man whose life experiences led him to volunteer in the peace movement. He played alongside actors Ed Asner, Barbara Bain, Amy Brenneman, George Coe, and Wendie Malick. The play was an open appeal and fundraiser for passage of U.S. House Resolution 808, which sought to establish a Cabinet-level "Department of Peace" in the U.S. government, to be funded by a two-percent diversion of the Pentagon's annual budget.

In 2018, Pickens has reprised his role as Chuckie Mitchell in two episodes of the tenth season revival of Roseanne. In 2019, he was inducted into the National Multicultural Western Heritage Museum.

Personal life

Pickens (left) in 2007

Pickens married Gina Taylor, a former member of Musique, on May 27, 1984 and has two children. In his spare time Pickens can be found horseback riding and roping cattle. He is a member of the United States Team Roping Championship and competes in roping events across the country. He owns an American Quarter Horse named Smokey.

James's two children, Carl Pickens and Gavyn Pickens, are both pursuing careers in show business. His son Carl is working on a Hip-Hop career and can be seen in various television appearances, including Hangin' with Mr. Cooper where he appeared alongside his long-time friend Omar Gooding. His father James Pickens Sr. worked for the City of Cleveland.

In November 2025, Pickens announced he was diagnosed with prostate cancer. Later that same month, he announced he was cancer-free.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1986	F/X	Ambulance Driver
1987	Hotshot	James Pickens
1992	Trespass	Police Officer Reese
1993	Boiling Point	Prison Officer
	Menace II Society	Man
1994	Hostile Intentions	Capt. Connor
	Jimmy Hollywood	Cook
1995	Dead Presidents	Mr. Curtis
	Nixon	Black Orator
1996	Power 98	Det. Wilkinson
	Sleepers	Guard Marlboro
	Ghosts of Mississippi	Medgar Evers
1997	Gridlock'd	Supervisor
	RocketMan	Ben Stevens
1998	Sphere	O.S.S.A. Instructor
	Bulworth	Uncle David
	How Stella Got Her Groove Back	Walter Payne
1999	Liberty Heights	Sylvia's Father
2000	Traffic	Ben Williams
2002	Red Dragon	Male Zoo Doctor	Uncredited
	Home Room	Principal Robbins
2003	White Rush	Denny
2005	Venom	Sheriff
2008	Ball Don't Lie	Roberto
2010	Just Wright	Lloyd Wright
2013	42	Mr. Brock

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1983-1984	Saturday Night Live	Texxon commercial guy unemployed Vietnam veteran in Texxon Oil commercial (uncredited)	2 episodes
1986–1990	Another World	Zack Edwards	112 episodes
1990–1996; 2018	Roseanne	Chuck Mitchell	21 episodes
1991–1992	Beverly Hills, 90210	Henry Thomas	10 episodes
1992	Blossom	Vinnie	Episode: "The Letter"
	Parker Lewis Can't Lose	Fred	Episode: "Hungry Heart"
	L.A. Law	Joseph Russell	Episode: "Zo Long"
	Doogie Howser, M.D.	Bert	Episode: "Roommate with a View"
	Exclusive	Jonathan Heglin	Television film
1993	NYPD Blue	Nathan	Episode: "Personal Foul"
	Murder, She Wrote	Sonny Greene	Episode: "The Survivor"
1994	Renegade	Lieutenant Pete Calloway	Episode: "Hostage"
	Coach	Rick Williams	Episode: "Blue Chip Blues"
	Me and the Boys	Coach Brown	Episode: "Black Dads Can't Jump"
	Sodbusters	Isaac	Television film
	A Child's Cry for Help	Brad Currie	Television film
	Lily in Winter	Chick	Television film
1995	Trail by Fire		Television film
	Sharon's Secret	Ashmore	Television film
	Touched by an Angel	George	Episode: "The Driver"
1996	In the House	Russell	Episode: "My Crazy Valentine"
	The Lazarus Man	Eliah Robinson	Episode: "The Conspirator"
	One West Waikiki	Tom Breason	Episode: "Allergic to Golf"
	Dangerous Minds	Coach Butch Kelly	Episode: "Moonstruck"
	Bloodhounds	Agent John DeGraf	Television film
1996–1997	Something So Right	Jim	5 episodes
1997	Pacific Palisades	Josh Smith	Episode: "Past & Present Danger"
	Walker, Texas Ranger	Staff Sergeant Luther Parrish	Episode: "The Fighting McLains"
1997–1998	Brooklyn South	Detective	4 episodes
1997–2000	The Practice	Detective Mike McKrew	15 episodes
1998	The Pretender	Clark Thomas	Episode: "Crash"
	Seinfeld	Detective Hudson	Episode: "The Finale"
	Little Girl Fly Away	Detective Walter Engelhart	Television film
1998–2000	Any Day Now	Judge Lucius Pearl	3 episodes
1998–2002; 2018	The X-Files	FBI Assistant / Deputy Director Alvin Kersh	20 episodes Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series
1999	Vengeance Unlimited	Mr. Hobbs	Episode: "Friends"
	JAG	Commander Wallace Burke	2 episodes
	A Slight Case of Murder	Det. Larry Gray	Television film
2000	City of Angels	Wilson Patterson	3 episodes
	Daddio	Doug Grayson	Episode: "The Premium Also Rises"
	The District	Mr. Lane	Episode: "The Real Terrorist"
	Family Law	—N/a	Episode: "Family Values"
	NYPD Blue	Lt. Joe Abner	3 episodes
2001	Semper Fi	Mr. Maddox	Television film
2001–2002	Philly	Clyde Coleman	7 episodes
2002	Strong Medicine	Dr. Everett Sloane	Episode: "Outcomes"
	Crossing Jordan	Agent Hawkins	Episode: "Bombs Away"
	MDs	Mr. Farrell	Episode: "Cruel and Unusual"
2002–2003	Six Feet Under	Roderick Charles	2 episodes
	Becker	Cliff Bennett	2 episodes
2003	CSI: Miami	Prison Warden	Episode: "Body Count"
	The Lyon's Den	Terrance Christianson	3 episodes
2004	Line of Fire	Kenneth Stevens	Episode: "The Senator"
	The West Wing	Mayor	Episode: "Full Disclosure"
	Jack & Bobby	Marcus Ride	Episode: "Pilot"
2005	Curb Your Enthusiasm	Doctor	2 episodes
2005–present	Grey's Anatomy	Dr. Richard Webber	450 episodes NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series Satellite Award for Best Cast – Television Series Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series Nominated—Golden Nymph Award for Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series Nominated—NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series Nominated—NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series (2006–11) Nominated—Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series (2006, 2008)
2020–2024	Station 19		6 episodes
2007–2009	Private Practice		2 episodes
2010	Seattle Grace: Message of Hope		6 episodes
2018	Grey's Anatomy: B-Team		1 episode
	Yellowstone	Old Cowboy	Episode: "The Unravelling, Pt. 2"
2018–2022	The Conners	Chuck Mitchell	9 episodes
2022–2023	The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder	Charles (voice)	2 episodes

Video games

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2004	The X-Files: Resist or Serve	Deputy Director Alvin Kersh

External links

• James Pickens Jr. at IMDb