Phylicia Rashād
Acting
Phylicia Rashad (née Ayers-Allen; born June 19, 1948) is an American actress. She was most recently dean of the College of Fine Arts at Howard University before her three-year contract ended in May 2024. Known for her roles on stage and screen, she has received two Tony Awards as well as nominations for six Primetime Emmy Awards and a Screen Actors Guild Award. She is best known for her role as Clair Huxtable on the NBC sitcom The Cosby Show (1984–1992) which earned her two Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series nominations in 1985 and 1986. She also played Ruth Lucas on Cosby (1996–2000), and Brenda Glover in Little Bill (1999–2004). She was also Emmy-nominated for her roles in A Raisin in the Sun (2008) and This Is Us (2019–2021). On stage, Rashad became the first Black actress to win the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play, for a revival of A Raisin in the Sun (2004). She won her second Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play for Dominique Morisseau's Skeleton Crew (2022). Her other Broadway credits include Into the Woods (1988), Jelly's Last Jam (1993), Gem of the Ocean (2004), and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (2008). She has appeared in various films such as For Colored Girls (2010), Good Deeds (2012), Creed (2015), Creed II (2018), Creed III (2023), and The Beekeeper (2024). She lent her voice to the Disney-Pixar animated film Soul (2020). In the 21st century, she has directed revivals of three plays by August Wilson, in major theaters in Seattle, Princeton, New Jersey; and Los Angeles. She also directed Purpose (play) in its 2024-2025 run at the Helen Hayes Theater on Broadway.
Known for
Acting96
movieRuth & Boaz
2025
Naomi
movieThe Beekeeper
2024
Eloise Parker
tvCurses!
2023
Georgia (voice)
movieOur Son
2023
Maya
movieBeing Mary Tyler Moore
2023
Self (voice)
movieCreed III
2023
Mary-Anne Creed
tvSherri
2022
Self - Guest
tvThe Gilded Age
2022
Elizabeth Kirkland
movietick, tick... BOOM!
2021
"Sunday" Legend #12
movieShow of Titles
2021
"There's No Business Like Show Business" Performer
movieAngry, Raucous, and Shamelessly Gorgeous
2021
Anna Campbell
movieTwenty Pearls: The Story of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority
2021
Narrator (voice)
movieSoul
2020
Libba Gardner (voice)
movieJingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey
2020
Grandmother Journey
movieBlack Box
2020
Lillian
movieChadwick Boseman: A Tribute for a King
2020
Self - Actress
tvLittle America
2020
Margaret Jean the Queen
tvTamron Hall
2019
Self - Guest
tvDavid Makes Man
2019
Dr. Woods-Trap
movieCreed II
2018
Mary Anne Creed
Charlie's Place
2018
Narrator (voice)
tvStation 19
2018
Pilar
movieTour de Pharmacy
2017
Victoria Young
tvThe Good Fight
2017
Renetta Clark
tvThis Is Us
2016
Carol Clarke
movieCreed
2015
Mary Anne Creed
movieEmily & Tim
2015
Emily (Segment 5)
tvEmpire
2015
Diana DuBois
movieGods Behaving Badly
2013
Demeter
tvDo No Harm
2013
Dr. Vanessa Young
tvSofia the First
2013
Mountain Witch (voice)
movieSteel Magnolias
2012
Clairee
movieGood Deeds
2012
Wilimena Deeds
movieChange of Plans
2011
Dorothy
movieJust Wright
2010
Ella McKnight
movieA Raisin in the Sun
2008
Lena Younger
tvPsych
2006
Winnifred Guster
tvGrey's Anatomy
2005
Nell Timms
movieGod and the Inner City
2003
Self (voice)
movieThe Cosby Show: A Look Back
2002
Self / Clair Huxtable (archive footage)
movieMurder, She Wrote: The Last Free Man
2001
Cassandra Hawkins
The Old Settler
2001
Elizabeth Barney
movieThe Visit
2001
Dr. Coles
tvLittle Bill
1999
Brenda Glover (voice)
movieFree of Eden
1999
Desiree
movieDinosaur - Preshow
1998
Dr Helen Marsh
tvCosby
1996
Ruth Lucas
tvThe Rosie O'Donnell Show
1996
Self - Guest
movieThe Babysitter's Seduction
1996
Kate Jacobs
movieThe Possession of Michael D.
1995
Dr. Marion Hale (Psychiatrist)
tvHappily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child
1995
Lady Fulton (voice)
tvTouched by an Angel
1994
Elizabeth Jessup
movieDavid's Mother
1994
Gladys Johnson
Hallelujah
1993
Mayor Turner
movieJailbirds
1991
Janice Grant
moviePolly: Comin' Home!
1990
Aunt Polly
movieThe Earth Day Special
1990
Clair Huxtable
moviePolly
1989
Aunt Polly
movieFalse Witness
1989
Lynne Jacobi
movieMickey's 60th Birthday
1988
Disneyland Cleaning Lady
tvTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
1987
Jane Goodfellow (voice)
tvA Different World
1987
Clair Huxtable
tvThe Cosby Show
1984
Clair Huxtable
tvReading Rainbow
1983
Narrator (voice)
tvAmerican Playhouse
1982
Mayor Turner
tvTony Awards
1956
Self - Presenter
Coretta Scott
Self - Narrator (voice)
Tyler Perry’s Madea’s Family Affair
Judge Elaine Carter
Directing1
tvGrey's Anatomy
2005
Director