Terry Alan Crews (born July 30, 1968) is an American actor, television host, and former professional football player. He played the character Julius Rock in the UPN and CW sitcom Everybody Hates Chris, which aired from 2005 to 2009. He also played the role of Terry Jeffords in the Fox and NBC sitcom Brooklyn Nine-Nine (2013–2021). Crews appeared in the BET reality series The Family Crews (2010–2011) and hosted the American version of the game show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire from 2014 to 2015. He has acted in movies such as Friday After Next (2002), White Chicks (2004), Idiocracy (2006), Blended (2014), the Expendables film series (2010–2014), and Rumble (2021). Crews began hosting America's Got Talent in 2019, following his work on the show’s spin-off series America's Got Talent: The Champions.
Crews played as a defensive end and linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) for the Los Angeles Rams, San Diego Chargers, and Washington Redskins. He also played in the World League of American Football (WLAF) for the Rhein Fire and played college football at Western Michigan University.
He is a public advocate for women’s rights and works against sexism. Crews has shared stories about the abuse his family faced from his violent father. He was named as one of the people recognized as Time Person of the Year in 2017 for speaking out about experiences of sexual assault during the MeToo movement.
Early life and education
Terry Crews was born on July 30, 1968, in Flint, Michigan. He is the son of Patricia Ann (née Simpson) and Terry Crews. As the middle child of three, he grew up in a strict Christian household in Flint and was mostly raised by his mother, who was 18 years old when he was born. His father struggled with alcoholism and abused his mother. Crews received a flute from his great-aunt and took lessons for eight years. He spent a summer at Interlochen Arts Academy and entered Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo on an art scholarship. After his first year of college, he tried out for the football team and earned a full athletic scholarship.
Football career
Crews was selected by the Los Angeles Rams in the 11th round of the 1991 NFL draft. During his career, he played for the Rams in six games, the Green Bay Packers in no games, the San Diego Chargers in 10 games, the Washington Redskins in 16 games, and the Philadelphia Eagles in no games. He also played for the Rhein Fire of the World League of American Football (which later became NFL Europe) during the 1995 season. Crews was cut from teams multiple times and often earned extra money by creating portraits of his teammates.
Acting career
After retiring from the NFL in 1997, Crews moved to Los Angeles to try acting. He had always wanted to work in movies and TV, but he had not planned to act until then. In 1996, he co-wrote and co-produced an independent film called Young Boys Incorporated. The movie was made in Detroit with a message about avoiding drugs. Crews used his own experiences and those of his friends and family to create the story. He called the film "horrible" but said the experience made him interested in the film industry.
In 1999, Crews tried out for a role in a TV game show called Battle Dome, which was his first acting job. He played a character named T-Money for two seasons until the show ended in 2001. Performing on camera helped him decide to pursue acting as a career. However, he did not get another acting job for two years after that.
Crews later appeared in commercials, movies, and music videos. His big break came in Friday After Next (2002), a movie starring Ice Cube, who had previously hired Crews as a security guard on set. Crews did not take acting classes but focused on what audiences wanted, which he believes helped him succeed. He now says acting is his true calling and would not choose any other career, even though it is physically demanding.
Crews became widely known for playing Julius Rock, the father of the main character in the TV sitcom Everybody Hates Chris, which aired from 2005 to 2009. Later, he played Nick Kingston-Persons in the sitcom Are We There Yet? (2010–2013) and NYPD Sergeant Terry Jeffords in Brooklyn Nine-Nine (2013–2021). In 2020, Crews said that four episodes of Brooklyn Nine-Nine Season 8 were canceled after the George Floyd protests, and the show was not renewed for a ninth season. He later said he was sad the show ended but happy to have been part of it.
Crews gained attention for his role in White Chicks (2004), which led to a part in The Longest Yard (2005). He has mostly played comedic roles in movies like Starsky & Hutch (2004), The Benchwarmers (2006), Idiocracy (2006), and Norbit (2007). He later acted in action movies like The Expendables series (2010–2014). Crews has kept a strong, athletic body but has avoided being seen only as a tough action hero. He has succeeded by mixing funny characters with his physical appearance, even making fun of stereotypes about bodybuilders. This contrast helped him land roles in humorous Old Spice commercials.
Crews has also worked in animated shows like American Dad! (2011–2022) and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 (2013). He enjoyed voice acting and found it satisfying. From 2010 to 2011, he starred in a reality TV show called The Family Crews on BET. He also hosted Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (2014–2015) and was the American host of Ultimate Beastmaster on Netflix.
Crews says acting and football are similar in structure and expectations, which helped him switch careers. He credits Reginald Hubbard for guiding him early in his film career.
In 2017, Crews was cast in the movie Sorry to Bother You, which was released in 2018. In 2018, he also appeared in Deadpool 2. He has been in music videos for songs by Muse and Brittany Howard, including "Stay High" (2019), where he lip-synced the vocals.
Other ventures
Crews's first job in the arts was as a courtroom sketch artist in Flint, Michigan. He received an art scholarship from college before receiving an athletic scholarship. Later, he worked as a courtroom sketch artist for WJRT. During his football career, Crews helped support his family by creating portraits of fellow players. At times, this was the main source of income for his family, usually earning $5,000 for a two-month commission. His work included a series of NFL-licensed lithographs. He thinks his creative side has helped him in his acting work.
Crews and fashion designer Nana Boateng started a design company called Amen & Amen. Their first collection was a set of furniture and light fixtures created by designer and artist Ini Archibong. In 2017, Crews designed a furniture collection for Bernhardt Design, which was displayed at the International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF) in New York.
In 2021, Crews announced that Amen & Amen had entered the film production sector as a "virtual production studio" based in Pasadena, California.
In 2021, Crews and his wife, Rebecca King, wrote a memoir titled Together: How Fame, Failure and Faith Transformed Our Lives. He has also written other books, including Tough: My Journey to True Power. He has written and illustrated children's books, such as Terry's Crew, and with Ken Harvey, Come Find Me, a story about two brothers, Anthony and Marcus, who are based on Crews' sons.
Crews, along with Unnar Helgi Danielsson, Dylan Sprouse, and Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson, is a co-founder and brand ambassador of Thor's Skyr, an American-made high-protein cultured dairy product inspired by a traditional Icelandic recipe. It is high in probiotics and low in sugar.
On March 10, 2021, Crews announced the Ethereum-based cryptocurrency $POWER.
Personal life
Crews is deeply religious. He met Rebecca King when he was a college student; she was the music leader at a local church. They married on July 29, 1989. They have four daughters and a son, Isaiah Crews, who is also an actor, and one grandchild.
In 2014, Crews wrote his autobiography, Manhood: How to Be a Better Man or Just Live with One. In the book, Crews talked about his long-term problem with pornography, which had greatly affected his marriage and life. He overcame this issue around 2009 and 2010 after joining a recovery program. Since then, he has spoken publicly about the issue and shared his experiences on Facebook through his "Dirty Little Secret Series."
Crews is interested in personal growth. His favorite book is The Master Key System by Charles F. Haanel. He said, "I have read many personal development books, but this one clearly showed me how to imagine, think about, and focus on what I truly wanted. It taught me that we only get what we desire most, and to apply myself with a very focused effort toward a goal, task, or project. To 'have,' you must 'do,' and to 'do,' you must 'be'—and this process happens immediately. […] I also read it once a month to keep my vision clear."
In a 2020 interview with Rotten Tomatoes, Crews listed his five favorite films as Do the Right Thing, Star Wars, Aliens, Training Day, and Pulp Fiction.
Crews appeared at the launch of the Cadillac F1 Team, where he shared stories about his childhood in Detroit. He mentioned that his father worked for General Motors, the parent company of Cadillac.
On October 10, 2017, after many Hollywood actresses shared their experiences of sexual harassment and assault by film producer Harvey Weinstein, Crews revealed that a male Hollywood executive touched him inappropriately at a party in 2016. He did not report the incident because he was afraid of being punished. Later, it was confirmed that the "high-level executive" was Adam Venit, who led the motion picture department at the talent company William Morris Endeavor (WME).
For speaking out about the sexual assault, Crews was named one of the "Silence Breakers" in the 2017 Time Person of the Year award. WME said an investigation found the incident was isolated. Venit was demoted and returned to work after one month of suspension. Crews said, "Someone got a pass." He filed a lawsuit against Venit and WME for sexual assault. Some witnesses said Venit was drunk, called the incident "horseplay," and apologized the next day. WME responded to the lawsuit, stating their reaction to Crews' claims was "swift and serious." In March 2018, prosecutors decided not to charge Venit. The city attorney's office said the time limit to prosecute Venit had passed because the incident occurred in February 2016 and Crews did not report it until November 2017.
After Crews said producer Avi Lerner tried to stop him from speaking about the assault to keep his role in The Expendables film series, Crews decided not to appear in any future movies in the franchise.