Sanaa Lathan
Sanaa McCoy Lathan (/səˈnɑ/ born September 19, 1971) is an American stage, film, television, and voice actress. She is the daughter of actress Eleanor McCoy and film director Stan Lathan. She earned bachelor's degree in English from University of California, Berkeley, and a master's degree in drama from Yale.
She is best known for her roles as Robyn in The Best Man films and subsequent TV miniseries on Peacock, Naomi Hicks on Netflix's Hit & Run, Violet Jones in Nappily Ever After, Ashe Akino on Fox's drama Shots Fired, Deputy Director Natalie Austin in Now You See Me 2 (2016), Leah Vaughn in The Perfect Guy (2015), Jenelle Wilson on Showtime's drama The Affair, Mona Fredricks on Starz' drama Boss, Andrea in Tyler Perry's The Family That Preys (2008), Beneatha Younger in ABC's film adaptation of A Raisin in the Sun (2008), Kenya McQueen in Something New (2006), Ann Merai Harrison in Out of Time (2004), Sidney 'Sid' Shaw in Brown Sugar (2002), Monica Wright in Love & Basketball (2000), Zora Banks in Disappearing Acts (2000), Alicia in The Wood (1999), Vanessa Brooks - the mother of Wesley Snipes' title character - in Blade (1998), and Briana Gilliam on NBC's sitcom Lateline.
She had recurring roles on HBO's Succession and FX's Nip/Tuck, and starred on NBC's short-lived sitcom Built to Last. In 2022, she received a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series, for her work on the television series Succession.
Her other movie credits include With/In Vol 1 (2021) and Vol 2 (2022), American Assassin (2017), Contagion (2011), Powder Blue (2009), AVP: Alien vs. Predator (2004), and more. She voiced Catwoman on HBO's animated series Harley Quinn, and Donna Tubbs on The Cleveland Show and on all Family Guy appearances.
In 2004, she starred on Broadway as Beneatha Younger in A Raisin in the Sun with Sean Combs, Audra McDonald, and Phylicia Rashad, and received a Tony Award nomination for Best Performance by a Featured Actress. She later reprise her role in the 2008 film adaptation. In 2010, she starred in the all-black performance of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof at the Novello Theatre in London.
She earned a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series for her recurring role on Succession. She received an NAACP Image Award Nomination for Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture for her performance in Brown Sugar. She received a NAACP Image Award nomination for her performance in The Best Man. She earned an Essence Award for Best Actress for her performance in Disappearing Acts. She earned the 2001 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture, an Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best Actress, and a BET Award for her performance in Love & Basketball.
In 2000, she was named by Ebony magazine as one of its 55 Most Beautiful People and was honored by Essence magazine and Black Entertainment Television.
In 2022, she made her directorial debut with the film On the Come Up, in which she also has a supporting role.
Known For | Acting |
---|---|
Most Rating | 25.437 |
Birthday | 1971-09-19 |
Place of Birth | New York City, New York, USA |
Also Known As | Sanaa McCoy Lathan, |
2004
AVP: Alien vs. Predator
5.908/4201
When scientists discover something near Antarctica that appears to be a buried Pyramid, they send a research team out to investigate. Little do they k...
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AVP: Alien vs. Predator
2003
Out of Time
6.318/1115
Matt Lee Whitlock, respected chief of police in small Banyan Key, Florida, must solve a vicious double homicide before he himself falls under suspicio...
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Out of Time
1999
Life
6.642/739
Two men in 1930s Mississippi become friends after being sentenced to life in prison together for a crime they did not commit.
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Life
2008
A Raisin in the Sun
6.1/30
Dreams can make a life worth living, but they can also be dashed by bad decisions. This is the crossroads whare the Younger family find themselves whe...
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A Raisin in the Sun
2009
Wonderful World
5.2/45
Ben Singer is a failed children's folk singer, a career proofreader, a less-than-extraordinary weekend dad, and perhaps the most negative man alive. F...
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Wonderful World
1998
Blade
6.782/5754
The Daywalker known as "Blade" - a half-vampire, half-mortal man - becomes the protector of humanity against an underground army of vampires.
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Blade
2000
Love & Basketball
7.439/407
Monica Wright and Quincy McCall grew up in the same neighborhood and have known each other since childhood. As they grow into adulthood, they fall in...
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Love & Basketball
2006
Something New
6.454/219
Kenya McQueen, a corporate lawyer, finds love in the most unexpected place when she agrees to go on a blind date with Brian Kelly, a sexy and free-spi...
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Something New
2008
Tyler Perry's The Family That Preys
6.677/79
Wealthy socialite Charlotte Cartwright and her dear friend Alice Pratt, a working class woman of high ideals, have enjoyed a lasting friendship throug...
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Tyler Perry's The Family That Preys
2002
Brown Sugar
6.654/107
Sidney and Dre can attribute their lifelong friendship and the launch of their careers to one single childhood instant... witnessing the birth of hip-...
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Brown Sugar
1999
The Best Man
6.712/125
After writing a soon-to-be bestselling novel, writer and committed bachelor Harper attempts to hide the fact that his saucy new book is loosely based...
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The Best Man
1999
The Wood
6.804/92
In the panicky, uncertain hours before his wedding, a groom with prenuptial jitters and his two best friends reminisce about growing up together in th...
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The Wood
2000
Disappearing Acts
6.4/36
Zora Banks is a school teacher and aspiring singer hoping to become a successful star while taking a break from heartache. Franklin Swift is a down-on...
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Disappearing Acts
2011
Contagion
6.64/5905
As an epidemic of a lethal airborne virus - that kills within days - rapidly grows, the worldwide medical community races to find a cure and control t...
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Contagion
2009
Powder Blue
6.105/210
On the gritty streets of LA, the destinies of four people desperate for connection and redemption are about to collide.
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Powder Blue
2014
Repentance
4.8/58
An earnest life-coach/author, Thomas Carter, is mysteriously abducted by a deranged client, Angel Sanchez, who delves into Thomas' teachings and uses...
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Repentance
2013
The Best Man Holiday
6.594/249
When college friends reunite after 15 years over the Christmas holidays, they discover just how easy it is for long-forgotten rivalries and romances t...
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The Best Man Holiday
2016
Now You See Me 2
6.826/10484
One year after outwitting the FBI and winning the public’s adulation with their mind-bending spectacles, the Four Horsemen resurface only to find them...
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Now You See Me 2
2015
The Perfect Guy
5.711/313
With a fulfilling career and a loving relationship, lobbyist Leah Vaughn seems to have it all. Things come crashing down when Dave, her long-term boyf...
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The Perfect Guy
2016
Approaching the Unknown
5.308/297
Captain William Stanaforth is on a one-way solo mission to take the first steps in colonising Mars. Like all pioneers throughout history, Stanaforth w...
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Approaching the Unknown
1999
Catfish in Black Bean Sauce
5.4/9
An African American couple (Winfield and Alice) adopt two orphans from a Vietnamese refugee camp. After twenty-two years, the children are reunited wi...
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Catfish in Black Bean Sauce
1997
Drive
6.041/122
A prototype enhanced human, on the run from Chinese-hired hit men, hooks up with a dread-locked bystander, and the two of them elude their pursuers na...
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Drive
2017
American Assassin
6.39/2881
Following the murder of his fiancée, Mitch Rapp trains under the instruction of Cold War veteran Stan Hurley. The pair then is enlisted to investigate...
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American Assassin
2019
Native Son
5.494/82
A young black man named Bigger Thomas takes a job working for a highly influential Chicago family, a decision that will change the course of his life...
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Native Son
2018
Nappily Ever After
7.191/797
After an accident at the hair salon, Violet realizes she's not living life to the fullest. A soulful barber helps her put the pieces back together.
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Nappily Ever After
1997
Miracle in the Woods
5.9/10
Quarreled sisters; Sarah and Wanda inherit property from their mother. It has always belonged to the family. Sarah insists on selling it as soon as po...
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Miracle in the Woods
2021
With/In Volume 1
5.5/2
Giving creatives the chance to step outside the box while being confined to their own homes, the filmmakers behind With/In range from seasoned directo...
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With/In Volume 1
2024
The Supremes At Earl’s All-You-Can-Eat
0/0
Three best friends dubbed “The Supremes” have weathered life’s storms together for two generations, through marriage and children, happiness and the b...
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The Supremes At Earl’s All-You-Can-Eat
2022
On the Come Up
6.15/20
Sixteen-year-old Brianna Jackson is a gifted rapper who plans to take the battle rap scene by storm to lift up her family and do right by the legacy o...
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On the Come Up
2005
The Golden Blaze
1/1
Two African American boys schoolyard rivalry spirals out of control when their fathers develop superpowers.
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The Golden Blaze
2022
With/In Volume 2
7.4/5
An anthology film that centres around relationships, love and family. A man misses his flight and instead finds love in quarantine, a lonely therapist...
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With/In Volume 2
Leap
0/0
Sanaa Lathan's directorial debut. A short film created for the With/In anthology.
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Leap
2023
Young. Wild. Free.
0/0
High school senior Brandon is drowning in responsibilities when his world is turned upside down after being robbed at gunpoint by the girl of his drea...
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