Courtney Bernard Vance is an American actor. He started his career on stage before moving to film and television. Vance has received various accolades, including a Tony Award and two Primetime Emmy Awards, as well as nominations for a Grammy Award, Golden Globe Award, and Screen Actors Guild Award.
Having trained at the Yale School of Drama, he soon made his Broadway debut in the original production of August Wilson's Fences, earning his first Tony Award nomination. He continued acting in theatre in John Guare's Six Degrees of Separation and Nora Ephron's Lucky Guy, the latter of which earned him a Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play. He is known for his roles in the films Hamburger Hill, The Hunt for Red October, The Tuskegee Airmen, The Preacher's Wife, Cookie's Fortune, and Isle of Dogs.
From 2001 to 2006 he portrayed Assistant District Attorney Ron Carver in the NBC series Law & Order: Criminal Intent. He earned Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie portraying Johnnie Cochran in the FX limited series The People v. O. J.