S. Epatha Merkerson

Born: 1952-11-28, Saginaw, Michigan, USA

Biography

S. Epatha Merkerson (born Sharon Epatha Merkerson) is an American film, stage, and television actress. She has won a Golden Globe, Emmy Awards, a Screen Actors Guild Award, Obie Award, 4 NAACP Image Awards, and 2 Tony Award nominations. She is best known for her role as NYPD Lieutenant Anita Van Buren (1993–2010) on the long-running NBC police procedural drama series Law & Order, as well as the Law & Order TV movie Exiled. She appeared in 390 episodes of the series, more than any other cast member. She has a starring role as Sharon Goodwin on NBC's Chicago Med. She also had a recurring role as Reba (the mail carrier) on Pee-wee's Playhouse, and Ms. St. Marth on the TV series Here and Now. She has appeared in feature films including She's Gotta Have It, Loose Cannons, Jacob's Ladder, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Random Hearts, Radio, Black Snake Moan, Lincoln (2012), and Peeples. She has also appeared in TV movies including A Place for Annie, A Mother's Prayer, Breaking Through, Lackawanna Blues, and The Gabby Douglas Story.

Filmography

• Law & Order (1990)
• Chicago Fire (2012)
• Chicago P.D. (2014)
• Frasier (1993)
• Law & Order: Criminal Intent (2001)
• Chicago Med (2015)
• The Good Wife (2009)
• The Closer (2005)
• The Cosby Show (1984)
• Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
• Radio (2003)
• Law & Order: Trial by Jury (2005)
• Lincoln (2012)
• Jacob's Ladder (1990)
• Black Snake Moan (2006)
• Random Hearts (1999)
• Jersey Girl (2004)
• Navy Seals (1990)
• We Grown Now (2024)
• Mother and Child (2009)
• The Six Wives of Henry Lefay (2009)
• Peeples (2013)
• Loose Cannons (1990)
• Slipstream (2007)
• After the SIlence (1996)
• The Challenger (2015)
• A Place for Annie (1994)
• She's Gotta Have It (1986)
• Lackawanna Blues (2005)
• The Gabby Douglas Story (2014)