Ron Cephas Jones

His film credits include He Got Game (1998), Sweet and Lowdown (1999), Half Nelson (2006), and Across The Universe (2007). In television, he appeared as Reverend Lowdown in the episode "The Goat Rodeo" of the 2013 television series Low Winter Sun and he played Romero, a member of "fsociety" in the 2015 television series Mr. Robot. He also appeared on season 3 of the show Banshee as Philadelphia kingpin, Mr. Frasier. He played Harlem chess master Bobby Fish in season 1 of Marvel's Luke Cage. Since 2016, Jones stars on the NBC drama series This Is Us as William Hill, the biological father of Randall Pearson (Sterling K. Brown). Jones received critical acclaim for his performance on This Is Us and received a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series in 2017 for his performance.

After returning to New York in 1985, Jones began spending time at the Nuyorican Poets Café in Manhattan's East Village. During that time, he performed in a play based on the Billie Holiday song Don't Explain. His performance caught the attention of a casting director, which led to Jones being offered the lead role in the Tazewell Thompson production of the Cheryl West play Holiday Heart in 1994. Jones has performed in several theatrical productions with the Steppenwolf Theatre Company in Chicago, Illinois; appeared as the title character of Shakespeare's Richard III with The Public Theater in New York City, New York, as well as other Off Broadway productions. Jones has served as an understudy or standby in several Broadway theatre productions.

Ron Cephas Jones (born January 8, 1957) is an American actor. He is best known for his role in the drama series This Is Us (2016–present), which earned him three consecutive Primetime Emmy Award nominations, winning one for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series in 2018. Jones has also appeared in a number of films and television series including Half Nelson (2006), Glass Chin (2014), seasons 1–2 of Mr. Robot (2015–2016), and Luke Cage (2016–2018).

Jones was born on January 8, 1957, in Paterson, New Jersey. He attended John F. Kennedy High School and graduated from Ramapo College. While at Ramapo, Jones had originally intended to study jazz under director Arnold Jones (no relation), but changed majors to theater after getting the lead in a production of Cinderella Ever After his sophomore year. Jones graduated from Ramapo in 1978, after which he moved to Los Angeles, California and drove a bus in the Rapid Transit District for the next four years. During that time, Jones stated he "fell in love, had a child, got separated". He then ""traveled around", living in San Francisco, Arizona, and New Orleans before returning to New York City in 1985.