Lynn Whitfield is an award-winning actress who has starred in numerous television and film productions.
She is best known for her role as Josephine Baker in The Josephine Baker Story, for which she received Emmy and Golden Globe nominations.
She is also known for her role as Mrs. Mae Greenleaf in the Oprah Winfrey Network series Greenleaf, a role that earned her two NAACP Image Awards and a Gracie Award.
contour
- Full name: Lynn Butler-Smith
- Other names: Lynn Whitfield
- Date of Birth: February 15, 1953
- Age: 70
- Gender: Female
- Birthplace: Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA
- Country: United States
- Occupation: Actor
- Height: 5 feet 3 inches (1.6 meters)
- Parents: Valeria Jean Butler (mother) and Valerian E. Smith (father)
- Siblings: 3
- Spouse: Vantel Whitfield (1974-1978), Brian Gibson (1990-1992)
- Children: Grace Gibson (daughter)
- Relationship status: Single
- Net worth: $5 million
Early life and education
Lynn Whitfield, who will turn 70 in 2023, was born on February 15, 1953, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
She is the daughter of Valeria Jean Butler, president of the Housing Finance Agency, and Valerian E. Smith, a dentist.
She has three siblings: Valerian Butler-Smith, Shawne Langston and Kimberlegh Butler-Smith.
She grew up in a middle-class family and attended Catholic schools. She developed an early interest in acting and participated in school plays and local theater productions.
In 1975, she graduated from Howard University in Washington, D.C. with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. She then moved to New York City to pursue her acting career.
Personal life
Lynn Whitfield has been married twice and has one daughter. Her first marriage was in 1974 to director and playwright Van Til Whitfield.
They divorced in 1978. In 1990, she married British director Brian Gibson, whom she met on the set of The Josephine Baker Story, in which Gibson directed Whitfield in her breakthrough role.
They have one daughter, Grace Gibson, born in 1991. Grace is also an actress and has appeared in the following films: Black Nativity and Everyone’s eyes were on me.
Whitfield and Gibson divorced in 1992. Whitfield has also dated celebrities such as Martin Lawrence and Arthur Ashe. She is currently single and lives in Los Angeles, California.
Profession
Lynn Whitfield has had a successful and varied career in television and film. She began her career in theatre and appeared in several Off-Broadway and regional plays such as For Colored Girls Who Consider Suicide/When Rainbows Are Enough, The Great McDaddy, and Showdown. She made her television debut in 1981 on the soap opera Doc.
She then starred in several television movies and TV series, such as Hill Street Blues, Kane and Lacey, The Women of Brewster Place and Different world. She also played the role of Jill Thomas in the sitcom Martin.
In 1991, she landed her breakthrough role as legendary jazz singer and dancer Josephine Baker in the HBO biopic The Josephine Baker Story.
She received critical acclaim and won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Movie. She also received a Golden Globe nomination and an NAACP Image Award for her performance. She became the first black actress to win an Emmy Award.
She went on to star in various films and television shows such as A Fine Line Between Love and Hate, Eve’s Bayou, Stepmom, The Leopard Woman, Matilda’s Family Reunion, and Weddings.
She also played the role of Brandi Webber in the cult classic film Head of State, co-starring with Chris Rock, for which she received several awards and nominations, including the Vinyl Award, Satellite Award, and Screen Actors Guild Award.
In 2016, she began starring as Mrs. May Greenleaf, the matriarch of a wealthy and influential family, in the Oprah Winfrey Network’s television series Greenleaf.
She received critical acclaim and won two NAACP Image Awards and a Gracie Award for her performance. She also co-produced the series, which ran for five seasons and will premiere in 2020.
She is currently working on several projects such as the Netflix comedy film “Perfect Find,” the Amazon Prime Video thriller series “The Underground Railroad,” and the BET+ series “The Ms. Pat Show.”
net worth
According to Celebrity Net Worth, Lynn Whitfield has an estimated net worth of $5 million.
She has earned her wealth through her acting career as well as production and endorsement deals.
Social Media
- Instagram: @mslynnwhitfield
- Twitter: @MsLynnWhitfield
Filmography
- The Josephine Baker Story
- Eve’s Bayou
- Stepmother
- Head of State
- Matthias Family Reunion
- Cheetah Girls
- Greenleaf
- Perfect discovery
- Underground Railroad
- Ms. Pat’s Show
