Michael K. Williams net worth
What is the net worth of Michael K. Williams?
Michael K. Williams was an American actor who had a net worth of $5 million at the time of his death. He is probably best known for playing Omar on “The Wire.” He also appears in “Boardwalk Empire”. Tragically, Michael passed away on September 6, 2021 at the age of 54.
early life
He was born on November 22, 1966 in Brooklyn, New York. Michael studied at the National Black Theater in Harlem as a teenager. During his studies, he worked as a temporary worker at Pfizer Pharmaceuticals. Against the wishes of his family, he decided to drop out of school and quit his job to pursue a career as a dancer, and after a year of little success and homelessness, he booked a job as a background dancer at Kym Sims’ ‘Too blind, look Missing” tour. This eventually led to dance and choreography work with artists such as Madonna, George Michael and Crystal Waters.
Acting career
Williams landed one of his first acting roles after being spotted by Tupac Shakur in the 1996 film Bullets. From the mid-90s to the early 2000s, he appeared in various film and television projects. He usually portrays thug-type characters due to the large scar on his face he received during a bar fight in New York City in his 20s. Some of his early projects include “Bring Out the Dead,” “Law and Order,” and “The Sopranos.”
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In 2002, he was cast in roles that would bring him the widest critical acclaim and fame, as Omar Little in The Wire. He landed the role after one audition. He was initially told that the character of Omar would appear in seven episodes of the first season. Because of his portrayal of Omar, Williams was named by USA TODAY as one of the top 10 reasons why they still love TV. Williams was praised for his unique portrayal of Omar, who brought wit and humor to often-worn scenes in TV crime dramas. In 2007, Williams was nominated for Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series at the NAACP Image Award for his role as Omar. In 2008, then-Senator Barack Obama called “The Wire” his favorite TV show and named Omar his favorite character.
After 6 years and 41 episodes of The Wire, Williams appeared in Alias, Six Degrees, CSI, Boston Legal, The Sopranos and Law & Order. He has acted in movie roles such as “Gone Baby Gone”, “I Think I Love My Wife”, “The Road”, “Life during Wartime”, and dozens of others. He has also appeared in many music videos , including R. Kelly, The Game, Young Jeezy, Trick Daddy, MGMT, Marilyn Manson and ASAP Rocky.
Williams starred in HBO’s “Boardwalk Empire” for five seasons from 2010 to 2014, playing Albert “Chalky” White, the leader of Atlantic City’s black community in the 1920s. He also starred in “Community” in three episodes of the third season of the sitcom. Williams was in talks to play the titular role of Django in Quentin Tarantino’s film “Django Unchained,” but scheduling conflicts with “Boardwalk Empire” kept him out of the role.
In 2012, he executive produced the independent film “Snow on the Cliff” under his own company Freedome Productions. In March 2015, Williams starred in the Sundance TV adaptation of “Hap & Leonard” based on a series of novels by Joe R. Lansdale. The first season was well received, and the second season aired in 2017. Beginning in 2016, Williams partnered with Vice News to host a VICELAND show called “The Black Market.”
In 2016, he starred in six episodes of “The Night Of” as Freddy Knight. He was nominated for an Emmy Award for Best Actor in a Limited Series for his role.
In 2018, he reunited with the Vice team to star in “Growing Up in the System”, embarking on a personal journey to uncover the roots of the juvenile justice system and the crisis of mass incarceration in America.
Williams played Bobby McRae in 2019’s critically acclaimed and award-winning When They Saw Us. He was once again nominated for an Emmy Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Limited Series. In 2020, Williams began playing Montrose Freeman in “Lovecraft Country.”
personal life
In 2004, while playing Omar Little, Williams was named after his character and developed a habit of smoking marijuana and cocaine. In 2019, it was revealed that Williams was in a relationship with actress Tasha Smith.
