# Omari Hardwick
**Omari Hardwick** (Omari Latif Hardwick, born 1974) is an American actor, poet, and producer best known for starring for six seasons as James "Ghost" St. Patrick, a New York nightclub owner living a double life as a drug lord, in the Starz drama *Power* (2014–2020).[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/bio/) • [2](https://www.omarihardwick.com/filmography) The role won him three consecutive NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series and led to a run of film and streaming work, including [Zack Snyder](https://www.edgepedia.org/zack-snyder)'s *Army of the Dead* (2021) and *Star Trek: Section 31* (2025).[3](https://www.omarihardwick.com/about) • [4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1974, Savannah, Georgia; grew up in Decatur, Georgia[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/bio/) |
| Signature role | James "Ghost" St. Patrick on *Power* (Starz), 63 episodes, 2014–2020[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/) • [2](https://www.omarihardwick.com/filmography) |
| Awards | NAACP Image Award, Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series, 2018, 2019, and 2020, all for *Power*[3](https://www.omarihardwick.com/about) |
| Before acting | Starting defensive back at Furman (1993–1994) and the University of Georgia (1995–1996); a knee injury ended a stint with the San Diego Chargers[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/) |
| Other work | Over 4,000 written poems; production company Bravelife (founded 2006); *Poetics* podcast (2019)[3](https://www.omarihardwick.com/about) |
| Notable films | *Sorry to Bother You* (2018), *Army of the Dead* (2021), *Spell* (2020), *The Mother* (2023)[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/) |
## Early life and football
Hardwick was born in [Savannah, Georgia](https://www.edgepedia.org/savannah-georgia), to Joyce (Johnson) and Clifford Hardwick III, and grew up in Decatur. His parents chose his names deliberately: "Omari" means "most high" and "Latif" means "gentle," and Hardwick has said the name gave him something to strive for.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/bio/) He attended Marist School in Brookhaven, Georgia, where he played baseball, basketball, and football and won a state football title.[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/)
Football came first. After Marist, he was a starting defensive back for the Furman Purple Paladins in 1993 and 1994 before transferring to play the same position for the University of Georgia Bulldogs in 1995 and 1996; the university lists him among its all-time lettermen for 1995.[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/) • [5](https://georgiadogs.com/news/2006/6/24/All_Time_Georgia_Football_Lettermen) He minored in theater in college and kept writing poetry, a habit that began around age fourteen.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/bio/) After graduation he relocated to San Diego for a spot with the [San Diego Chargers](https://www.edgepedia.org/san-diego-chargers), but a knee injury cut the football career short.[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/) He later described the injury at 23 as feeling like the end of the world, and the turn to acting as a new beginning.[6](https://www.televisionacademy.com/features/news/mix/power-player)
## Early acting career
Hardwick studied off Broadway in New York until 2000, then moved to Los Angeles. As a struggling actor he worked security gigs and substitute teaching to pay for classes, and at one point lived out of his car; he has noted that the lot where he later shot the series *Dark Blue* was where he had slept in his car years earlier.[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/)
His screen debut came in the 2001 comedy *Circus*, and his break followed in [Spike Lee](https://www.edgepedia.org/spike-lee)'s television film *Sucker Free City*, where he played Dante Ponce.[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/omari_hardwick) In 2005 he booked the feature *The Guardian*, opposite [Kevin Costner](https://www.edgepedia.org/kevin-costner) and [Ashton Kutcher](https://www.edgepedia.org/ashton-kutcher), and the TNT medical drama *Saved*, where he played paramedic John "Sack" Hallon, within a three-week span.[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/) Supporting roles followed through the late 2000s: Platoon Commander Huggs in Spike Lee's *Miracle at St. Anna* (2008), undercover officer Ty Curtis on TNT's *Dark Blue* (2009–2010), and parts in *Next Day Air*, *Kick-Ass*, and *The A-Team* (all 2009–2010).[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/) • [7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/omari_hardwick) He drew critical notice for his performance as the closeted husband of Janet Jackson's character in Tyler Perry's *For Colored Girls* (2010) and worked twice with director Ava DuVernay on the indie dramas *I Will Follow* (2010) and *Middle of Nowhere* (2012).[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/omari_hardwick) • [3](https://www.omarihardwick.com/about)
## Power and stardom
*Power*, created by Courtney Kemp and co-executive produced by Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson, premiered on Starz on June 7, 2014 and ran through February 9, 2020.[2](https://www.omarihardwick.com/filmography) Hardwick played James "Ghost" St. Patrick, owner of the nightclub Truth, who secretly runs a drug empire serving rich and influential clients while trying to launder his way into a legitimate life.[2](https://www.omarihardwick.com/filmography) The show became the most popular original series in Starz's history; during its third season it drew a record 6.9 million viewers per week for the network.[8](https://andscape.com/features/power-trip/) The series produced multiple spinoffs for the network after it ended.[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/)
Hardwick has described the character as a "three-headed monster" of Jamie, James, and Ghost, and said the later seasons required him to shift between those identities in ways he found daunting.[9](https://www.ebony.com/omari-hardwick-power/) He nearly passed on the role, telling the Los Angeles Times that his wife had prayed months before his audition that his career move to another place.[10](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2019-08-22/power-starz-omari-hardwick-final-season) The performance earned him the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series in 2018, 2019, and 2020, after nominations in 2016 and 2017.[3](https://www.omarihardwick.com/about) • [11](https://www.aceshowbiz.com/celebrity/omari_hardwick/awards.html) He also earned two NAACP Image Award nominations for his recurring role as Andre on BET's *Being Mary Jane*.[12](https://blogs.cuit.columbia.edu/cji/files/2017/01/epk-organizations-2017.pdf)
## Film work after Power
In 2018 Hardwick appeared in three releases: [Boots Riley](https://www.edgepedia.org/boots-riley)'s *Sorry to Bother You* (as Mr. _______), [Tyler Perry](https://www.edgepedia.org/tyler-perry)'s *Nobody's Fool* opposite [Tiffany Haddish](https://www.edgepedia.org/tiffany-haddish), and the romance *A Boy. A Girl. A Dream.*, which he also produced.[3](https://www.omarihardwick.com/about) • [4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/) He played the lead in the horror-thriller *Spell* (2020) as Marquis T. Woods, a man who crashes his plane in rural Appalachia and wakes in the attic of a Hoodoo practitioner; Hardwick said he took the part because horror "hadn't really been touched by people that look like me."[13](https://www.nme.com/features/film-interviews/omari-hardwick-horror-power-spell-interview-2798895)
In Zack Snyder's Netflix zombie heist *Army of the Dead* (2021) he played Vanderohe, a chainsaw specialist on the mercenary team; early reviews singled out his chemistry with co-star [Matthias Schweighöfer](https://www.edgepedia.org/matthias-schweighofer) as among the film's standouts.[3](https://www.omarihardwick.com/about) • [14](https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/army-of-the-dead-first-reviews-it-wont-win-over-any-zack-snyder-skeptics-but-its-pure-zombie-fun/) He then played Gordon Parker, a lawyer in Savannah, opposite [Toni Collette](https://www.edgepedia.org/toni-collette) in the Netflix adaptation of [Karin Slaughter](https://www.edgepedia.org/karin-slaughter)'s *Pieces of Her* (2022), and Cruise opposite Jennifer Lopez in *The Mother* (2023).[15](https://www.omarihardwick.com/) • [4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/) In 2025 he appeared as Alok Sahar in *Star Trek: Section 31* alongside Michelle Yeoh.[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/)
Upcoming projects include *The Greatest*, a series about the young Cassius Clay produced under [Michael B. Jordan](https://www.edgepedia.org/michael-b-jordan)'s Outlier Society, in which Hardwick plays Cassius "Cash" Clay Sr., the boxer's father, and *Power: Origins*, in which he is credited as himself.[16](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/news/) • [4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/)
## Poetry, music, and production
Hardwick describes himself as "Artist. Poet. Activist. Actor." He founded the multimedia production company Bravelife Productions in 2006, and in May 2019 the company launched the *Poetics* podcast on the Luminary Network, featuring conversations with figures including [Method Man](https://www.edgepedia.org/method-man), 50 Cent, Draymond Green, Dave East, and [Big Daddy Kane](https://www.edgepedia.org/big-daddy-kane).[3](https://www.omarihardwick.com/about) He has written more than 4,000 poems, including "Little Black Boy Wonder," performed and produced with Marlon Wayans, David Oyelowo, Eriq LaSalle, Jay Ellis, and others.[3](https://www.omarihardwick.com/about) As a songwriter he has credits on his own tracks "50+O=500" and "HOme" and on songs by Vic Mensa, R+R=NOW, and Goapele.[17](https://readdork.com/credits/omari-hardwick) In 2018 he co-wrote and performed a one-man show, *HerO: A work in progress*, at the Billie Holiday Theatre; its two performances sold out immediately.[3](https://www.omarihardwick.com/about) He is also a founding member of Plan B Inc. Theater Group and a co-founder of the Los Angeles Actor's Lounge.[4](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/)
## References
1. [Omari Hardwick – Biography, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/bio/)
2. [Filmography — Omari Hardwick (official site)](https://www.omarihardwick.com/filmography)
3. [About — Omari Hardwick (official site)](https://www.omarihardwick.com/about)
4. [Omari Hardwick – IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/)
5. [All-Time Georgia Football Lettermen, University of Georgia Athletics](https://georgiadogs.com/news/2006/6/24/All_Time_Georgia_Football_Lettermen)
6. [Power Player, Television Academy](https://www.televisionacademy.com/features/news/mix/power-player)
7. [Omari Hardwick – Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/omari_hardwick)
8. [Power trip, Andscape](https://andscape.com/features/power-trip/)
9. [Omari Hardwick: On Chasing Ghost and Gaining 'Power' As An Artist, EBONY](https://www.ebony.com/omari-hardwick-power/)
10. ['Power' star Omari Hardwick almost turned down the role that changed his life, Los Angeles Times](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2019-08-22/power-starz-omari-hardwick-final-season)
11. [Omari Hardwick – Award History & Wins, AceShowbiz](https://www.aceshowbiz.com/celebrity/omari_hardwick/awards.html)
12. [EPK for Great Social Justice, Columbia University](https://blogs.cuit.columbia.edu/cji/files/2017/01/epk-organizations-2017.pdf)
13. [Omari Hardwick: "Horror hadn't really been touched by people that look like me", NME](https://www.nme.com/features/film-interviews/omari-hardwick-horror-power-spell-interview-2798895)
14. [Army of the Dead First Reviews, Rotten Tomatoes Editorial](https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/army-of-the-dead-first-reviews-it-wont-win-over-any-zack-snyder-skeptics-but-its-pure-zombie-fun/)
15. [Omari Hardwick (official site)](https://www.omarihardwick.com/)
16. [Omari Hardwick – News, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165044/news/)
17. [Omari Hardwick – Credits, Readdork](https://readdork.com/credits/omari-hardwick)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › American actors: 2000s onward › Surnames H to Ha*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license