# Stephen McKinley Henderson
**Stephen McKinley Henderson** (born 1949 in [Kansas City, Missouri](https://www.edgepedia.org/kansas-city-missouri)) is an American character actor whose career spans more than five decades on stage, film, and television. He is best known in the theater as a leading interpreter of [August Wilson](https://www.edgepedia.org/august-wilson)'s plays, and on screen for roles such as Jim Bono in *Fences* (2016), Father Leviatch in *Lady Bird* (2017), and Thufir Hawat in *Dune* (2021).[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0376610/?nmdp=1) • [2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/stephen-henderson)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1949, Kansas City, Missouri[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0376610/?nmdp=1) |
| Training | Juilliard Drama Division Group 1 (1968); B.F.A., North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA), 1972; M.A., Purdue University[3](https://www.cla.purdue.edu/academic/rueffschool/theatre/about/history/legacy/Stephen_McKinley_Henderson.html) • [4](https://www.uncsa.edu/drama/alumni/stephen-mckinley-henderson.aspx) |
| Signature stage work | Roles in all but 2 of August Wilson's plays; 16 Wilson productions as of 2010[5](https://www.americantheatre.org/2022/12/16/stephen-mckinley-hendersons-long-road-to-riverside-and-crazy/) • [6](https://www.buffalo.edu/content/dam/www/news/imported/pdf/June10/NYTimesHendersonTonyAward.pdf) |
| Tony nominations | Best Featured Actor in a Play, *Fences* (2010); Best Actor in a Play, *Between Riverside and Crazy* (2023)[7](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/stephen-mckinley-henderson-82400) |
| Obie Award | Performance, *Between Riverside and Crazy*, 2015[8](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Stephen-McKinley-Henderson/) |
| Lifetime honors | Drama Desk Harold Prince Lifetime Achievement Award and Lucille Lortel Lifetime Achievement Award, both 2023[7](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/stephen-mckinley-henderson-82400) |
| Teaching | Professor Emeritus and former chair, Department of Theatre and Dance, University at Buffalo; Denzel Washington Endowed Chair at Fordham University[4](https://www.uncsa.edu/drama/alumni/stephen-mckinley-henderson.aspx) |
## Early life and training
Henderson grew up in Kansas City and attended Sumner High School in [Kansas City, Kansas](https://www.edgepedia.org/kansas-city-kansas), where teachers including Gloria Terrell drew him into school productions; his early roles included Karl Lindner in *A Raisin in the Sun* and [Willy Loman](https://www.edgepedia.org/willy-loman) in *Death of a Salesman*.[5](https://www.americantheatre.org/2022/12/16/stephen-mckinley-hendersons-long-road-to-riverside-and-crazy/) He won an academic scholarship to Lincoln University in Missouri, a historically Black institution, where he was directed by Dr. Thomas D. Pauley. As a freshman he auditioned for producer [John Houseman](https://www.edgepedia.org/john-houseman) and director Michael Kahn and joined Group 1 of Juilliard's Drama Division in 1968; Houseman later described Henderson's work there in his memoirs *Final Dress* (1983) and *Unfinished Business* (1988).[3](https://www.cla.purdue.edu/academic/rueffschool/theatre/about/history/legacy/Stephen_McKinley_Henderson.html)
He completed a B.F.A. at the North Carolina School of the Arts (now UNCSA) in 1972, where he served as president of the student government, and an M.A. at [Purdue University](https://www.edgepedia.org/purdue-university)'s graduate school, where he directed the Drama Workshop for the Black Cultural Center.[3](https://www.cla.purdue.edu/academic/rueffschool/theatre/about/history/legacy/Stephen_McKinley_Henderson.html) • [4](https://www.uncsa.edu/drama/alumni/stephen-mckinley-henderson.aspx) In a 2021 commencement address at UNCSA, where he also received an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts, he urged graduates to see performance as work that builds empathy.[9](https://www.uncsa.edu/news/20210526-stephen-mckinley-henderson-addresses-grads.aspx)
## August Wilson
Hendson's stage reputation rests above all on the plays of August Wilson. He first met Wilson in [Pittsburgh](https://www.edgepedia.org/pittsburgh) in 1990 while researching the city's [Hill District](https://www.edgepedia.org/hill-district) for *Joe Turner's Come and Gone*, and the two began working together in the mid-1990s.[10](https://bbbblogger.wordpress.com/2010/06/09/stephen-mckinley-henderson-of-fences-featured-in-the-new-york-times/) In 1996 he originated the role of Turnbo in *Jitney* in Pittsburgh, then played the part across the country and at the National Theatre in London in 2001, in a production that won the Olivier Award for Best Play; the [Off-Broadway](https://www.edgepedia.org/off-broadway) run earned him a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Ensemble Performance in 2000.[11](https://www.uncsa.edu/kenan/art-restart/stephen-mckinley-henderson.aspx) • [7](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/stephen-mckinley-henderson-82400)
His Broadway debut came as Stool Pigeon in Wilson's *King Hedley II* in 2001, followed by Slow Drag in the 2003 revival of *Ma Rainey's Black Bottom*.[7](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/stephen-mckinley-henderson-82400) • [6](https://www.buffalo.edu/content/dam/www/news/imported/pdf/June10/NYTimesHendersonTonyAward.pdf) In 2010 he played Jim Bono opposite [Denzel Washington](https://www.edgepedia.org/denzel-washington) and [Viola Davis](https://www.edgepedia.org/viola-davis) in the Broadway revival of *Fences*, receiving a Tony nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Play and the Richard Seff Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor from [Actors' Equity Association](https://www.edgepedia.org/actors-equity-association).[7](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/stephen-mckinley-henderson-82400) • [12](https://www.tenchimneys.org/2018-master-teacher-stephen-mckinley-henderson) By 2010 he had appeared in 16 productions of Wilson plays, and *American Theatre* later described him as one of the great "Wilson warriors" for roles in all but 2 of Wilson's plays.[6](https://www.buffalo.edu/content/dam/www/news/imported/pdf/June10/NYTimesHendersonTonyAward.pdf) • [5](https://www.americantheatre.org/2022/12/16/stephen-mckinley-hendersons-long-road-to-riverside-and-crazy/) When Washington directed the 2016 film adaptation of *Fences*, he asked Henderson to reprise Jim Bono on screen.[11](https://www.uncsa.edu/kenan/art-restart/stephen-mckinley-henderson.aspx)
## Between Riverside and Crazy
Playwright Stephen Adly Guirgis began writing *Between Riverside and Crazy* with Henderson in mind in 2011, creating the role of Walter "Pops" Washington, a disabled ex-cop fighting the city over a shooting, expressly for him.[13](https://www.tdf.org/on-stage/tdf-stages/why-stephen-mckinley-henderson-keeps-returning-to-between-riverside-and-crazy/) Henderson originated the role at the [Atlantic Theater Company](https://www.edgepedia.org/atlantic-theater-company) in 2014 and played an encore run at Second Stage Theater the next year, when the play won the 2015 [Pulitzer Prize for Drama](https://www.edgepedia.org/pulitzer-prize-for-drama); his performance earned an Obie Award, a Lucille Lortel Award, and nominations for the Drama Desk, Drama League, and Outer Critics Circle awards.[13](https://www.tdf.org/on-stage/tdf-stages/why-stephen-mckinley-henderson-keeps-returning-to-between-riverside-and-crazy/) • [8](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Stephen-McKinley-Henderson/)
The Broadway production opened at the Helen Hayes Theater on December 19, 2022 and ran through February 19, 2023. It was Henderson's first leading role on Broadway after roughly half a century as a working character actor, at age 73.[13](https://www.tdf.org/on-stage/tdf-stages/why-stephen-mckinley-henderson-keeps-returning-to-between-riverside-and-crazy/) The Washington Post's Peter Marks wrote that Henderson "can convey more in one glance than some actors manage in a geyser of grins, grimaces and gesticulations."[14](https://www.washingtonpost.com/theater-dance/2022/12/22/riverside-crazy-some-like-hot/) The performance brought a second Tony nomination, for Best Actor in a Play, and in 2023 he received both the Drama Desk's Harold Prince Lifetime Achievement Award and the Lucille Lortel Awards' Lifetime Achievement Award.[7](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/stephen-mckinley-henderson-82400) • [15](https://www.uncsa.edu/news/20230503-tony-award-nominations-alumni-connections.aspx)
## Film and television
Henderson's screen work accelerated after 2010. His film credits include Lester in *Tower Heist* (2011), William Slade, a White House servant, in [Steven Spielberg](https://www.edgepedia.org/steven-spielberg)'s *Lincoln* (2012), Mr. Emery in *Manchester by the Sea* (2016), Father Leviatch in *Lady Bird* (2017), and Thufir Hawat, the Atreides household's Mentat, in Denis Villeneuve's *Dune* (2021).[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/stephen-henderson) • [16](https://www.metacritic.com/person/stephen-mckinley-henderson/) As of 2022 he had appeared in six films nominated for the Best Picture Oscar: *Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close* (2011), *Lincoln*, *Fences*, *Manchester by the Sea*, *Lady Bird*, and *Dune: Part One*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0376610/?nmdp=1) Later roles include Sammy, a veteran journalist, in Alex Garland's *Civil War* (2024).[17](https://www.themarysue.com/stephen-mckinley-henderson-civil-war-interview/)
On television he played two recurring judge roles on *Law & Order* over a span of 15 years, appeared in *The Newsroom* (HBO, 2012–2014) and the Hulu miniseries *Devs*, and featured in Netflix's *The Madness* (2024) and *A Man on the Inside*.[4](https://www.uncsa.edu/drama/alumni/stephen-mckinley-henderson.aspx) • [2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/stephen-henderson) • [18](https://buzzmelt.com/person/stephen-mckinley-henderson) In March 2021, Vulture placed him on its list of "The 32 Greatest Character Actors Working Today."[4](https://www.uncsa.edu/drama/alumni/stephen-mckinley-henderson.aspx)
## Teaching
Henderson has taught acting for roughly 30 years at SUNY Buffalo and other institutions. At the University at Buffalo he is Professor Emeritus and a former chair of the Department of Theatre and Dance, and he has held the Denzel Washington Endowed Chair at Fordham University.[13](https://www.tdf.org/on-stage/tdf-stages/why-stephen-mckinley-henderson-keeps-returning-to-between-riverside-and-crazy/) • [4](https://www.uncsa.edu/drama/alumni/stephen-mckinley-henderson.aspx) He is a Fox Foundation Fellow and has served as a Master Teacher for the Lunt-Fontanne Ten Chimneys Fellowship Program.[19](https://lortelaward.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/2023-Lortel-Awards-Program.pdf)
## References
1. [Stephen McKinley Henderson, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0376610/?nmdp=1)
2. [Stephen Henderson, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/stephen-henderson)
3. [Stephen McKinley Henderson, Purdue University College of Liberal Arts](https://www.cla.purdue.edu/academic/rueffschool/theatre/about/history/legacy/Stephen_McKinley_Henderson.html)
4. [Stephen McKinley Henderson's decades-long acting career spans from August Wilson to sci-fi classics, UNCSA](https://www.uncsa.edu/drama/alumni/stephen-mckinley-henderson.aspx)
5. [Stephen McKinley Henderson's Long Road to 'Riverside and Crazy', American Theatre](https://www.americantheatre.org/2022/12/16/stephen-mckinley-hendersons-long-road-to-riverside-and-crazy/)
6. [A Stalwart in the Club of "Essential" Wise Men, The New York Times (June 9, 2010)](https://www.buffalo.edu/content/dam/www/news/imported/pdf/June10/NYTimesHendersonTonyAward.pdf)
7. [Stephen McKinley Henderson, IBDB](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/stephen-mckinley-henderson-82400)
8. [Stephen McKinley Henderson, BroadwayWorld](https://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Stephen-McKinley-Henderson/)
9. [Drama alum Stephen McKinley Henderson tells UNCSA grads their work is essential in building empathy, UNCSA](https://www.uncsa.edu/news/20210526-stephen-mckinley-henderson-addresses-grads.aspx)
10. [Stephen McKinley Henderson of FENCES Featured in the New York Times, BBB-Blogger](https://bbbblogger.wordpress.com/2010/06/09/stephen-mckinley-henderson-of-fences-featured-in-the-new-york-times/)
11. [Stephen McKinley Henderson, UNCSA Kenan Institute interview](https://www.uncsa.edu/kenan/art-restart/stephen-mckinley-henderson.aspx)
12. [2018 Master Teacher: Stephen McKinley Henderson, Ten Chimneys Foundation](https://www.tenchimneys.org/2018-master-teacher-stephen-mckinley-henderson)
13. [Why Stephen McKinley Henderson Keeps Returning to 'Between Riverside and Crazy', TDF Stages](https://www.tdf.org/on-stage/tdf-stages/why-stephen-mckinley-henderson-keeps-returning-to-between-riverside-and-crazy/)
14. [As a fraught year on Broadway ends, a great actor rises, The Washington Post](https://www.washingtonpost.com/theater-dance/2022/12/22/riverside-crazy-some-like-hot/)
15. [Drama alum Stephen McKinley Henderson nominated for Tony Award, UNCSA](https://www.uncsa.edu/news/20230503-tony-award-nominations-alumni-connections.aspx)
16. [Stephen McKinley Henderson, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/person/stephen-mckinley-henderson/)
17. [Stephen McKinley Henderson Gets His Hero Moment in 'Civil War', The Mary Sue](https://www.themarysue.com/stephen-mckinley-henderson-civil-war-interview/)
18. [Stephen McKinley Henderson, BuzzMelt](https://buzzmelt.com/person/stephen-mckinley-henderson)
19. [2023 Lucille Lortel Awards Program, Lifetime Achievement Award](https://lortelaward.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/2023-Lortel-Awards-Program.pdf)
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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 He to Hs*
*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