
Common
Known for Acting · 150 credits
- Born
- 1972-03-13 (age 54)
- Place of birth
- Chicago, Illinois, USA
- Also known as
- Lonnie Rashid Lynn · Common Sense · Lonnie Rashid Lynn, Jr.
Biography
Lonnie Rashid Lynn (born March 13, 1972), known by his stage name Common (formerly Common Sense), is an American rapper and actor. He has received three Grammy Awards, an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Golden Globe Award.
He debuted in 1992 with the album Can I Borrow a Dollar?, and gained critical acclaim with his 1994 album Resurrection. He maintained an underground following into the late 1990s. He achieved mainstream success through his work with the Soulquarians.
His first major-label album Like Water for Chocolate (2000), received commercial success. In 2003, he won the Grammy Award for Best R&B Song for the Erykah Badu single "Love of My Life". His 2005 album Be was also a commercial success and was nominated for Best Rap Album at the 2006 Grammy Awards. Common received his second Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for "Southside" (featuring Kanye West), from his 2007 album Finding Forever. His best-of album, Thisisme Then: The Best of Common, was released in late 2007. In 2011, Common launched Think Common Entertainment, his own record label imprint, having previously released music under various other labels including Relativity, Geffen, and GOOD Music.
Common won the 2015 Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song and the Academy Award for Best Original Song, for his song, co-written and performed with John Legend, "Glory" from the 2014 film Selma, in which he co-starred as Civil Rights Movement leader James Bevel. Common's acting career also includes roles in the films Smokin' Aces, Street Kings, American Gangster, Wanted, Terminator Salvation, Date Night, Just Wright, Happy Feet Two, New Year's Eve, Run All Night, Being Charlie, Rex, John Wick: Chapter 2, Smallfoot and Hunter Killer. He also narrated the documentary Bouncing Cats, about one man's efforts to improve the lives of children in Uganda through hip-hop/b-boy culture. He starred as Elam Ferguson on the AMC western television series Hell on Wheels.
Description above from the Wikipedia article Common (rapper), licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Known For

The Simpsons
1989
as Common (voice)

Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen
2009
as Self - Guest

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
2014
as Self / Self - Musical Guest

The Daily Show
1996
as Self

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
2015
as Self - Guest / Self - Musical Guest

Late Night with Seth Meyers
2014
as Self - Guest
TV Shows (54)

The Simpsons
1989
as Common (voice)

Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen
2009
as Self - Guest

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
2014
as Self / Self - Musical Guest

The Daily Show
1996
as Self

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
2015
as Self - Guest / Self - Musical Guest

Late Night with Seth Meyers
2014
as Self - Guest

The Kelly Clarkson Show
2019
as Self

Saturday Night Live
1975
as Self - Cameo (uncredited)

Real Time with Bill Maher
2003
as Self

The Jennifer Hudson Show
2022
as Self - Guest

The View
1997
as Self

Scrubs
2001
as Common

LIVE with Kelly and Mark
1988

Jimmy Kimmel Live!
2003
as Self / Self - Musical Guest

Silo
2023
as Robert Sims

The Ellen DeGeneres Show
2003
as Self

Late Night with Conan O'Brien
1993
as Self - Guest

Keeping Up with the Kardashians
2007
as Self

The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
1992

The Chi
2018
as Rafiq

American Masters
1986
as Self

Hell on Wheels
2011
as Elam Ferguson

Tamron Hall
2019
as Self - Guest

MTV Video Music Awards
1984
as Self - Presenter

Girlfriends
2000
as Omar

The Mindy Project
2012
as Security Guard

Never Have I Ever
2020
as Dr. Chris Jackson

MTV Movie & TV Awards
1992
as Self - Presenter

Lip Sync Battle
2015
as Self

Off Camera with Sam Jones
2014
as Self

Nick Cannon Presents: Wild 'N Out
2005

One on One
2001
as Darius

Chelsea
2016
as Self

TRL
1998

Home Movie: The Princess Bride
2020
as Westley

Entertainment Tonight
1981
as Self

The Chris Rock Show
1997

StoryBots: Answer Time
2022
as Mr. Wonderful

Chappelle's Show
2003

jeen-yuhs: A Kanye Trilogy
2022
as Self (archive footage)

Mark Twain Prize
1999
as Self - Musical Guest

Bottomless Brunch at Colman's
2020
as Self

Shut Up and Dribble
2018
as Self - Musician

America Divided
2016
as Self

I Love the '70s: Volume 2
2006
as Self

Game Over
2004
as Himself (voice)

Black in the 80s
2005
as Self

Bookmarks: Celebrating Black Voices
2020

Fraggle Rock: Rock On!
2020
as Self

Activate: The Global Citizen Movement
2019
as Self

Soul Power: The Legend of the American Basketball Association
2026
as Narrator (voice)

Evolution of the Black Quarterback
2024
as Self

Framework
2015
as Himself - Host

Obama
2020
as Self
Movies (96)

John Wick: Chapter 2
2017
as Cassian

Now You See Me
2013
as Evans

Ocean's Eight
2018
as Common

American Gangster
2007
as Turner Lucas

Hunter Killer
2018
as RA John Fisk

Suicide Squad
2016
as Monster T

Wanted
2008
as The Gunsmith

Terminator Salvation
2009
as Barnes

Movie 43
2013
as Bob Mone (segment "The Pitch")

Smokin' Aces
2006
as Sir Ivy

Smallfoot
2018
as Stonekeeper (voice)

Ava
2020
as Michael

The Hate U Give
2018
as Uncle Carlos

Run All Night
2015
as Mr. Price

Street Kings
2008
as Coates

Girls Trip
2017
as Common

Entourage
2015
as Common

The Kitchen
2019
as Gary Silvers

Happy Feet Two
2011
as Seymour (voice)

The Informer
2019
as Grens

Date Night
2010
as Collins

New Year's Eve
2011
as Soldier

2021 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony
2021
as Self

The Odd Life of Timothy Green
2012
as Coach Cal

Breathe
2024
as Darius

Unity
2015
as Narrator (voice)

Just Wright
2010
as Scott McKnight

Megan Leavey
2017
as Gunny Martin

The Tale
2018
as Martin

X/Y
2014
as Jason

Wick Is Pain
2025
as Self

Barbershop: The Next Cut
2016
as Jabari

Selma
2014
as James Bevel

Being Charlie
2016
as Travis

One World: Together at Home
2020
as Self

All About Nina
2018
as Rafe

Saint Judy
2018
as Benjamin Adebayo

Fool's Paradise
2023
as The Dagger

Every Secret Thing
2014
as Devlin Hatch

Pawn
2013
as Jeff Porter

The Words That Built America
2017
as Self - Reader: Declaration of Independence

Alice
2022
as Frank

Brown Sugar
2002
as Self

Dave Chappelle's Block Party
2005
as Self

A Happening of Monumental Proportions
2017
as Daniel

LUV
2013
as Uncle Vincent

BET Presents Love & Happiness: An Obama Celebration
2016
as Self - Performer
![Kanye West: College Dropout [Video Anthology]](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fimage.tmdb.org%2Ft%2Fp%2Fw300%2FiJoIAh8NaChoVN0GRYVHaa4Yxlq.jpg&w=1920&q=65)
Kanye West: College Dropout [Video Anthology]
2005
as Self (segment "Two Words") / Airline Employee (segment "All Falls Down")

A GRAMMY Salute to 50 Years of Hip-Hop
2023
as Self

Love Beats Rhymes
2017
as Coltrane

Beats Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest
2011
as Self

Chasing Trane
2017
as Self - Musician

You're Watching Video Music Box
2021
as Self (archive footage)

Here and Now
2018
as Ben

Beef
2003
as Self

Stretch and Bobbito: Radio That Changed Lives
2015

Something from Nothing: The Art of Rap
2012
as Self
Chris Rock: Road To Live Special
2023
as Self

W.E.B. Du Bois: Rebel With a Cause
2026
as Self

Let's Go Crazy: The Grammy Salute to Prince
2020
as Self

Chamber Check: Evolution of a Fight Scene
2017
as Self

The Wiz Live!
2015
as The Bouncer

Live from Detroit: The Concert at Michigan Central
2024
as Self
Dave Chappelle's Block Party 2
as Self

The Price of Protest
2019
as Self (archive footage)

Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise
2016
as Self

Diane Warren: Relentless
2025
as Self

Our Vinyl Weighs a Ton: This Is Stones Throw Records
2013
as Self

VH1 Hip Hop Honors: All Hail the Queens
2016

Brave New Voices 2010
2010
as Himself - Host
Hate to See You Go

Killing Me Softly with His Songs
2022
as Self

Notorious B.I.G.: Bigger Than Life
2007
as Self

Boo-Yah: A Portrait of Stuart Scott
2025
as Self

Hip-Hop and the White House
2024
Bouncing Cats
2010
as Narrator
The Notorious B.I.G BET Official presents
2005

Letter to the President
2005
as Self

A Most Beautiful Thing
2020
as Narrator

Two Trains Runnin'
2016
as Narrator

Feel Rich: Health Is the New Wealth
2017
as Himself

Between Riverside and Crazy
2023
as Junior

Pete Rock: Soul Survivor
1998
as Common

Music
2010
as Self
Paragraphs I Manifest
as Self

Soundz of Spirit
2005
as Self

The Legacy of J Dilla
2023
as Self - Rapper; Friend

Godfathers and Sons
2003
as Self

Soul Power: The Legend of the American Basketball Association
as Self/Narrator

Misdirection: The Real Magic
2017
as Narrator

We're Still Here (Now).... A Documentary about nobody
2016
as Self

Black America Again
2016
as Himself - Street Performer

Alicia Keys: Unplugged
2005
as Self

5 Sides of a Coin
2004
as Himself

Bilal: Live at Glasshaus
2024
as Self

Letter to the Free
2016
About Common
Lonnie Rashid Lynn (born March 13, 1972), known by his stage name Common (formerly Common Sense), is an American rapper and actor. He has received three Grammy Awards, an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Golden Globe Award. He debuted in 1992 with the album Can I Borrow a Dollar?, and gained critical acclaim with his 1994 album Resurrection. He maintained an underground following into the late 1990s. He achieved mainstream success through his work with the Soulquarians. His first major-label album Like Water for Chocolate (2000), r… With 150 credits spanning from 1975 to 2026, Common has appeared in 96 films and 54 TV shows.
Fans searching for Common movies, Common filmography, or the latest projects starring Common can stream many of these titles on Bowood.TV, free and in HD, with no subscription required.
Most Popular Common Movies
- John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017) — as Cassian
- Now You See Me (2013) — as Evans
- Ocean's Eight (2018) — as Common
- American Gangster (2007) — as Turner Lucas
- Hunter Killer (2018) — as RA John Fisk
Where to Watch Common Films
Most Common movies and series are available to stream on Bowood.TV in full HD, completely free and without signup. Browse the complete filmography above to jump directly to any title. For more films and the latest web series featuring Common, check our movies catalogue and browse page.