Common
Known for Acting · 150 credits
- Born
- 1972-03-13 (age 54)
- Place of birth
- Chicago, Illinois, USA
- Also known as
- Lonnie Rashid Lynn · 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
TV Shows (54)
Silo
2023
as Robert Sims
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
2015
as Self - Guest / Self - Musical Guest
Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen
2009
as Self - Guest
The Daily Show
1996
as Self
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon
2014
as Self / Self - Musical Guest
The Simpsons
1989
as Common (voice)
Late Night with Seth Meyers
2014
as Self - Guest
The Kelly Clarkson Show
2019
as Self
Real Time with Bill Maher
2003
as Self
Saturday Night Live
1975
as Self - Cameo (uncredited)
The View
1997
as Self
The Chi
2018
as Rafiq
The Jennifer Hudson Show
2022
as Self - Guest
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
2003
as Self / Self - Musical Guest
LIVE with Kelly and Mark
1988
Chelsea
2016
as Self
Late Night with Conan O'Brien
1993
as Self - Guest
Scrubs
2001
as Common
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
1992
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
2003
as Self
Keeping Up with the Kardashians
2007
as Self
Tamron Hall
2019
as Self - Guest
Never Have I Ever
2020
as Dr. Chris Jackson
Girlfriends
2000
as Omar
The Mindy Project
2012
as Security Guard
MTV Video Music Awards
1984
as Self - Presenter
American Masters
1986
as Self
Hell on Wheels
2011
as Elam Ferguson
MTV Movie & TV Awards
1992
as Self - Presenter
Off Camera with Sam Jones
2014
as Self
One on One
2001
as Darius
Nick Cannon Presents: Wild 'N Out
2005
Lip Sync Battle
2015
as Self
TRL
1998
Entertainment Tonight
1981
as Self
Home Movie: The Princess Bride
2020
as Westley
Game Over
2004
as Himself (voice)
Chappelle's Show
2003
The Chris Rock Show
1997
StoryBots: Answer Time
2022
as Mr. Wonderful
America Divided
2016
as Self
Mark Twain Prize
1999
as Self - Musical Guest
jeen-yuhs: A Kanye Trilogy
2022
as Self (archive footage)
Bottomless Brunch at Colman's
2020
as Self
Shut Up and Dribble
2018
as Self - Musician
Obama
2020
as Self
I Love the '70s: Volume 2
2006
as Self
Black in the 80s
2005
as Self
Soul Power: The Legend of the American Basketball Association
2026
as Narrator (voice)
Fraggle Rock: Rock On!
2020
as Self
Activate: The Global Citizen Movement
2019
as Self
Evolution of the Black Quarterback
2024
as Self
Bookmarks: Celebrating Black Voices
2020
Framework
2015
as Himself - Host
Movies (96)
Now You See Me
2013
as Evans
John Wick: Chapter 2
2017
as Cassian
Ocean's Eight
2018
as Common
Pawn
2013
as Jeff Porter
Movie 43
2013
as Bob Mone (segment "The Pitch")
Suicide Squad
2016
as Monster T
Wanted
2008
as The Gunsmith
American Gangster
2007
as Turner Lucas
Terminator Salvation
2009
as Barnes
Entourage
2015
as Common
Run All Night
2015
as Mr. Price
The Hate U Give
2018
as Uncle Carlos
New Year's Eve
2011
as Soldier
Hunter Killer
2018
as RA John Fisk
Smallfoot
2018
as Stonekeeper (voice)
Happy Feet Two
2011
as Seymour (voice)
Megan Leavey
2017
as Gunny Martin
The Informer
2019
as Grens
Girls Trip
2017
as Common
Street Kings
2008
as Coates
The Odd Life of Timothy Green
2012
as Coach Cal
Selma
2014
as James Bevel
Breathe
2024
as Darius
Wick Is Pain
2025
as Self
Smokin' Aces
2006
as Sir Ivy
The Kitchen
2019
as Gary Silvers
Date Night
2010
as Collins
X/Y
2014
as Jason
Ava
2020
as Michael
LUV
2013
as Uncle Vincent
Every Secret Thing
2014
as Devlin Hatch
One World: Together at Home
2020
as Self
Fool's Paradise
2023
as The Dagger
The Tale
2018
as Martin
Bouncing Cats
2010
as Narrator
Alice
2022
as Frank
The Words That Built America
2017
as Self - Reader: Declaration of Independence
All About Nina
2018
as Rafe
Dave Chappelle's Block Party 2
as Self
Barbershop: The Next Cut
2016
as Jabari
Godfathers and Sons
2003
as Self
W.E.B. Du Bois: Rebel With a Cause
2026
as Self
Here and Now
2018
as Ben
A Happening of Monumental Proportions
2017
as Daniel
Paragraphs I Manifest
as Self
Diane Warren: Relentless
2025
as Self
Something from Nothing: The Art of Rap
2012
as Self
A Most Beautiful Thing
2020
as Narrator
Black America Again
2016
as Himself - Street Performer
Chris Rock: Road To Live Special
2023
as Self
Just Wright
2010
as Scott McKnight
Saint Judy
2018
as Benjamin Adebayo
Music
2010
as Self
Letter to the President
2005
as Self
Brown Sugar
2002
as Self
Bilal: Live at Glasshaus
2024
as Self
Chasing Trane
2017
as Self - Musician
Two Trains Runnin'
2016
as Narrator
Beats Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest
2011
as Self
Being Charlie
2016
as Travis
Beef
2003
as Self
Soul Power: The Legend of the American Basketball Association
as Self/Narrator
Boo-Yah: A Portrait of Stuart Scott
2025
as Self
VH1 Hip Hop Honors: All Hail the Queens
2016
Live from Detroit: The Concert at Michigan Central
2024
as Self
Killing Me Softly with His Songs
2022
as Self
Love Beats Rhymes
2017
as Coltrane
Pete Rock: Soul Survivor
1998
as Common
A GRAMMY Salute to 50 Years of Hip-Hop
2023
as Self
Unity
2015
as Narrator (voice)
![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")
Let's Go Crazy: The Grammy Salute to Prince
2020
as Self
The Wiz Live!
2015
as The Bouncer
You're Watching Video Music Box
2021
as Self (archive footage)
Our Vinyl Weighs a Ton: This Is Stones Throw Records
2013
as Self
5 Sides of a Coin
2004
as Himself
The Price of Protest
2019
as Self (archive footage)
2021 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony
2021
as Self
Chamber Check: Evolution of a Fight Scene
2017
as Self
Dave Chappelle's Block Party
2005
as Self
Alicia Keys: Unplugged
2005
as Self
Hip-Hop and the White House
2024
Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise
2016
as Self
Hate to See You Go
We're Still Here (Now).... A Documentary about nobody
2016
as Self
Brave New Voices 2010
2010
as Himself - Host
The Legacy of J Dilla
2023
as Self - Rapper; Friend
Stretch and Bobbito: Radio That Changed Lives
2015
The Notorious B.I.G BET Official presents
2005
Misdirection: The Real Magic
2017
as Narrator
Notorious B.I.G.: Bigger Than Life
2007
as Self
Soundz of Spirit
2005
as Self
Feel Rich: Health Is the New Wealth
2017
as Himself
BET Presents Love & Happiness: An Obama Celebration
2016
as Self - Performer
Letter to the Free
2016
Between Riverside and Crazy
2023
as Junior
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
- Now You See Me (2013) — as Evans
- John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017) — as Cassian
- Ocean's Eight (2018) — as Common
- Pawn (2013) — as Jeff Porter
- Movie 43 (2013) — as Bob Mone (segment "The Pitch")
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.