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Nicoye Banks

Actor / Producer

"The ebullient Banks has a field day with Love"

Variety

"Darryl Love prances onto the stage again and again, a jeering, preening chorus, swirling judge's robes around himself or attired in nothing but a towel, scoring political points as self-serving as they are accurate; it really shouldn't be legal to have as much fun on stage as Nicoye Banks does in this role."

Westword

"The GREAT NICOYE BANKS OWNS the stage like Deion Sanders owned the Camera"

Denver Post

"Banks Gave a DYNAMIC AND EXTREMELY MEMORABLE Performance as Chris"

Amsterdamn News

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Nicoye Banks

Actor / Producer

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01 - champagne life

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The New Orleans own, Actor Nicoye Banks recently celebrated the success of the debut of 2 films during the month of March both debuting in the #2 in the country a week after another. In "Brooklyn's Finest" he co-starred alongside Wesley Snipes, Richard Gere, Don Cheadle and Ethan Hawk and in the thriller "Green Zone" he co-starred alongside with Matt Damon.

"I feel immensely blessed to be able to say that I have 2 films debuting in movie theatres a week apart from each other," says Nicoye. "This is an actor's dream," he chuckles.

Crescent City was the backdrop when the curtain first raised on this up-and-coming star's career. Nicoye Banks was first bit by the acting bug while in the sixth grade as the winner of a poetry contest in which he performed "The Creation" by James Weldon Johnson. In the same year, he landed his first play as the role of "Travis" in Raisin in the Sun. A few years later, he was casted in his first film, "Heart of Stone", with noteworthy actor Clifton Davis (Amen). He portrayed a wayward teenager who was sent to a boy's home as an alternative to jail, to make a positive life change.

Nicoye's performance in "The Colored Museum", at Southern University of New Orleans afforded him the opportunity to display his range by playing a number of diverse characters. It was then when Tommye Myrick (Director of theatre at Southern University of New Orleans), recognized Nicoye's immense talent and encouraged him to relocate to New York to further his training in theatre under the direction of Myrick's mentor, the late Gene Frankel.

Nicoye has continuously demonstrated his ability to play a wide range of characters, including his role as the flamboyant rap artist "B. Mo Smoov" in the 2005 release of "G", co-starring along-side actor, Blair Underwood and Richard T. Jones. In 2006, Nicoye co-starred in the Walt Disney Pictures blockbuster movie, "Invincible" with Mark Walhberg. His work has been seen in such plays as Zooman and the Sign, A Hatful of Rain, Death of a Salesman, Trapped, Same Train and Greenwood and Soil, just to name a few. He has also secured recurring roles on ABC's One Life to Live as physical therapist Dr. Grey and NBC's Law & Order.

In 2009, Nicoye ventured back to his roots of performance theatre playing the role of Sweet in a the critically acclaimed play, The High Priestess of Dark Alley", at the legendary Billie Holliday Theatre, in New York. "High Priestess" was written and directed by Jackie Alexander. He is presently co-starring in the thriller "The Green Zone", alongside Matt Damon, where he plays "Sgt. Perry", an E.O.D. Specialist in a special unit in Iraq looking for weapons of mass destruction. Nicoye is also set to play the role of "Slim" in the Antoine Fuqua directed film "Brooklyn's Finest", starring Ethan Hawk, Richard Gere, Wesley Snipes and Don Cheadle.

When not busy with movies, television, stage plays and family, Nicoye devotes his time to helping and empowering his community, as one of the founding members of the artist collective group called "The Standard", where he serves as Creative Director. Their mission is to serve as a source of inspiration and support and provide a space for individual exploration and discovery nourished by a collective commitment to growth as an artistic community. He also began a workshop program with fellow colleague, called "The Art of the Craft" that recently launched in Westbury High School. The program is designed to empower and enhance the actors artistry in every form of the word. The goal is to take this program from school to school and from city to city and keep the love of the "art" alive.

Nicoye returned to the small screen appearing on NBC's Law & Order Criminal Intent, playing the role of "Lil' Ron" under the episode "Inhumane Society". As well as receiving rave reviews having just completed playing Darryl “Love” Hall in the world premiere of “Catch” at the Denver Center. Nicoye Banks continues on his quest to becoming a household name, one thing remains; the sky is the limit for his future.

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FILM

On the Seventh Day Lead TD Jakes Film

Spare Change Lead It's Personal Films

Brooklyn's Finest Supporting Warner Brothers

(w/Don Cheadle)

Green Zone Thriller Lead Universal Pictures

(w/matt Damon)

Pride and Glory Supporting Paramount Pictures

(w/Colin Farrell)

Invincible Lead Disney Productions

(w/Mark Wahlberg)

Hope and a Little Sugar Lead Gary Productions

Ghetto Fabulous Lead I Am Films

G Lead Lauren Productions

(w/Blair Underwood)

Model Chasers Lead Khourageous Films

Hello Love Lead Tsu Tsu Productions

Heart of Stone Lead Polite Communications

TELEVISION

Law & Order Guest Star USA Network,

(Criminal Intent)

One Life To Live Recurring ABC Daytime

Law & Order Co Star NBC, Dir.: Tim Hunter

Law & Order Co Star NBC, Dir.: Richard Dobbs

THEATER

The Catch Darryl Love The Denver Center

Brothers from The Bottom Chris The Billie Holiday Theater

The High Priestess of Dark Alley Sweet The Billie Holiday Theater

The Ballad of Emmett Till Simeon O'Neill Natl Playwrights

ABC Diversity Showcase Jay Silvia & Danny Kaye Theatre

Same Train Smoke, Miles St. Marks Theater

King Lear The Fool Chelsea Playhouse

Trapped Robert, American, The Trilogy Theater

Home Slice

Greenwood Everette Presentation Theatretorium

Soil Randy Chelsea Playhouse

The Colored Museum Junie, Kid, Man Voices in the Dark Repertory

Zooman and the Sign Zooman Voices in the Dark Repertory

Death of a Salesman Bernard Voices in the Dark Repertory

THEATRER COMPANY AFFILIATIONS

The Standard Collaborative

TRAINING

Scene Study/Technique Gene Frankel, James Brick, Tommye Myrick

Technique/TV & Film Tracy Moore-Marable, Chris Groenewold

Voice/Speech Lynn Singer, Lisa Thompson

Improvisation Bill Balzac

SPECIAL SKILLS

Basketball, Baseball, Track, Football, Fitness Instructing, Poetry Reading, Hip Hop Dance

Spare Change Lead It's Pesronal Films

Brooklyn's Finest Supporting Warner Brothers

(w/Don Cheadle)

Green Zone Thriller Lead Universal Pictures

(w/matt Damon)

Pride and Glory Supporting Paramount Pictures

(w/Colin Farrell)

Invincible Lead Disney Productions

(w/Mark Wahlberg)

Hope and a Little Sugar Lead Gary Productions

Ghetto Fabulous Lead I Am Films

G Lead Lauren Productions

(w/Blair Underwood)

Model Chasers Lead Khourageous Films

Hello Love Lead Tsu Tsu Productions

Heart of Stone Lead Polite Communications

TELEVISION

Law & Order Guest Star USA Network,

(Criminal Intent)

One Life To Live Recurring ABC Daytime

Law & Order Co Star NBC, Dir.: Tim Hunter

Law & Order Co Star NBC, Dir.: Richard Dobbs

THEATRE

The High Priestess of Dark Alley Sweet The Billie Holiday Theatre

The Ballad of Emmett Till Simeon O'Neill Natl Playwrights

ABC Diversity Showcase Jay Silvia & Danny Kaye Theatre

Same Train Smoke, Miles St. Marks Theatre

King Lear The Fool Chelsea Playhouse

Trapped Robert, American, The Trilogy Theatre

Home Slice

Greenwood Everette Presentation Theatretorium

Soil Randy Chelsea Playhouse

The Colored Museum Junie, Kid, Man Voices in the Dark Repertory

Zooman and the Sign Zooman Voices in the Dark Repertory

Death of a Salesman Bernard Voices in the Dark Repertory

THEATRE COMPANY AFFILIATIONS

The Standard Collaborative

TRAINING

Scene Study/Technique Gene Frankel, James Brick, Tommye Myrick

Technique/TV & Film Tracy Moore-Marable, Chris Groenewold

Voice/Speech Lynn Singer, Lisa Thompson

Improvisation Bill Balzac

SPECIAL SKILLS

Basketball, Baseball, Track, Football, Fitness Instructing, Poetry Reading, Hip Hop Dance

Work

Reel

Nicoye Banks 2010

The Catch

Take Deshara Renee

Scenes from THE CATCH

TAKE DESHARA RENEE

Press

Catch

"The Catch": Baseball comedy fires beanball at history's hypocrisies

By John Moore

Denver Post Theater Critic

Charles M. Schulz's biography describes Charlie Brown as a lovable loser, a child possessed of endless determination and hope but who is ultimately dominated by his insecurities and a permanent case of bad luck.

Gary Zipnik, the hapless protagonist in Ken Weitzman's rousing new comedy, "The Catch," is Charlie Brown all grown up ... with Archie Bunker for a father and Jimmy "J.J." Walker looking over his shoulder. And as sit-comy as that sounds, it mostly works.

"The Catch," now being staged as a Denver Center Theater Company world premiere, is a fastball of fresh air from its first pitch. And like the crack of an aluminum bat on a winter morning, when it makes contact, it shoots stingers of truth down your arm.

It's an impeccably performed comedy — often riotously so — but also a biting commentary on all manner of American hypocrisies, pop-culture contradictions and racial injustices from slavery to Japanese internment.

Weitzman sprays his targets like a slugger hitting the ball to all fields. And at the same time, he manages with the deftness of Frank Deford to both eloquently honor baseball's timeless place in the American family — and abuse us for continuing to buy into its myths.

The play is set in the Bay Area in 2002. Gary is a dreamer whose life is a nightmare. His dot-com startup has gone bust, taking his house and wife with it. Now moving in with him, as if only to remind Gary what a failure every inning of his life has been, is his diabetic dad, Sid, a surly old bigot made lovable by Mike Hartman, an actor who always manages to bat 1.000.

Gary is down but, like a comic archetype facing down Lucy Van Pelt and her football, he keeps on swinging. His apartment is strewn with Post-it notes with motivational quotes by everyone from F. Scott Fitzgerald to Homer Simpson. He convinces himself that when slugger Darryl Love soon breaks baseball's all-time home-run record, he'll be there to catch it, sell it for $3 million and, thus, get his wife, house and old life back. It's a pathetic, pie-in-the-sky plan — and a quintessentially American instant-wealth scheme.

And we fully invest in it, thanks to a carefully crafted performance by Ian Merrill Peakes as Gary that always straddles the line between delusional optimism and utter despair. In Peakes' remarkably mitted hands, Gary isn't just a comic-strip Charlie Brown. He's every 1850s gold prospector, every dot-com venture capitalist, every sucker who took out a subprime mortgage in the past decade. He's every self-starter who has ever taken a chance on the American Dream, and gone bust. And tried again. Because it's intrinsic to our American story that, for every million Gary Zipniks, there will be one Mark Zuckerberg.

Acting as a one-man chorus through all this is one of the most original characters to batter up to an American stage. He's the charismatic, truth-telling Darryl Love, a brash young black man of privilege, blinding bling and a big mouth. Strutting around in everything from full uniform to a mere shower towel, Love speaks brazenly ... and carries a big stick. He's here to tell you that the America Dream is built on lies. That he has nonetheless achieved it — spectacularly — is an irony lost on only Love himself. Playing Love, Nicoye Banks owns the stage like Deion Sanders owns a camera.

Though baseball is thought of as a sport for fathers and sons like Gary and Sid, Weitzman expands the tapestry with a corresponding Japanese-American mother and son: Michael and Ruth Nomura, who find themselves Gary's unlikely adversaries. Ruth (a wonderful Wai-Ching Ho) is another utterly original character — a retired Japanese baseball fanatic.

It turns out that Gary and Michael (Pun Bandhu) have much more in common than baseball. For a play about the diamond, "The Catch" turns out to be much more about triangles.

It's a provocative and accessible tale that easily wins audiences over with a storytelling that's uncommonly playful until it's just ... not anymore.

As if determined to establish a greater dramatic relevance than it needs, the final 20 minutes are akin to beating the audience over the head with a baseball bat.

Upon exiting, one woman wondered aloud, "How did they manage to take such a funny play ... and turn it into the most depressing thing I've ever seen?"

1

Nicoye Banks Goes To War In 'The Green Zone'

Friday, March 12, 2010 | 1:30 PM

by Yolanda Sangweni

It's not often that a fairly unknown African American actor gets a chance to star in two buzzworthy Hollywood movies that open a week apart. But actor Nicoye Banks is just that guy. The New Orleans native currently stars in "Brooklyn's Finest" and this weekend he enters a war zone (literally) opposite Matt Damon in "Green Zone," a movie about an army unit searching for weapons of mass destruction in the early days of the Iraq war.

Banks spoke with ESSENCE.com about why he thinks "Brooklyn's Finest" is a chick flick, and why you might catch him watching "Green Zone" at a theater near you this weekend.

ESSENCE.com: You're starting off 2010 with a bang. We didn't know anything about you last year and now two movies in two weeks.

NICOYE BANKS: Yes, that's called being a sleeper. I've been quietly buzzing around working on movies like "G" [with Blair Underwood] and "Invincible" [with Mark Wahlberg], but now it's time to really start knocking on the door. I cannot ask for anything better.

ESSENCE.com: We've been hearing that "Brooklyn's Finest" is not a chick flick because there's a lot of blood and violence. What's your take?

BANKS: [laughs] I think it is a chick flick and it would be beneficial for women to see it because the core motivation of the actions and decisions of the three main characters are based around women. Maybe they'll cut us some slack after watching it because they'll see that the pressure of the world men go into everyday is just taxing.

ESSENCE.com: We recently discussed the idea that Hollywood seems to glorify Black gangsters. Being a Black actor in Hollywood, do you think that's true?

BANKS: We're not really glorifying them in so much as we're admiring and are in awe of the type of drive and power these drug dealers exhibit. And you know it's not just Black, gangsters in movies, there's Pablo Escobar, "Scarface," hello? I think in this movie, with Wesley Snipes' character you get to see a man who's come from making mistakes and now shows compassion and humility.

ESSENCE.com: What was it like filming "Green Zone" in Iraq?

BANKS: At first I was on that whole "women love men in uniform" type of thinking. But now we were talking about filming in a real war zone, so that was out. I play Sergeant Perry, third in command of a special unit that's out to find weapons of mass destruction. Besides Matt Damon, I was the only actor who had not served in the war--the other 10 actors had been in Iraq at some point. That was serious pressure and it was on-the-job training because I had no time or no space given to learn about military stuff. I didn't get a script until the second week of filming because the director Paul Greengrass wanted to make it as real as possible.

ESSENCE.com: What did you learn about war and people in the military?

BANKS: I learned that they're highly disciplined and their love for country and what they do runs deeper than I imagined. They are the definition of courage, without question.

ESSENCE.com: Do you have a ritual for opening weekends?

BANKS: It's all about that Friday and Saturday so I might go to the movies three times in one weekend. I'll put on a hat and go to the theater to sit amongst regular people just to see their reactions. I also get my closest friends and family to go see it and on Sunday I have the weekend box office numbers come to my phone.

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NICOYE BANKS

A MAN OF MANY ROLES

By Alicia Deleo

“You know what, it was my sixth grade teacher’s fault

and my grandmother’s fault,” actor, Nicoye Banks,

admits about his start in the acting business. “They were

the ones who inspired and encouraged me to get into public

speaking, poetry contests, and get on stage,” he continues,

“that’s when it all happened.”

From a chatty, sixth grader growing up in New Orleans

who won a poetry contest for his performance of “The Creation,”

and playing Travis in a Raisin in the Sun, to a wellversed

and poised actor who brushes elbows with Matt

Damon, Don Cheadle and Wesley Snipes, Nicoye Banks

has made quite a career for himself.

Known for his work in films including G (B. Mo Smoov)

with Blair Underwood and Richard T. Jones, Invincible (TJ

Banks) starring Mark Wahlberg, along with various guest

spots on Law and Order and One Life to Live (Dr. Grey),

Nicoye Banks is a multi-faceted actor who puts everything

he has into each one of his roles.

“I work hard even before I get on set and before it’s time

for me to start shooting,” Nicoye explains. “So I try my best

to do a lot of the homework, and filtering of the scene,

character and relationships, so by the time I get to the director

or actor, I have specific questions to get in before it’s

time to work..”

Most recently, Nicoye stars opposite Matt Damon in

Green Zone, which hit theaters on March 12th. In the

movie, Nicoye played the role of an E.O.D. specialist, (Sgt.

Perry,) who is apart of a special unit in Iraq; looking for

weapons of mass destruction.

“The first three weeks of shooting that film I was completely

overwhelmed,” he admits. From learning the ins and

outs of such a complex role, which also included being a

sergeant, and being the only “unit member” who wasn’t an

actual soldier, was a challenge for Nicoye. But this role was

one he was ready to handle. “Picking up all those things

and not knowing what tomorrow would bring was completely

nerve wracking. It took me a good three weeks to

settle in. And then there was Matt,” Nicoye laughs.

“I was like, this is Matt Damon!”

“Plus,” he adds, “we shot the film in Spain, Morocco and

London, and I’ve never been to any of those places so that

was shocking. And here’s the big one, Paul Greengrass—

the director of the film— his style is improv, so you are not

necessarily sticking to a script.”

But in the end, Nicoye says playing Sgt. Perry was his

most exciting role to date. With a younger sister who

served in the Army National Guard, Nicoye’s experience did

hit close to home, teaching him more than he could have

ever imagined.

When asked if this role is going to make him stronger as

an actor Nicoye replied, “A resounding yes. I learned from

day one to my very last day of filming—how to hold a

weapon, understanding conduct, demeanor, stance and

mentality. [A role like this] furthers your love for your country.

I’m in a fraternity so I understand brotherhood, but here

you are serving your country. This is life and death,” he

stresses. “Realizing [firsthand] just how special these men

and women are, definitely added to my fabric as a man, my

appreciation for the military, and our country and the job in

which they do for our freedom,” Nicoye says fervently.

Knowing that the opportunities he’s been given so far are

once in a lifetime, Nicoye doesn’t take any of it for granted.

And that appreciation speaks volumes through his descriptions

of on-set experiences—immersed fully in every

moment with some of the biggest stars today. “Matt

Damon is one of the nicest, easy going guys I’ve ever met

in my life, for real—very approachable, very personable and

extremely smart. He’s definitely not a walking billboard,”

Nicoye boasts. “He’s a real dude and honorable guy. I

gained a lot of respect for him as a man.”

Another recent project of Nicoye’s: Brooklyn’s Finest—a

film that follows four Brooklyn cops all struggling in different

positions of their careers. Alongside Wesley Snipes and

Don Cheadle, Nicoye plays an undercover cop, Slim, in the

film. “So here we are in the scene with Wesley Snipes and

Don Cheadle, and I am thinking to myself, are you kidding

me?” he explains his reaction to being on set. “To watch

them effortlessly work, pay attention to detail and communicate

with each other, was like witnessing a day in school,”

he laughs. “To just sit back and watch all these things happen

right next to me, right next to me, it was crazy!”

He continues, “And when something I had done was received

well, you feel like you have arrived in the middle of

the ring dealing with the big boys. Wesley had started it off,

you know? He was doing it in New Jack City and Mo’ Better

Blues. Yep that’s it, Chocolate is in!” he laughs.

Even after these life-changing roles for Nicoye, his favorite

acting experience was in the movie G, starring Richard T.

Jones and Blair Underwood. He played a rapper in the film

and recalls his first major role vividly. “My best moment was

the first moment. It was so memorable because you will

never forget your first. I got my SAG card and it was a professionally

run set, and we were in the Hamptons. I never

wanted to go home. I was in love,” Nicoye divulges.

A career that he loves, and also admits at times, “can be

absolutely frustrating because it really taxes your emotions.”

Some of the biggest challenges Nicoye faces as an

African American actor is being typecast, staying relevant in

a “youthful business”, and the rollercoaster of constant

changes.

“It’s amazing how you age in reverse time all because of

a career,” Nicoye explains. “You go through rough patches

when you are unemployed because you really don’t know

the next time you will be employed. But once you do earn

another job, it’s amazing how electric that is,” he reminiscences.

“You know, you start to turn back the hands of time. Not

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