William Ellis Porter II (born September 21, 1969) is an American actor and singer. Porter gained notice performing on Broadway before starting a solo career as a singer and actor. For his role as Lola in Kinky Boots, Porter won the 2013 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical, the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical and the Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical. He credits the part for "cracking open" his feminine side to confront toxic masculinity. Porter also won the 2014 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album for the musical's accompanying album. Porter starred in all three seasons of the television series Pose, for which he was nominated for three Golden Globe Awards and won the 2019 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, becoming the first gay black man to be nominated and win in any lead acting category at the Primetime Emmys. In 2020, he was included on Time's list of the 100 most influential people in the world. In 2022, he won another Tony Award for Best Musical as a producer for the musical A Strange Loop. He made his directorial debut in 2022 with the romantic comedy film Anything's Possible. Porter received the Isabelle Stevenson Award at the 77th Tony Awards for his humanitarian work with the Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation and Entertainment Community Fund. Description above from the Wikipedia article Billy Porter, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Read moreShow less
Biography from TMDB.
- September 21, 1969 (57)
- Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
- Actor, producer and director, also composer
- 28 on MovieCove · 45 credits in all
What are Billy Porter's films like?
Across their 21 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Self and Society.
Genres
Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 1 · Wry 0 · Earnest 15
Light 13 · Serious 2 · Dark 1
Grounded 13 · Stylized 1 · Heightened 2
Gentle 9 · Charged 6 · Intense 1
Steady 13 · Shifting 3 · Whiplash 0
A split, not a type: Straight-faced 7 · Some laughs 6 · Funny 3
Slow burn 10 · Even-paced 6 · Relentless 0
Casual 13 · Engaged 3 · Full focus 0
Easy watch 11 · Affecting 3 · Heavy 2
Resolved 16 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0
Roles they play
Usually the Ally: 3 of 6 analyzed roles.
- Tricksteras Sebastian Niederfarb in Intern (2000)
- Allyas Pray Tell in Pose (2018)
- Allyas Barrett in Like a Boss (2020)
- Allyas Fabulous Godmother in Cinderella (2021)
- Tricksteras Gugu in 80 for Brady (2023)
- Heroas Gabriel in Our Son (2023)
Moods and endings
- Happy8
- Bittersweet8
- Ambiguous2
- Cyclical2
- Other1
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Billy Porter's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 21 of their 28 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.
Subscription and free streaming for Billy Porter's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
45 credits, 28 with a MovieCove page; 61 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2026)
Christmas Karma(2025)
Midcredits score: 19th percentile of all films
Freeman Vines (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2025)
I Was Born This Way(2025)
Midcredits score: 52nd percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
(pride/prom) (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2024)
Queen of New York (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2023)
Our Son(2023)
Midcredits score: 31st percentile of all films
Truth Be Told (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2023)
80 for Brady(2023)
Midcredits score: 39th percentile of all films
Accused(2023)
Midcredits score: 52nd percentile of all shows
A Tree of Life(2022)
Midcredits score: 65th percentile of all films
The Jennifer Hudson Show (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2022)
Anything's Possible(2022)
Midcredits score: 42nd percentile of all films
PRIDE: To Be Seen - A Soul of a Nation Presentation (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2022)
Midcredits score: 1st percentile of all shows
Cinderella(2021)
Midcredits score: 34th percentile of all films
Smoke, Lilies and Jade (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)
Sanctuary (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)
Middlemost Post(2021)
Midcredits score: 39th percentile of all shows
Gossip Girl(2021)
Midcredits score: 12th percentile of all shows
That Damn Michael Che(2021)
Midcredits score: 56th percentile of all shows
Where Love Lives(2021)
Midcredits score: 74th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
25 Years of Rent: Measured in Love (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)
Equal(2020)
Midcredits score: 25th percentile of all shows
Like a Boss(2020)
Midcredits score: 9th percentile of all films
The Twilight Zone(2019)
Midcredits score: 18th percentile of all shows
Pose(2018)
Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all shows
Big Mouth(2017)
Midcredits score: 72nd percentile of all shows
The Humbling(2014)
Midcredits score: 25th percentile of all films
American Horror Story(2011)
Midcredits score: 87th percentile of all showsThe Shoe (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2011)
Indie Sex: Teens(2007)
Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 75th percentile of all films
Noel(2004)
Midcredits score: 41st percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 75th percentile of all films
Intern(2000)
Midcredits score: 15th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all shows
Colorz of Rage (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1999)
Twisted (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1996)
Shake, Rattle and Roll: An American Love Story (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1991)
Law & Order(1990)
Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all shows
The Simpsons(1989)
Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all shows
Raquel: Total Beauty and Fitness (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1984)
Camp (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
To Be Real (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)
Career shape
Star power in the 90th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 45 titles, 42 of them dated from 1984 to 2025; peak year 2020.
Biggest box office
80 for Brady (2023)
Highest rated
Pose (2018)
Most popular right now
Tamron Hall (2019)
Film career
Peak 2020 · at the high point of their film career. Film roles by billing, audience size and rating; 25+ votes. A show carries a single first-air date, so shows are not on the curve.
- 2000Screen debut· The Broken Hearts Club: A Romantic Comedy
- 2018Primetime Emmy win· POSE
Billing
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored. Billing is TMDB cast order for roles with 25+ votes, billed in the top 30.
Awards
a Primetime Emmy from 9 major nominations, 2019–2022.
- Golden Globe, nominated · Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Drama
+1 other major body · 1 nomination
- Critics Choice Award, nominated · Best Actor in a Drama Series
- Primetime Emmy, nominated · Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series
- Primetime Emmy, nominated · Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series
- Golden Globe, nominated · Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Drama
+1 other major body · 1 nomination
- Critics Choice Award, nominated · Best Actor in a Drama Series
- Primetime Emmy, won · Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series
- Golden Globe, nominated · Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Drama
+1 other major body · 1 nomination
- Critics Choice Award, nominated · Best Actor in a Drama Series
Major bodies only: the Oscars, Primetime Emmys, Golden Globes, BAFTAs and Screen Actors Guild Awards are named; Cannes, Venice, the Berlinale, Sundance, the directors', writers' and producers' guilds, the Grammys, Critics Choice and the Independent Spirit Awards count as other major bodies. Festival and regional prizes are not counted. Source: IMDb.
How do Billy Porter's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 41st percentile, the median of all 15; across their 15 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 68th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up7
- 50th to 74th7
- 25th to 49th8
- Below 25th6
Shape of the crowd
9 of their 28 titles are Mixed.
- Universally Loved3
- Divisive7
- Cult Classic3
- Crowd Pleaser6
- Mixed9
Reviewers score the acting 59/100 in their films, across 9 reviewed titles; fans 73, detractors 31. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Is Billy Porter's work okay for kids?
Across a limited sample of up to 4 MovieCove titles with content scores.
Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted.
Who does Billy Porter work with?
People who share at least 2 of Billy Porter's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; D.J. Gugenheim shares the most, 3.
Actors
- Patti LaBelleShared titles: Cyndi Lauper: Let the Canary Sing (2023), Tamron Hall (2019)See all 2 shared titles with Patti LaBelle
- Angel BismarkShared titles: Pose-a-Thon for Pride (2020), Pose (2018)See all 2 shared titles with Angel Bismark
- Dominique JacksonShared titles: Pose-a-Thon for Pride (2020), Pose (2018)See all 2 shared titles with Dominique Jackson
- Dyllon BurnsideShared titles: Pose-a-Thon for Pride (2020), Pose (2018)See all 2 shared titles with Dyllon Burnside
Composers and cinematographers
- Jerry HenryShared titles: I Was Born This Way (2025), Billy Preston: That's the Way God Planned It (2024)See all 2 shared titles with Jerry Henry
- Christophe BeckShared titles: Like a Boss (2020), The Broken Hearts Club: A Romantic Comedy (2000)See all 2 shared titles with Christophe Beck
Producers
- D.J. GugenheimShared titles: I Was Born This Way (2025), A Tree of Life (2022), Anything's Possible (2022)See all 3 shared titles with D.J. Gugenheim
- Charles HopkinsShared titles: Billy Preston: That's the Way God Planned It (2024), Cyndi Lauper: Let the Canary Sing (2023)See all 2 shared titles with Charles Hopkins
- Sophia DilleyShared titles: Billy Preston: That's the Way God Planned It (2024), Cyndi Lauper: Let the Canary Sing (2023)See all 2 shared titles with Sophia Dilley
- Wesley AdamsShared titles: Billy Preston: That's the Way God Planned It (2024), Cyndi Lauper: Let the Canary Sing (2023)See all 2 shared titles with Wesley Adams
Mixed roles
- QuestloveShared titles: I Was Born This Way (2025), My Happy Place (2025)See all 2 shared titles with Questlove
- Greg BerlantiShared titles: Equal (2020), The Broken Hearts Club: A Romantic Comedy (2000)See all 2 shared titles with Greg Berlanti
