Nigel Thatch

Many fans associated actor Nigel Thatch's image on screen with sports-not just because he famously played an athlete, but because he also was one. Born in St. Louis, MO in 1979, Thatch made his professional acting debut at the age of 17, appearing in an episode of the series "Beverly Hills, 90210" (Fox, 1990-2000). He would go on to take acting classes at UCLA, in addition to ongoing acting work that included recurring roles on "The Parent 'Hood" (WB, 1995-99) and "American Dreams" (NBC, 2002-05), and an appearance in the film "The Players' Club" (1998). In 2004, Thatch was cast in a major advertising campaign by the beer company Budweiser playing a self-absorbed professional athlete known as Leon, who pulled stunts like taking a call from his agent while on deck in the batter's box.

The commercials were a major hit, and Thatch used their popularity as an opportunity to pursue his own dream of a sports career, pitching for minor league baseball team the Schaumburg Flyers during the 2005 season. He then took a break from the public eye, eventually returning to show business in 2017 when he personally lobbied director Ava DuVernay via Twitter to cast him in the role of Malcolm X in the movie "Selma" (2014). The effort paid off when Thatch won the role. He subsequently took on the character of Captain Robert Torres on the series "Valor" (CW, 2017-).