Colman Domingo’s 9 Best Performances: ‘Sing Sing,’ ‘Euphoria,’ ‘Fear the Walking Dead,’ and More

Editor’s note: this list was originally published in January 2024. It has since been updated to coincide with the release of “Sing Sing.”

Last Oscar season, Colman Domingo became the first Afro Latino to receive a Best Actor nomination from the Academy, for his powerhouse performance in “Rustin.” It’s a deserving nod for a performer who has only recently broken through, but already has an incredible resume of performances to his name.

Initially a stage actor, Domingo first gained acting recognition in 2008 for his role in the ensemble of “Passing Strange”; he earned Tony and Olivier nominations for his acclaimed role in the 2010 musical “The Scottsboro Boys.” Despite his onstage success, his attempts to cross over to television and film proved more difficult. In an interview with the New York Times, he spoke about considering quitting acting entirely after facing numerous rejections for bit parts in prestige dramas. But his fortune turned around after a series of successes with minor roles in films, among them “Lincoln,” “42,” and “Selma.” In 2015, he joined the cast of “Walking Dead” spinoff “Fear the Walking Dead.” Domingo stuck with the AMC series for all eight seasons, and used it as a launchpad for his career as a perpetual ringer, an actor who uplifts every project he takes on.

Off of “Fear the Walking Dead,” Domingo fully broke through in 2019 when his supporting part as a warm but stern recovering addict in HBO’s hit teen drama “Euphoria” introduced him to a whole new audience of teens, while his performance in that year’s “If Beale Street Could Talk” further established him as a film actor. Acclaimed work in “Zola” and “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” only made his star rise further and faster, and Domingo finally got his first lead role with “Rustin.” While “Rustin” itself received so-so reception, critics universally agrees that Domingo’s performance as Bayard Rustin, a civil rights activist and gay man, is exemplary, showing the range and charisma that makes Domingo such an exciting onscreen presence.

It’s early, but Domingo is already back in the Oscar conversation for “Sing Sing.” A very different film from “Rustin,” Greg Kwedar’s low-key drama follows the efforts of incarcerated actors to stage a play through their rehabilitative program. Domingo leads the film, which otherwise features mainly formerly incarcerated actors playing versions of themselves, as Divine G, the troupe’s fearless leader, and gives a typically exemplary performance. With the film in theaters, IndieWire ranks Domingo’s nine best movie and TV show performances, from worst to best.