J. August Richards bio

J. August Richards was born in Washington D.C. and raised in the Maryland suburb of Bladensburg, Richards discovered his love for acting at an early age, enrolling in a performing arts high school and appearing in several plays a year. Academically confident and determined to move out to Los Angeles to pursue his acting aspirations, Richards applied to only one college. Not only was he accepted into the University of Southern California, he won numerous scholarships and grants to study theater. Upon graduation, Richards began working steadily in film, television and theater. Playing a rapping bike messager whom believes he is an alien abductee, it was the role of Taj Mahal in the Mark Taper Forum’s production of Space that first brought recognition and rave reviews to the young actor. On the big screen, Richards was appeared in the feature films Why Do Fools Fall in Love? and Good Burger. His previous television work includes guest-starring roles on The Practice, Chicago Hope and Any Day Now, and roles in the television movies The Temptations, Mutiny, and Ground Zero. Richards was introduced during the first season of Angel playing a rogue, street-savvy vampire hunter and joined the cast in the second and third season as a season regular. In his free time, Richards enjoys painting and has developed an interest in astronomy. He traveled throughout the United States while on tour and enjoys visiting his parents’ native country of Panama as well as other regions of Central America.