Billy Merasty (born 1960) is an Aboriginal Canadian actor and writer of Cree descent.
Early life Merasty was born in Brochet, Manitoba, Canada. He is the ninth of fourteen children born to Viola and Pierre Merasty, and a grandson of Joe Highway, a famous caribou hunter and champion dogsled racer; and related to playwright Tomson Highway and dancer, choreographer, actor, and director René Highway.
Career Merasty moved to Toronto at the age of 18 in search of René Highway, who was then working for the Toronto Dance Theatre. At the age of 23, he launched his acting career after graduating from the Centre for Indigenous Theatre for aspiring First Nations artists. He then worked for the Native Earth Performing Arts for a long period. He has worked extensively on the stage and films as an actor and has written one play, Fireweed, produced in 1992. His second play, Godly's Divinia, is in development.
In 2010, Merasty received the Order of Manitoba (Order of the Buffalo Hunt) in recognition for his many years as an Aboriginal role model from Manitoba.
Stage work His stage credits include appearances in Tomson Highway's The Sage, The Dancer and the Fool, Dry Lips Oughta Move to Kapuskasing and The Rez Sisters, Daniel David Moses' The Indian Medicine Show, Lanford Wilson's Rain Dance, Marie Clements' Copper Thunderbird, Kevin Loring's Where the Blood Mixes, Steven Cole Hughes' Ghost Dance and David S. Craig's The Neverending Story. In 2012, he performed the role of Gloucester in an all-aboriginal production of William Shakespeare's King Lear at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, alongside a cast that also included August Schellenberg as Lear, Tantoo Cardinal as Regan, Jani Lauzon in a dual role as Cordelia and the Fool, and Craig Lauzon as Kent.
Pledge In September 2025, he signed an open pledge with Film Workers for Palestine pledging not to work with Israeli film institutions "that are implicated in genocide and apartheid against the Palestinian people."
Filmography Film +YearTitleRole Notes1989Justice DeniedDonald Marshall Jr.1990 The Shaman's SourceMathew Hare1994ExoticaMan at Opera1995 The ConfessionalMoose1995Pocahontas: The LegendKocoum1998Honey MoccasinZachary John2004Battle of the BraveOwashak2005 The Big WhiteCam2005 The New WorldKiskiak2010Casino JackBartender2018Falls Around HerDraven2019 The Incredible 25th Year of Mitzi BearclawWilliam Bearclaw2019It Chapter TwoShokopiwah Man2022StellarAuntie 12023Café Daughter2024AberdeenAlfred2025Nika and MadisonUncle George
Television YearTitleRole Notes1989Red Earth, White EarthTom RedfoxTelevision film1991CounterstrikeHawk Episode: "Native Warriors"1992 The Broken CordFrank CreeTelevision film1993Kung Fu: The Legend ContinuesWilliam Two-FeathersEpisode: "Shaman"1993X-RatedNathan JonesTelevision film1993–1994 The Red Green ShowJoshua Two Feathers4 episodes1994–1995Liberty StreetNathan Jones26 episodes1995Tales of the WildMawakiEpisode: "Les légendes du Grand Nord"1999War of 1812John Norton4 episodes2000 The VirginianLee TalltreesTelevision film2002Relic HunterInuit HunterEpisode: "Under the Ice"2003An American in CanadaApakEpisode: "True North Strong and Almost Free"2004WonderfallsJerryEpisode: "Totem Mole"2005This Is WonderlandBrian PerotEpisode #2.8 2005Into the WestYellow BirdEpisode: "Ghost Dance"2006Indian Summer: The Oka CrisisJohn Cree4 episodes2007Bury My Heart at Wounded KneeYoung Man AfraidTelevision film2007Moose TVLeonard Sky8 episodes2007ElijahElijah HarperTelevision film2008Northern LightsJacob2009American ExperienceWarriorEpisode: "Tecumseh's Vision"2009, 2010Mixed BlessingsMark2 episodes2011Moby DickTashtego2013Hard Rock MedicalThompson Morris2015Murdoch MysteriesElderEpisode: "All That Glitters"2016–2018FrontierKaagwa7 episodes2018CardinalBilly Ralph NorthwindEpisode: "Northwind"2021 The Secret History of the Wild WestPoundmakerEpisode: "Peacemaker"2021DiggstownChief ThomasEpisode: "Jojo Carvery"2022Acting GoodRoger Laughingstick
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