Shemar Franklin Moore ( ; born April 20, 1970) is an American actor. His notable roles include Malcolm Winters on The Young and the Restless (1994–2002, 2004–05, 2014, 2019, 2023, 2026), Derek Morgan on Criminal Minds (2005–17), and the lead role of Sergeant Daniel "Hondo" Harrelson on S.W.A.T. (2017–25)—all on CBS. In film, he is known for playing G.U.N. Agent Randall Handel in the second and third films of the Sonic the Hedgehog film series. Moore was also the third permanent host of Soul Train from 1999 to 2003.
Moore has won eight NAACP Image Awards as well as the 2000 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for his work on The Young and the Restless. He was nominated for a People's Choice Award in 2016 for his work on Criminal Minds.
Early life Moore was born in Oakland, California, the son of Marilyn Wilson, a teacher, and Sherrod Moore. Moore's father was African American and his mother, who was born in the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, was of Irish and French-Canadian descent. His mother, who had a degree in mathematics, worked as a teacher in Bahrain and Denmark. Moore moved with her to Denmark as an infant, and then to Bahrain when he was four, where he attended a British private school until the age of seven. His grandmother is from Quebec City, Canada. Moore cites civil unrest, interracial relationships being taboo, and racism in the U.S. in the 1970s as part of the reason his mother moved abroad with him. Returning to the U.S. in 1977, the family moved to Chico, California, where his mother worked at a clinic, before later moving to Palo Alto. A gifted and talented child, Moore attended The Nueva School in Hillsborough, California before graduating from Gunn High School in Palo Alto. Moore was awarded an athletic scholarship to attend Santa Clara University where he played varsity baseball as both a pitcher and an outfielder all four years. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in communications with a minor in Theater Arts.
Career
Moore is best known for his role as Malcolm Winters on the CBS television soap opera The Young and the Restless for more than a decade. In November 2004, he returned to The Young and the Restless after originally planning to leave the show, but after a few months he dropped back to recurring status and left in September 2005. In 2007, he said, "My time is done on Y&R. I did eight solid years as Malcolm."
During his time on The Young and the Restless, Moore was the host of the syndicated version of the series Soul Train from 1999 until 2003, and he appeared in the 2001 feature film The Brothers. He portrayed Detective Jesse Reese on the television series Birds of Prey from 2002 to 2003. Moore played Emery Simms in the 2004 film Motives alongside Vivica Fox and Golden Brooks, and had a supporting role in the film Diary of a Mad Black Woman. He also appeared in the romantic comedy The Seat Filler with Kelly Rowland and Duane Martin.
In 2005, Moore began playing Derek Morgan in the original cast of Criminal Minds. In March 2016, he left the role, after 251 episodes, in episode 18 of season 11, "A Beautiful Disaster".
In February 2017, it was announced that Moore would star in CBS's new series titled S.W.A.T., based on the 2003 film and 1975 television series of the same name. The show ran for eight seasons with the series finale released in May 2025. The same month, a spin-off series, S.W.A.T. EXILES, was announced with Moore set to return as Daniel "Hondo" Harrelson.
In June 2021, it was announced that Moore had joined the cast of Sonic the Hedgehog 2, as Randall Handel. He also stars as the "Unnecessary Action Hero" in a series of commercials for Paycom.
Moore worked as a model during his college years. He is signed to DNA Model Management in New York City. Moore appeared on the March 2009 issue of Men's Fitness magazine.
Personal life Moore dated soccer player Shawna Gordon from 2014 to 2016. In 2018, he dated Quantico actress Anabelle Acosta. On January 9, 2023, he announced the due date of his first child with his girlfriend, Jesiree Dizon. The couple's daughter was born January 24, 2023. In January 2025, it was reported Dizon and Moore were no longer involved, though Dizon was identified as Moore’s "significant other" in 2026.
Moore formed a retail clothing company known as Baby Girl LLC. The company's profits are used to help fight multiple sclerosis, a disease Moore's mother had. The organization's name is derived from a phrase used by Moore's character, Derek Morgan, on Criminal Minds. In 2016, actor Keith Tisdell pleaded guilty to grand theft charges after stealing more than $60,000 from Baby Girl LLC, and agreed to repay the amount.
Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes 1997 Hav Plenty Chris 1998 Butter Freddy Roland 2001 The Brothers Terry White 2004 Motives Emery Simms Greener Ricky Johnson 2005 The Seat Filler Trent Diary of a Mad Black Woman Orlando 2007 Motives 2 Emery Simms 2013 Kill Me, Deadly Bill the Piano Player 2014 Justice League: WarVictor Stone / Cyborg Voice role A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information. 2015 Justice League: Throne of Atlantis2016 The Bounce Back Matthew Taylor Justice League vs. Teen TitansVictor Stone / Cyborg Voice role 2018 The Death of Superman 2019 Reign of the Supermen 2020 Justice League Dark: Apokolips War 2022 Sonic the Hedgehog 2 Randall Handel 2024Sonic the Hedgehog 3
Television
Year Title Role Notes 1994–2005, 2014, 2019, 2023, 2026 The Young and the Restless Malcolm Winters Contract role (1994–2005) Guest appearances (2014–23) 1995 Living Single Jon Marc Episode: "The Last Temptation" 1996 The Jamie Foxx Show Elister Episode: "Kiss & Tell" 1997 The Nanny Malcolm Winters Episode: "The Heather Biblow Story" Arliss Sammy Stilton Episode: "How to Be a Good Listener" 1998 Chicago Hope Bobby Barrett Episode: "Waging Bull" Mama Flora's Family Lincoln Fleming Television film 1999 Moesha Earl Thomas Episode: "Had to Be You" For Your Love Dakota Collins Episode: "Baby Boom" Malcolm & Eddie Ty Episode: "Won't Power" 1999–2003 Soul Train Himself Host 2000 How to Marry a Billionaire: A Christmas Tale Jason Hunt Television film 2002–03 Birds of Prey Jesse Reese Main role; 14 episodes 2003 Chasing Alice Adam Television film 2004 Nikki and Nora Corby Reversible Errors Collins Farwell Half & Half Amani Love Episode: "The Big Good Help Is Hard to Find Episode" 2005–17 Criminal Minds Derek Morgan 253 episodes Main role (seasons 1–11) Special guest (seasons 12–13) 2017–25 S.W.A.T. Sergeant Daniel "Hondo" Harrelson Jr. Lead role; 163 episodes Producer (seasons 1–6) Executive producer (seasons 7–8) 2020 American Soul Executive producer (season 2) 2026 S.W.A.T. Exiles Sergeant Daniel "Hondo" Harrelson Jr. Lead role; Executive producer
Awards and nominations Year Award Category Work Result1996Daytime Emmy AwardsOutstanding Younger Actor in a Drama SeriesThe Young and the Restless NAACP Image Awards Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series1997Daytime Emmy AwardsOutstanding Younger Actor in a Drama Series1998 NAACP Image Awards Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series19992000Daytime Emmy AwardsOutstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series2001 NAACP Image Awards Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series20022005Black Reel AwardsBest Actor, Independent FilmMotives2006 NAACP Image AwardsOutstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama SeriesThe Young and the RestlessOutstanding Actor in a Motion PictureDiary of a Mad Black Woman2014Outstanding Actor in a Drama SeriesCriminal Minds20152016People's Choice AwardsFavorite Crime Drama TV Actor
References
External links