Gary Anthony Williams (born March 14, 1966) is an American actor, comedian and filmmaker. He has voiced the character Uncle Ruckus on The Boondocks, General Horace Warfield in StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty, Dr. Richard Tygan in XCOM 2, and Anton "Bebop" Zeck in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows. He has also appeared on shows such as Boston Legal, I'm Sorry, Malcolm in the Middle and The Soul Man. He was a cast member on the sketch comedy series Blue Collar TV and the improv comedy series Whose Line Is It Anyway?. He is also a co-founder of the L.A. Comedy Shorts Film Festival.
Early life Gary Anthony Williams was born on March 14, 1966,"Today in History". Philadelphia Tribune. March 14, 2010. in Fayetteville, Georgia.Eldridge, Richard L. "Atlantic Station's set for taste of Hollywood". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. October 20, 2005. He was involved in theater, comedy and television in Atlanta, where his credits include acting with the Georgia Shakespeare Festival, performing and writing for Agatha's: A Taste of Mystery and being a longtime member of Atlanta's longest running improv troupe, Laughing Matters.Garretson, Shari. "Cat on a Hot Tin Streetcar". The Atlanta Journal. May 25, 1994.Gincel, Richard. "Instant comedy requires quick wits". The Atlanta Journal. July 22, 1993.Downey, Maureen; Shurling, Bo. "No secret: TV role `Smart' move". The Atlanta Journal. October 18, 1994. Williams had recurring roles in the television series I'll Fly Away and In the Heat of the Night, both filmed in the Atlanta area. He moved to Los Angeles in 1998.Ho, Rodney. "Dad's Garage goes big at Fox with new fundraiser The Fabulous Fox Theatre plays host to this year's event". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. June 10, 2015.
Career Television Williams' early roles include Abe Kenarban (Stevie's dad) in the Fox TV sitcom Malcolm in the MiddleSimon, Mashaun D. "Georgian Stars With Eddie Griffin In New Action-Comedy". Atlanta Daily World. May 2, 2002. p. 6. and Judge Trudy's Bailiff on Nickelodeon's The Amanda Show. Williams was a series regular on the WB Television Network sketch comedy series, Blue Collar TV.Ho, Rodney. "Random Bits". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. December 27, 2005. He appeared on NYPD Blue, Season 8, Episode 17, "Dying to Testify" as Charles, and guest-starred on How I Met Your Mother and Two and a Half Men.
In 2003, Williams had a small role in an episode of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, "Invisible Evidence." During season three and four of Boston Legal, Williams appeared as part-time lawyer Clarence Bell, a pathologically shy man who expresses himself through characters, including crossdressing as women (including a nun and celebrities such as Oprah Winfrey).Ho, Rodney."No bitterness about losing role on show". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. June 20, 2008. The role of Clarence/Clarice was originally to appear in one episode, but was expanded into a recurring role and then a regular role.
He returned as Abe in Malcolm in the Middle: Life's Still Unfair (2026).
Voice acting Williams plays parts in five different shows on Cartoon Network's late night programming block, Adult Swim, one being a STRATA technician on Saul of the Molemen, another as the self-hating African American, Uncle Ruckus on The Boondocks, Coroner Rick, a recurring character on Stroker and Hoop, he also played the role of Paul Revere on the television special, The Young Person's Guide to History, and served as the voice-over announcer for The Eric Andre Show until 2013. He also voiced Riff Tamson in the opening three episodes of season four of Star Wars: The Clone Wars. He is also the voice of Mr. Dos on Special Agent Oso. He appeared on an episode of Hot in Cleveland as a drama teacher and soccer coach.
In 2009 and 2010, Williams provided the voice of the supervillain Mongul for several episodes of the animated series, Batman: The Brave and the Bold. On one occasion, he voiced the character's sister, Mongal. He also voiced the supervillain Thunderball in The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes.
Williams voiced the character Ray Johnson in the Mike Judge animated series The Goode Family. He was part of a segment in the show Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction. Williams also guest stars as the halfway house director in the 7th season of the TV show Weeds. In 2011, he joined the cast of the animated series China, IL as the voice of Doctor Falgot. Williams was also in an episode of the show Workaholics. He was a series regular for the animated sketch comedy series Mad and voiced Mr. McStuffins for the animated Disney Junior series, Doc McStuffins"Disney Junior Celebrates Black History Month with "We Are Doc Mcstuffins"". Chicago Citizen. February 13, 2013. p. 15. and Dirty Dan and Dusty for the animated Disney Junior series Sheriff Callie's Wild West. He is also the narrator for the TV One series UNSUNG."EUR Hollywood Gossip Scoop". The Jacksonville Free Press (Jacksonville, Florida). May 21, 2009. p. 9. From 2012 to 2016, Williams appeared as the recurring character Lester on the TV Land original sitcom The Soul Man.
He also was the voice for Mufasa in The Lion Guard (taking over for James Earl Jones) and has provided voices for Star Wars Rebels. In 2017, he voiced Bark Knight and Baboo from the animated Disney Junior series Puppy Dog Pals. In the same year, he acted as Judge Eugene Ranheim in Curb Your Enthusiasm season 9 episode 3 “A Disturbance in the Kitchen”.
In November 2021, it was announced that Williams would be voicing the character, Beta, in the animated comedy-adventure series, Hailey's On It!, which premiered on June 8, 2023.
Film Williams has appeared in films such as Undercover Brother, appearing as Smart Brother (having previously voiced the Undercover Brother character in the original internet animated series),Thomas, Don. "Gary Anthony Williams: A Theatrically Trained Performer". New York Beacon. May 1, 2002. p. 31. Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle,Cahillane, Kevin. "Homegrown: A Stoner Comedy Straight Out of Randolph". The New York Times. August 16, 2004. p. 7. and Soul Plane. On The Boondocks second-season premiere, titled "...Or Die Trying", Riley and Robert Freeman could be seen watching the Soul Plane 2 trailer, where they see Williams and John Witherspoon (the voice of Robert who was featured in the original Soul Plane) voicing fictionalized versions of themselves. He also voiced Sweet in The Trumpet of the Swan and a demon in the horror film Truth or Dare. He appeared in the film The Factory, starring John Cusack, with whom he also appeared in Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. In 2011, he narrated the feature-length documentary Ayn Rand and the Prophecy of Atlas Shrugged. He also played Melvin in House Party: Tonight's the Night and Anton Zeck / Bebop in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows.Foran, Chris. "TMNT return to spotlight". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. June 3, 2016.
Improvisational comedy Williams performed with the Flying Fannoli Brothers, a Los Angeles musical-improv group with Nick Jameson and Fuzzbee Morse. The group appeared at the fourth Big Stinkin' International Improv & Sketch Comedy Festival in Austin in 1999.
Williams has also performed in the improvisational shows Cookin' With Gas and The Black Version at The Groundlings Theatre in Los Angeles, and has returned to Atlanta to perform with Laughing Matters. Since 2013, he has been a recurring performer on The CW's revival of the improvisational comedy show Whose Line Is It Anyway?.
Video games Williams provided the voices for the characters of Yancy Westridge in Alpha Protocol, Elanos Haliat in Mass Effect and Horace Warfield in StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty and Heart of the Swarm.https://www.people.com/archive/mister-big-vol-57-no-23/%3famp=true
Personal life Williams has one son.
Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes1994 Radioland Murders Dr. Ashton-Reeves 1997 Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil Bus Driver 1998 Ride Tiny 1999 End of Days Utility Worker #2 2001 All You Need Brian The Trumpet of the Swan Sweets (voice) 2002 Undercover Brother Smart Brother 2004 Comic Book: The Movie Kurt Direct-to-video Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle Tarik Jackson Soul Plane Flame Jiminy Glick in Lalawood Randall Bookerton 2006 The Adventures of Brer Rabbit Brer Bear (voice) Direct-to-video2007 Cook Off! Lars Hagerbakke 2012 Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 1 Mutant Leader, Anchor Bill (voice) Direct-to-videoThe Factory Darryl 2013 Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 2 Anchor Bill (voice) Direct-to-video House Party: Tonight's the Night Melvin Johnson I Know That Voice Himself DocumentaryScooby-Doo! and the Spooky Scarecrow Mayor Husk (voice) Direct-to-video The Internship Bob Williams 2014 Muffin Top: A Love Story Gregory David Gregory 2016 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows Anton Zeck / Bebop 2017 I Don't Feel at Home in This World Anymore Detective William Bendix Scooby-Doo! Shaggy's Showdown Cook (voice) Direct-to-video2018 Truth or Dare Demon (voice) 2019 5th of JulyCowboy2021 Spirit Untamed Wrangler (voice) Christmas...Again?! Santa Disney Channel Original Movie 2022 Block Party Sean 2023 Outlaw Johnny Black Mayor Williams
Television