TheSource.com would like to send a super born day salute to Mekhi Phifer! The Harlem born and raised actor came into the world on this day in 1974.
Phifer has appeared on countless televison shows and movies as well as numerous Hip Hop videos including 50 Cent‘s “Many Men”, the WTC‘s “Wu Wear”, Craig Mack‘s “Flava In Ya Ear”, “Lose Yourself” from the 8 Mile soundtrack and several more. With his versatile acting skills, Mekhi nailed convincing roles that could only fit his level of expertise.
In commemoration of his birthday, TheSource.com put together a list of his “Top 5 Villian Roles”, even though we’re sure he’s reall a nice guy.
Paid In Full
In one of the Hip Hop community’s favorite hood flicks, Phifer plays the role of Mitch, who represented the Harlem hustling legend Rich Porter. Even though “Money Makin’ Mitch” was by far the most successful of the three major players in a story that is based on true events, the fact that these young money getters were dealing poison in their community, this makes “Mitch” one of our favorite villians.
Clockers
A lover of Yoo-Hoos and toy trains, “Strike” was a role that Phifer played that made him a likeable bad guy. Strike kept money in his boys’ pockets, paid his mother’s bills and even got the little youngin’ in the hood a haircut, but he still ended up wearing the snitch jacket from his crew, getting slapped by the lil’ scrap’s moms and got ran out of hood by the police.
Uninvited Guest
Phifer plays the role of “Silk” in the B-movie clasic, a convincing, murderous con man that coerced his way into a married woman’s home with intentions of destroying her life and her loyalty to her husband along the way. The role of Silk really brought Mekhi’s Harlem World swag out of him, with sex, money and murder as the underlying themes of this twist turning thriller.
Divergent
In the first installment from the Divergent series, Mekhi plays the role of Max, the former Dauntless leader but later appoints Eric leader on Jeanine’s orders. In Insurgent, he meets with Candor representative Jack as a representative of Erudite. He demands that Candor hand over Eric along with the Divergent, and those has not injected with the new serum injection.
Soul Food
SOUL FOOD, Mekhi Phifer, Nia Long, 1997, TM and Copyright © 20th Century Fox Film Corp. All rights reserved,
In this 1997 hit flick, Phifer’s character Lem, a two-strike, convicted felon is married to “Bird”, a beauty salon owner and youngest daughter to Big Momma. Bird reluctantly allows her ex-boyfriend Julian St. James(played by Mel Jackson), which when it gets back to Lem, causes a minor explosion in the beauty parlor. Ending up back in jail, Lem learns how easy it to land yourself in jail and how hard it is to set yourself free.
