Isaiah Washington

Isaiah Washington IV (born August 3, 1963) is an American actor. Following a series of film appearances, he came to prominence as Dr. Preston Burke in Grey's Anatomy (2005–2007; 2014). Washington began his career collaborating with director Spike Lee on the films Crooklyn (1994), Clockers (1995), Girl 6 (1996), and Get on the Bus (1996). He also appeared in the films Love Jones (1997), Bulworth (1998), Out of Sight (1998), True Crime (1999), Romeo Must Die (2000), Exit Wounds (2001), Ghost Ship (2002), and Hollywood Homicide (2003). In 2005, Washington landed his breakthrough role as Preston Burke on Grey's Anatomy. He was dismissed after the third season due to his alleged usage of a homophobic slur while in an argument with Patrick Dempsey and allegedly referring to a cast member, T. R. Knight; he still did return for a guest appearance in 2014. From 2014 to 2018, Washington portrayed Thelonious Jaha on The CW's science fiction television series The 100. In 2020, Washington became the host of a travel cooking show on Fox Nation. In 2022, he made his directorial debut with the Western film Corsicana (2022).