Larenz Tate was born September 8, 1975, in Chicago, Illinois. The acting bug proved contagious as all the Tate brothers, Larenz Tate, Larron Tate, and Lahmard Tate are all actors enjoying various levels of success.
Tate, however, did not initiate his acting career. Rather, it was his father who moved the family to California when he was only nine years old and enrolled the three brothers in the Inner City Cultural Center’s drama program. Tate remained unexcited about the program until a fellow actor landed a role on the wildly popular television series The Cosby Show. The student, Malcolm Jamal Warner, found nearly overnight fame with his role as Theo Huxtable.
At that moment, Tate realized acting could translate into a fulfilling and rewarding career. He buckled down, and his first role came quickly in the form of a one-episode appearance on the television series The Twilight Zone in 1985. These kinds of appearances on popular television series continued throughout the remainder of the 80s. Notable appearances included stints on Hunter; Amen; 21 Jump Steet, with Johnny Depp, Holly Robinson Peete, Steven Williams, Dustin Nguyen, and Peter DeLuise; and The Wonder Years, with Fred Savage and Danica McKellar.
After many years of trying to earn a large break, Tate was rewarded with a role in the television film The Women of Brewster Place, opposite Oprah Winfrey. He continued finding odd jobs until an even larger break with a recurring role in The Royal Family. Beside Della Reese and Redd Foxx, Tate was quickly becoming a hot commodity in Hollywood.
He earned desirable roles on shows like Fresh Prince of Bel-Air with Will Smith, and later his real breakout role in Menace II Society. Sharing the screen with A-list actors such as Samuel L Jackson, Glenn Plummer, and Jada Pinkett Smith, Tate had officially made it.
This role spawned a slew of high profile roles in feature films, including The Inkwell, and arguably his largest role in Dead Presidents. Tate led the all-star cast of Keith David, Chris Tucker, Freddy Rodriguez, and Terrence Howard.
Still riding high off his success, Tate’s career continued to rise with a lead role opposite Nia Long in Love Jones and a supporting role in Why Do Fools Fall in Love, with Halle Berry and Vivica A Fox.
In the years following this success his demand suddenly stumbled. After Why Do Fools Fall In Love in 1998, he didn’t receive another role until 2000 with Love Come Down, also starring Deborah Cox and Sarah Polley. But roles continued to be sparse until his next film came with Biker Boyz in 2003, where he served in a supporting role to leads Laurence Fishburne, Orlando Jones, Lisa Bonet, and Kid Rock.
Tate needed something big to jumpstart his stalling career. He received that resurgence in 2004 with two Oscar films, Crash and Ray. He then landed recurring roles on the recently cancelled Love Monkey and the new television series Waterfront.
In a different arena, Tate also provided his voice talents to the videogame 187 Ride or Die.
In his personal life, he married fellow actress Tomasina Parrott in 2006. They have one child together.
