• Lance Darnell Kwaku Gross was born in Oakland, California on 8 July 1981.
• He attended Bonana High School and Howard University, obtaining a Bachelor of Arts degree in theatre in 200•
• He has appeared in nearly 40 movies and TV series, most notably in the family comedy series "House of Payne".
• He is married to Rebecca Jefferson and together they have two children.
• His net worth has been estimated at over $1.5 million.
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Lance Gross Wiki Bio
American actor Lance Darnell Kwaku Gross was born in Oakland, California USA, on 8 July 1981, so his zodiac sign’s Cancer. He’s appeared in nearly 40 movies and TV series, but is probably best known for portraying the supporting character Calvin Payne in the family comedy series “House of Payne”, which Tyler Perry created, and which also stars Cassi Davis and LaVan Davis. It follows several generations of a family living under the same roof, the series has been airing since 2006, and has won 20 of its 37 award nominations.
Education and early life
Lance was raised in Oakland alongside his sisters Staci and Traci, by their Ghanaian immigrant father and African-American mother; he hasn’t shared a lot about his family, as they prefer to maintain their privacy.
Lance studied at Bonana High School, and although it was during his time there that he fell in love with acting, he was still persuaded by his parents to focus on his education. He matriculated in 1999 and then enrolled at Howard University, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in theatre in 2003.
Lance then honed his acting skills at the Tasha Smith Action Studio and The Ivanna Chubbuck Studio.
Roles in movies
Lance’s debut film appearance was in the 2005 music video “Rihanna: If It’s Lovin’ That You Want”, and he could then have been seen appearing in the short drama “Changing Blossoms”, the music video “Mary J. Blige: Take Me as I Am” and the short drama “Riding Mercedes”, all released in 2006.
The year 2010 saw him portray Marcus Boyd in the romantic comedy “Our Family Wedding”, written and directed by Rick Famuyiwa, and which starred America Ferrera, Forest Whitaker and Carlos Mencia. It follows a young couple who are to marry in a couple of weeks, and the movie was nominated for four awards. Lance was then cast to play supporting characters in the drama “The Last Fall” and the romantic comedy “Steel Magnolias” both in 2012, and the 2013 drama “Temptation: Confessions of a Marriage Counselor”.
He played Jason in the 2016 crime action “Deuces”, written and directed by Jamal Hill, and which starred Larenz Tate, Meagan Good and Rotimi. It follows an undercover agent who’s infiltrated a crime gang; the movie was nominated for a single award.
Lance’s three most recent movie roles have been in the 2021 short comedy “Short Cuts”, the short family mystery “Erax” and the romantic drama “Unthinkably Good Things” both in 2022.
Roles in TV series
Lance’s debut TV series role was playing Choir Member in the 2006 episode “Oh, Brother” of the comedy “Eve”, and his following two roles came in 2012, when he played Will in the pilot episode of the comedy “Milk & Honey”, and Frank Haywood in the episode “Swing and a Miss” of the crime comedy “The Finder”.
Also in 2012, Lance portrayed Dr. London in the episode “You Give Love a Bad Name” of the popular comedy “Royal Pains”, which John P. Rogers and Andrew Lenchewski created, and which starred Reshma Shetty, Paulo Constanzo and Mark Feuerstein. It follows a diagnostic surgeon who’s begun working for the ultra-elite and uber-rich people, together with his cheesy brother; the series aired from 2009 to 2016, and won two of its four award nominations.
Lance is also known for playing Agent Marcus Finely, one of the lead characters, in all the 13 episodes of the 2014 action thriller “Crisis”, created by Rand Ravich, and which also starred Rachael Taylor and Dermot Mulroney; it tells the story of a Secret Service agent during his first day on the job.
Some of Lance’s most recent TV series roles have been in two episodes of the 2020 crime action “Hawaii Five-0”, the 2021 episode “So You Just Out Here Chloroforming Anybody?” of the comedy “A Black Lady Sketch Show”, and 12 episodes of the 2022 drama “Our Kind of People”.
Other credits
Lance produced the 2012 drama movie “The Last Fall”, and wrote two episodes of the 2022 family comedy series “House of Payne”.
Some of his recent talk-show appearances have been in “Unsung Hollywood”, “Be Woke”, and “GMA3: What You Need to Know”.
Awards and nominations
Lance has been nominated for five Image Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series for his performance in “House of Payne”, winning in 2008, ‘09, ‘10 and 2013.
Love life and wife
Lance was in a long-term relationship with American actress and model Eva Marcille. The two began dating in July 2006, became engaged on 24 December 2008, but broke-up in March 2010.
He and American fashion stylist Rebecca Jefferson exchanged vows on 23 May 2015, in front of their closest friends and family members; prior to the wedding, Rebecca gave birth to their daughter Berkeley Brynn Gross on 20 November 2014,, and their son Lennon Lorin Gross followed on 10 July 2018.
Lance hasn’t mentioned other women whom he’s been with, he’s married to Rebecca Jefferson as of January 2023, and they have two children together.
Interesting facts and hobbies
Lance became a member of the fraternity Kappa Alpha Psi in November 2021.
He was an avid track & field athlete during his high school and college years, but chose acting over going professional.
Some of Lance’s closest friends are American musician and actor Trey Songz, American actor and singer Ludacris, and American screenwriter, producer and director Tyler Perry.
He’s followed by more than two million people on Instagram, and has posted close to 6,000 pictures and videos onto the social media network.
Lance’s favorite season is summer, as he enjoys sailing, swimming and scuba diving.
He works out at the gym nearly every day, thus his muscular body.
Lance’s favorite actors are Denzel Washington and Jim Carrey, and some of his favorite movies include “The Little Things”, “The Magnificent Seven” and “Fences”.
Height, eyes and wealth
Lance’s age is 41. He has brown eyes and black hair, he’s 6ft (1.83m) tall and weighs about 190lbs (87kgs).
Lance’s net worth’s been estimated at over $1.5 million, as of January 2023.
