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Francois Battiste is an acclaimed actor celebrated for his performances in theatre, television, and film. He recently portrayed Captain Randolph Southard in William Friedkin’s final film, The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial (Showtime), which won an Academy Award. He also appeared as FBI Special Agent Curtis McCrary in a four-episode arc on NBC’s Law & Order Organized Crime and SVU. Battiste was a series regular on ABC’s 10 Days in the Valley opposite Kyra Sedgwick. His television credits include Godfather of Harlem (MGM+), New Amsterdam (NBC), Station 19 (ABC), EVIL (CBS), The Family (ABC), The Normal Heart with Mark Ruffalo (HBO), Person of Interest (CBS), Are We There Yet? (TBS), and The Good Wife (CBS). His film work includes Men in Black III, A Long Walk, You Bury Your Own, Delivering the Goods, and One Week.
His latest project involved creating the role of Colonel Jock Martin in the World Premiere of HERE WE ARE, the final musical by Stephen Sondheim, written by David Ives and directed by Tony Award-winner Joe Mantello.
Battiste portrayed Malcolm X in the London premiere of One Night in Miami, written by Academy Award-winning Kemp Powers and directed by Kwame Kwei Armah at the Donmar Warehouse. This production was nominated for the 2017 Olivier Award for Best Play. He earned an OBIE Award, a Lucille Lortel nomination, and an AUDELCO nomination for his role in the Pulitzer Prize finalist play The Good Negro, directed by Liesl Tommy at the Public Theatre. On Broadway, he has appeared as Reggie Jackson in Bronx Bombers, in Prelude to a Kiss directed by Dan Sullivan, and Magic/Bird directed by Thomas Kail. He toured nationally with the Tony Award-winning production of August Wilson’s Jitney. Off-Broadway, his credits include Head of Passes by Academy Award winner Tarell Alvin McCraney alongside Phylicia Rashad, Broke-ology (AUDELCO nomination) directed by Thomas Kail at Lincoln Center, Dominique Morriseau’s Paradise Blue directed by Ruben Santiago-Hudson at the Signature Theatre, Detroit ’67 at the Public Theatre, and Shakespeare in the Park productions of The Winter’s Tale directed by Michael Greif and The Merchant of Venice with Al Pacino.
In 2023, Battiste received the AUDELCO Award for Best Leading Actor for his role as Walter Lee Younger in A Raisin in the Sun at The Public Theater. He performed alongside his son, Toussaint F. Battiste, who made his stage debut as Travis Younger. This production won the 2023 Lucille Lortel Award for Best Revival and was directed by Tony-nominated Robert O’Hara.
Regional theatre credits include playing Ebenezer Scrooge in the five-time Tony Award-winning production of A Christmas Carol, adapted by Jack Thorne and directed by Matthew Warchus at San Francisco’s Golden Gate Theatre. Other notable venues include New York Stage and Film, Williamstown, Sundance, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, The Goodman Theatre, Victory Gardens, Lookingglass Theatre, Illinois Shakespeare Festival, Dallas Theatre Center, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, The Old Globe, The Mark Taper Forum, and Seattle Repertory Theatre.
Francois is a Juilliard School graduate and the first African American to receive the John Houseman Award for excellence in Classical Theatre. He also studied at the British American Drama Academy at Oxford University and earned his undergraduate degree from Illinois State University, where he was inducted into the College of Fine Arts Hall of Fame in 2021.
