LL COOL J (Ray) is an entertainer who has succeeded in crossing into all mediums of entertainment. A talented actor, a two-time Grammy Award winner, and an NAACP Image Award winner, LL continues to display a wide range of talent. From the moment the teenaged "young legend in leather" exclaimed "I Need A Beat" to the world in 1984, his career ignited and he became Def Jam Records' flagship artist. He was the first rap artist to amass six consecutive platinum-plus-selling albums. His tenth album, "Ten," was released by Def Jam last fall, with LL performing on tour for the first time in four years.
On-screen, he notably starred in Renny Harlin's hit "Deep Blue Sea," for which his record label, Rock the Bells, co-produced the film's soundtrack. LL contributed two songs, including the title track "Deepest Blue. " He is currently at work on Clark Johnson's "S. W. A. T. ," starring alongside Colin Farrell, Samuel L. Jackson, Jeremy Renner, and Michelle Rodriguez. He is also doing a voiceover for "The Rugrats Meet The Wild Thornberrys. "
LL will next be seen starring opposite Val Kilmer and Christian Slater in "Mindhunters," reteaming with director Renny Harlin. His feature films include John McTiernan's "Rollerball"; Doug McHenry's "Kingdom Come"; Oliver Stone's "Any Given Sunday" (for which he performed a song on the film's soundtrack); Michael Rymer's "In Too Deep"; Steve Miner's "Halloween H20"; and Barry Levinson's "Toys. " For television, he starred in the hit sitcom "In the House. "
Adding the title of author to his credits, he penned a 1997 autobiography, I Make My Own Rules. His first children's book, And the Winner Is…, was released in September 2002. Part of Scholastic's exciting new series of books and CDs, Hip Kid Hop, by top rap stars, And the Winner Is… tells the story of a young basketball player who learns the importance of winning and losing gracefully. LL Cool J currently lives in New York with his wife and four children. He will be billed under his given name, James Todd Smith, in future films.
GABRIELLE UNION (Eva) previously worked with Deliver Us from Eva writer/director Gary Hardwick on "The Brothers. " In addition to Deliver Us from Eva, she stars in two more 2003 releases: Andrzej Bartkowiak's action thriller "Cradle 2 the Grave," opposite Jet Li, DMX, and Anthony Anderson; and Michael Bay's "Bad Boys 2," alongside Will Smith and Martin Lawrence. Union was most recently seen in Stephen Gaghan's suspense drama "Abandon," with Katie Holmes and Benjamin Bratt; and Anthony and Joe Russo's comedy "Welcome to Collinwood" with William H. Macy, Isaiah Washington, and Luis Guzman. Her other feature films include Peyton Reed's boxoffice smash "Bring It On," Mark Brown's "Two Can Play That Game," Robert Iscove's "She's All That," and Gil Junger's "10 Things I Hate About You. " In March 2001, Union made a noteworthy guest appearance as the first African-American love interest, opposite both Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer, on television's top-rated sitcom, "Friends. " In addition, she was a series regular on the Steven Bochco-produced drama "City of Angels"; and had recurring roles on the shows "7 th Heaven" and "Sister Sister. " The UCLA graduate currently lives in Los Angeles with her husband.
DUANE MARTIN (Mike) is a Brooklyn native who was drafted by the New York Knicks before going on to pursue a career in acting. His film credits include Lawrence Gay's independent feature "The Groomsmen," a comedy shot in Capetown, South Africa; Robert Rodriguez' "The Faculty"; Daisy V. S. Mayer's "Woo"; Wes Craven's "Scream 2"; David S. Ward's "Down Periscope"; Jeff Pollack's "Above the Rim"; and Ron Shelton's "White Men Can't Jump. " Martin is producing two comedy features with Will Smith's company, Overbrook Entertainment: "Mother's Day" and "The Seatfiller" (written by Mark Brown). He is also producing "Inglewoods," based on his original concept, which he will star in opposite Jamie Foxx. He recently completed filming "Ride or Die," a feature that he wrote, produced, and stars in with Vivica A. Fox (directed by Craig Ross, Jr. ). For television, he produced the series "Getting Personal," in which he starred opposite Vivica A. Fox. He was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for his role in "Different Worlds: An Interracial Love Story" (directed by Neema Barnette); and starred with Patti LaBelle in the series "Out All Night. " In addition, Duane Martin is the successful owner of Impact Sports - and as such is the youngest African-American ever to own a sports agency.
ESSENCE ATKINS (Kareenah) currently stars alongside Rachel True in the new UPN comedy series "Half & Half. " She recently made her feature film debut in Jesse Dylan's hit comedy "How High," opposite Method Man and Redman.
She has previously been a regular on such shows as "Smart Guy," "Malibu Shores," "Under One Roof," and "Saved by the Bell"; and has appeared as a guest or in a recurring capacity on "Sabrina, the Teenage Witch," "Moesha," "Promised Land," "The John Larroquette Show," "The Parent 'Hood," and "The Wayans Brothers. "
ROBINNE LEE (Bethany) will soon be seen starring with Martin Lawrence and Steve Zahn in Dennis Dugan's "National Security. " Born and raised in Westchester County, N. Y. , Lee attended Yale University and graduated with a degree in psychology. Upon graduation, she decided to pursue acting and began studying with the well-known acting instructor Sondra Lee. She soon landed her first film role, in Christopher Scott Cherot's "Hav Plenty. " Lee then continued her acting studies while simultaneously attending Columbia Law School, and graduated with a law degree in 2000. That same year, she starred with Debbi Morgan and Maya Angelou in the Hallmark Hall of Fame telefilm "The Runaway" (directed by Arthur Allan Seidelman).
MEAGAN GOOD (Jacqui) earned critical acclaim for her performance in Kasi Lemmons' "Eve's Bayou" (opposite Samuel L. Jackson), for which she received an NAACP Image Award nomination. She is currently at work on Reggie Rock Bythewood's "Biker Boyz," starring with Laurence Fishburne, Kid Rock, and Orlando Jones. She has completed filming Craig Ross, Jr. 's "Ride or Die," starring with Duane Martin of Deliver Us from Eva and Vivica A. Fox. Her other film credits include Holly Goldberg Sloan's "The Secret Life of Girls," Chris Stokes' "House Party 4: Down to the Last Minute" (with Kym Whitley of Deliver Us from Eva), and D. J. Pooh's "3 Strikes. " Born in Panorama City, CA, Good began starring in commercials at age 4, and to date has completed over 60 national television commercials. Her first major television role was as a series regular on "Cousin Skeeter. " She has since starred on the series "Raising Dad"; and appeared on "Moesha," "Touched by an Angel," "The Steve Harvey Show," "The Famous Jett Jackson," "The Division," and "The Parent 'Hood. "
MEL JACKSON (Tim) was discovered by a casting director while riding a bus in Chicago, and was cast in George Tillman, Jr. 's independently made feature film "Scenes for the Soul. " Reteaming with filmmaker Tillman, Jackson's charismatic performance in the hit movie "Soul Food" brought him wide recognition. He has since appeared in the films "Uninvited Guest" (directed by Timothy Wayne Folsome) and "Dancing in September" (directed by Reggie Rock Bythewood, and which played at the 2001 Sundance Film Festival prior to airing on HBO). In television, Jackson joined the popular sitcom "Living Single" as a series regular; and played a recurring character on "In The House. " He later starred with David Alan Grier on the comedy series "DAG. " He has also appeared in the telefilm "Little Richard"
(directed by Robert Townsend) and the miniseries "The Temptations" (directed by Allan Arkush). Jackson was inspired to form his own production company. His first project, "Carmin's Choice," a short film in which he starred for director Monice Mitchell, won the Showtime Filmmaker's Award. He hopes to take on the challenge of directing soon.
DARTANYAN EDMONDS (Darrell) has appeared in such films as Warren Beatty's "Bulworth" (opposite the director and Halle Berry), Jim Wynorski's "Rangers," John Terlesky's "Judgement Day" (with Ice-T), Millicent Shelton's "Ride," Ivan Reitman's "Fathers' Day," and Martin Lawrence's "A Thin Line Between Love and Hate. " In 1987, Edmonds' artistic abilities earned him entrance into the Duke Ellington School of Performing Arts. There, he met fellow freshman Dave Chappelle, who had been doing stand-up comedy at D. C. 's Comedy Café. Chappelle took Edmonds to "open mike" night, where he immediately became a club favorite. The young comedian continued to work on his act at clubs in and around D. C. for a year before getting his first big break on television with "It's Showtime at the Apollo" and then "Def Comedy Jam. " He continues to perform as a headliner in comedy clubs around the country.
