If you close your eyes, and listen to Ron Cephas Jones’ voice and allow yourself a moment to soak in his tone and pitch, you might be surprised by the sense of trust that envelopes you – like a warm, fuzzy blanket on a chilly night.
Jones, a two-time Emmy Award-winning actor and poet, is known as a well-seasoned theater thespian, and who stepped into NBC’s groundbreaking hit, “This Is Us,” as William Hill, a gay, recovering addict who becomes reconnected with his biological son while coming to terms with his own terminal cancer.
Jones has over 30 years of stage experience. He’s paid his dues several times over often taking his small, baby girl —Emmy Award-winning actress Jasmine Cephas Jones — literally into the audition rooms over the years.
His television and film credits are long, growing every day. Some of those credits include the TV series “Truth Be Told,” “Lisey’s Story,” “Mr. Robot,” “Law & Order: Organized Crime,” “Better Things,” “The Get Down,” “Low Winter Sun,” “Banshee” and “The Blacklist.”
On the stage, Jones recently wowed audiences and critics playing Montrellous, in the Second Stage Theater’s production of “Clyde’s” alongside Uzo Aduba, Reza Salazar, and Kara Young. His work on stage as Jones a 2022 Drama League Distinguished Performance Award.
“Clyde’s” is written by two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage and her frequent collaborator, director Kate Whoriskey, and is set in a truck stop sandwich shop where a formerly incarcerated kitchen staff work for their shot at redemption. Ron’s character, a long-time employee of Clyde’s, serves as a kind of spiritual guide for the shop’s employees.
Jones, who has known Nottage for over 20 years, was initially struck by how “Clyde’s” stood apart from Nottage’s other work. No stranger to daring, this play examined important social issues, choosing to use the humor that emanates from the characters’ behavior. “Clyde’s” was the first time Jones has performed on Broadway in seven years.
The season finale for NBC’s “This Is Us” is scheduled for May 24, and his character, William Hill, is returning.
