Ciera Payton
Ciera Payton is an American actress and writer. She has appeared in television series such as The Walking Dead, General Hospital, Graceland, and NCIS. She also had a supporting role as Sylvia in Tyler Perry's A Madea Family Funeral. She currently stars in the BET soap opera The Oval.
Early life
Ciera Payton graduated from the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts,[1] and received her bachelor of fine arts degree in drama from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.[2]
Career
Payton got her start in the feature film Flight of Fury (2006), playing the female lead role of CIA agent Jessica opposite Steven Seagal. She was a junior in college while filming Flight of Fury. In 2009, she made her off-Broadway debut, starring as the lead role of Savannah in Savannah Black and Blue,[3] produced by the Negro Ensemble Company.
In 2010, Payton transitioned from New York to Los Angeles where she booked the role of Janet Tanner in the BBC American reboot of Torchwood. She later appeared on The Closer, playing opposite Keira Sedwick as Keisha Murphy.[1] After gaining a few roles on the small screen, Payton was granted the role of Capri in Spike Lee's film Oldboy, sharing the screen with Josh Brolin.[4]
In 2014, she appeared as the cheerleading coach who takes down a prominent campaign in The Runner starring Nicolas Cage.[5]
In 2016, she received the Los Angeles Pioneer Woman Award for her work providing arts programs to at-risk youth.[6]
In 2019, she starred in the film A Madea Family Funeral.[4]
Filmography
Film
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2007 | Flight of Fury | Jessica | Video |
2008 | Jump Out Boys | Maria | |
2009 | Madea Goes to Jail | Undercover Detective | |
2009 | The Way Home | Tasha | Short |
2010 | Moth to a Flame | Kara | Short |
2012 | A Woman's Worth Short Film | Melissa | Short |
2013 | Paradise | Stripper #2 | |
2013 | Oldboy | Capri | |
2015 | American Bad Boy | Raven | |
2015 | The Runner | Lucy Hall | |
2015 | Guiltless | Ciera | Short |
2016 | Forward | Short | |
2016 | 59 Seconds | Foster Mom | |
2018 | Dangerous Daze | Benita Bangs | Short |
2019 | A Madea Family Funeral | Sylvia | |
2019 | Afterthoughts | Det. Paige Aldridge | Short |
2019 | SKIP: The Rhythm of Hope | Jane | Short, post-production |
TBA | Xxv (25) | Chris | Short, completed |
TBA | Stain | Bernice | Completed |
TBA | Respect the Jux | Karen | Post-production |
Television
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2008 | All My Children | Reporter | Episode: "1.9970" |
2009 | Midnight Bayou | Effie | TV film |
2010 | Fake It Til You Make It | MILF | Episodes: "Never Sleep with Fans", "Dine and Ditch" |
2011 | The Closer | Keisha Murphy | Episode: "Unknown Trouble" |
2011 | Torchwood | Janet | Episode: "Miracle Day: The Middle Men" |
2012 | Californication | Hooker | Episode: "The Ride-Along" |
2012 | Body of Proof | Eve Johnson | Episode: "Going Viral, Part 2" |
2012 | The Mentalist | Angel | Episode: "Something Rotten in Redmund" |
2012 | Days of Our Lives | Martine Kent | Guest role |
2012 | Common Law | Kelly | Episode: "Joint Custody" |
2013 | NCIS: Los Angeles | Ellen | Episode: "History" |
2013 | The Other Door | Melissa | TV film |
2013–14 | Graceland | Cassandra | Episodes: "Goodbye High", "King's Castle", "Connects" |
2014 | First | Nikki | Episode: "The First Awkward Moment" |
2014 | Wild Card | Laila | Episode: "The Pilot" |
2014 | Bad Teacher | Meg | Episodes: "Evaluation Day", "Found Money", "What's Old Is New" |
2014 | It Could be Worse | Episode: "Too Much Candy" | |
2015 | Reconcilable Differences | Eve | Episodes: "You Have to Train 'em", "The Setup" |
2015 | Real Husbands of Hollywood | Tracy | Episode: "Cabin Pressure" |
2015 | What's Bullying? | Teacher | TV film |
2016 | NCIS | Laurie Perkins | Episode: "Pay to Play" |
2017 | General Hospital | Grace McMorris | Episodes: "1.13746", "1.13820" |
2017 | Indoor Boys | Alyssa | Episode: "Mafia" |
2017 | Ballers | Lydia | Episode: "Alley-Oops" |
2017 | The Walking Dead | Zia | Episode: "The King, the Widow and the Ruck" |
2019 | Being Mary Jane | Keia | Episode: "Becoming Pauletta" |
2019 | She's Gotta Have It | Jameelah Hawkins | Guest role (season 2) |
2019-present | Tyler Perry’s The Oval | Lily Winthrop | Main role |
2021 | Wendy Williams: The Movie | Wendy Williams | TV film[7] |
References
- "Catch NOCCA graduate Ciera Payton on the premiere of 'The Closer'". The Times-Picayune. New Orleans, Louisiana. July 9, 2011.
- "About". Ciera Payton official website. Retrieved 2019-05-04.
- Webster, Andy (2009-11-11). "At Shetler Studios, a Woman's Tough Climb to the Police Beat". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-12-22.
- "Credits". Ciera Payton official website. 2019-05-04. Archived from the original on 2019-05-04. Retrieved 2020-02-08.
- "The Runner (2015) - Financial Information". The Numbers. Retrieved 2020-02-08.
- Apr 01, 2016. "Women's History Month 2016". Los Angeles City Council District 6. Retrieved 2019-05-04.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
- "See the First Trailer for the Wendy Williams Biopic, Documenting Her Substance Abuse Issues: 'You've Got a Coke Habit'". PEOPLE.com. Retrieved 2020-12-04.