
J. August Richards
Actor · Born August 28, 1973 (53) · Washington, District of Columbia, USA
Born in Washington, D.C., and raised in the Maryland suburb of Bladensburg, Richards discovered his love for acting at an early age and enrolled in a performing arts high school where he appeared in several plays a year. Academically confident and determined to move out to Los Angeles to pursue his acting aspirations, Richards applied to only one college - the University of Southern California (USC). Not only was he accepted, he also won numerous scholarships and grants to study theater. Upon graduation from USC, Richards began working steadily in film, television and theater. Playing a rapping bike messenger who believes he is an alien abductee in the Mark Taper Forum's (Los Angeles) production of "Space," he began to earn recognition and rave reviews. Richards was introduced to fans of "Angel" during the series' first season the rogue, street-savvy vampire hunter Charles Gunn. In season five, his character was transformed into a "take-no-prisoners" lawyer at the evil law firm Wolfram and Hart. In "Conviction," Richards returns to the "letter of the law" in his role as Billy Desmond, an ambitious and brilliant assistant district attorney who does not lose. On the big screen, Richards has appeared in the feature films "Why Do Fools Fall in Love?" and "Good Burger." He also starred in the television movies "Critical Assembly," "The Temptations" and "Mutiny." Richards also guest-starred on "The Practice," "Chicago Hope," "The Cosby Show" and "Any Day Now." Last summer, Richards won critical notices in Kenneth Lonergan's "Lobby Hero" at the prestigious Old Globe Theatre.
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Biography from IMDb.
- August 28, 1973 (53)
- Washington, District of Columbia, USA
- Actor
- 29 on MovieCove · 38 credits in all
What are J. August Richards' films like?
Across their 8 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Morality and Bonds.
Themes
Roles they play
Usually the Shadow: 3 of 4 analyzed roles.
- Allyas Charles Gunn in Angel (1999)
- Shadowas Travis Balden in Paved with Good Intentions (2006)
- Shadowas Bradley Gregorian in Notorious (2016)
- Shadowas Victor Dashkov in Vampire Academy (2022)
Moods and endings
- Bittersweet3
- Ambiguous5
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch J. August Richards' films?
As of October 24, 2026, 24 of their 29 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Pluto TV (9).
Subscription and free streaming for J. August Richards' titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
38 credits, 29 with a MovieCove page; 3 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

The Madison(2026)
Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all shows
Fire Country(2022)
Midcredits score: 55th percentile of all shows
The Rookie: Feds(2022)
Midcredits score: 11th percentile of all shows
Vampire Academy(2022)
Midcredits score: 39th percentile of all shows
Council of Dads (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2020)

The Rookie(2018)
Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all shows
Midcredits score: 78th percentile of all shows
Giants (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2017)

Notorious(2016)
Midcredits score: 34th percentile of all shows
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.(2013)
Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all shows
Emily Owens, M.D. (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2012)

Arrow(2012)
Midcredits score: 65th percentile of all shows
The Defenders(2010)
Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all shows
Warehouse 13(2009)
Midcredits score: 81st percentile of all shows
The Mentalist(2008)
Midcredits score: 96th percentile of all shows
Raising the Bar(2008)
Midcredits score: 57th percentile of all shows
Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
Conviction(2006)
Midcredits score: 43rd percentile of all shows
Grey's Anatomy(2005)
Midcredits score: 77th percentile of all shows
The 4400 (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2004)

Critical Assembly (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2003)

CSI: Miami(2002)
Midcredits score: 39th percentile of all shows
Angel(1999)
Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all shows
The West Wing(1999)
Midcredits score: 98th percentile of all shows
Mutiny (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1999)

The Temptations(1998)
Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all shows
Good Burger(1997)
Midcredits score: 49th percentile of all films
The Practice(1997)
Midcredits score: 82nd percentile of all shows
Clueless (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1996)

Nash Bridges(1996)
Midcredits score: 41st percentile of all shows
Moesha(1996)
Midcredits score: 18th percentile of all shows
Space: Above and Beyond (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1995)

JAG(1995)
Midcredits score: 43rd percentile of all shows
Sliders(1995)
Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all shows
Chicago Hope (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1994)

Diagnosis Murder(1993)
Midcredits score: 48th percentile of all shows
Family Matters(1989)
Midcredits score: 33rd percentile of all shows
The Cosby Show(1984)
Midcredits score: 62nd percentile of all shows
Career shape
Star power in the 87th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 38 titles from 1984 to 2026.
Film career
- 1997Screen debut· Good Burger
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.


