Williams acted in a 1990 Fullerton College production of
William Shakespeare's tragedy,
Othello, which was directed by Tom Blank. He also acted in another production in the same year at Fullerton College called
Red Noses, a
black comedy produced by
Peter Barnes and directed by
Michael Fields. Williams has appeared on many TV series since 1994, including
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine,
Beverly Hills, 90210,
NYPD Blue,
Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman,
JAG,
Living Single,
Nash Bridges,
Providence,
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,
Veronica Mars,
The West Wing,
Close to Home,
ER, and ''
Grey's Anatomy. He was the fifth cast member in the original pilot for Will & Grace'', playing Will's law firm partner, but was dropped during rehearsals because director Jim Burrows said they didn't need his character. He portrayed
Talak'talan, a
Jem'Hadar leader in the Star Trek series, in a
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "
The Jem'Hadar". Williams joined the
Prison Break cast by playing
The Company's assassin, Wyatt Mathewson. He appeared in the final season of
Friday Night Lights as Ornette Howard, father of East Dillon's star quarterback Vince Howard. He also starred alongside
Rachel Bilson on
The CW series
Hart of Dixie as former football star turned mayor Lavon Hayes. From 2018 to 2021, he has ventured back into adaptations of
DC Comics: As main character
Jefferson Pierce / Black Lightning on The CW's superhero TV series
Black Lightning, which was integrated into
Arrowverse's prime Earth during
Crisis on Infinite Earths, and as
John Henry Irons in the animated film
The Death of Superman and its 2019 sequel,
Reign of the Supermen. After his
Black Lightning series concluded, he reprised the role on
The Flash at the start of its eighth season as part of its "Armageddon" event. == Personal life ==