Ken Foree

KEN FOREE WAS RANKED NUMBER 4, OUT OF 300 FILM ACTION HEROES, BY EMPIRE MAGAZINE.

Born in Indianapolis, Indiana, Ken is a descendant of African, French, Indian, German, and Irish ancestry – a mutt, as he refers to himself. His family, noted for their academic and political achievements, was quite surprised, to say the least, at his decision to pursue acting. After college, Ken arrived in New York City and became a manager of the Walter Reade theater chain. He moved on to work as a counselor in the New York City high school system and later a community organizer and therapist certified by the State of New York. In the summer of 1973 he opened a photography studio in Manhattan. Three months later, the studio was broken into and he was robbed of everything. Ken was trying to figure out his next move when a few days later he met an actress who was on her way to an audition for the off-Broadway production of James Baldwin's Blues for Mr. Charlie. They chatted for a minute and she asked him to come along with her, and to make a long story short, the director asked him to audition for the play and he landed the lead role! After six weeks of rehearsal and opening at the Manhattan Theatre Club, he received rave reviews. Ken was hooked on acting.

He sought formal training at the renowned Michael Shulman's Performing Gallery. Mr. Shulman was a disciple of Lee Strasberg of The Actor’s Studio. Shortly after that he landed a guest starring role on the series Kojak and a role in the film The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars and Motor Kings opposite Richard Pryor, James Earl Jones and Billy Dee Williams. Continuing to work on his craft, Ken appeared in off-Broadway productions at La Mama, the W.P.A., CSC Repertory, etc. Backstage during a rehearsal for Uncle Tom’s Cabin, a fellow actor told him about an audition that he might be right for on a new indie horror picture that was generating a lot of under-ground buzz. He called, went in, and landed the role of “Peter Washington” in George A. Romero’s 1978, Dawn of the Dead. It proved to be a cult classic and in 2003 it marked its 25th anniversary and remains as popular as ever. The 1978 Dawn has proven to be Romero’s most financially successful film.

Ken has appeared in three popular franchises: Halloween, Texas Chain Massacre and Dawn of the Dead. He has also starred in Rob Zombie’s The Devil’s Rejects, Lords of Salem and El Super Beasto. The Dentist, Taking Care of Business and Hangfire, General Hospital, X Files and Babylon V are just a few of the over 50 film and TV shows that Ken has lent his talent to. He also starred in the Nickelodeon series The Kenan and Kel Show as Kenan Thompson’s father. He was honored with a tribute in the British film comedy, Shaun of the Dead, where his last name was used for the shop’s store “Foree Electric” and on the employees name tags. The film received awards for “Best Character” and “Best Horror Flick” at the 2004 IGN Entertainment Awards.

Currently, there are two of his films continuing a long run on Netflix and Amazon Prime; John Henry and The Rift. Ken has stepped behind the camera as a producer and writer as well. He continues his acting studies with Eric Morris. Ken is represented by Mike Eisenstadt of AEF Talent.

Ken currently resides in Los Angeles.

Interview recorded on 2022-02-05.

Below are some of the more fun excerpts from our episode with this guest. If you want to hear the real thought-provoking stuff you'll just have to check out the full interview!