
Ernie Hudson
Biography
Earnest Lee Hudson (born December 17, 1945) is an American actor. He is known for his role as Winston Zeddemore in the Ghostbusters franchise. Hudson has also acted in the films Leviathan (1989), The Hand That Rocks the Cradle (1992), The Crow (1994), Airheads (1994), The Basketball Diaries (1995), Congo (1995), Miss Congeniality (2000), and The Ron Clark Story (2006).
His most prominent role on television was Warden Leo Glynn on HBO's Oz (1997–2003). Hudson has also appeared in the television shows St. Elsewhere (1984), The Last Precinct (1986), 10-8: Officers on Duty (2003–2004), Desperate Housewives (2006–2007), The Secret Life of the American Teenager (2008–2013), Law & Order (2009–2010), the voice of Agent Bill Fowler in Transformers: Prime (2010–2013), Franklin & Bash (2012–2014), Grace and Frankie (2015–2020), and L.A.'s Finest (2019–2020). From 2022 to 2024, Hudson appeared as Herbert "Magic" Williams on the NBC drama Quantum Leap.
Gallery





Known For
Acting History
2026
Toy Story 5 as Combat Carl (voice)
2025Boston Blue as Rev. Edwin Peters
2025FEEL as Sitter 10
2024Angry Birds Mystery Island as Marlon (voice)
2024Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire as Winston Zeddemore
2023The Retirement Plan as Joseph
2023Prisoner's Daughter as Hank
2023Champions as Coach Phil Peretti
2022Quantum Leap as Herbert 'Magic' Williams
2022The Jennifer Hudson Show as Self
2022Sherri as Self - Guest
2022In Search of Tomorrow as Self - Interviewee
2021Beebo Saves Christmas as Santa Claus (voice)
2021Ghostbusters: Afterlife as Winston Zeddemore
2021Star Wars: The Bad Batch as Grini Millegi (voice)
2021Redemption Day as Ed Paxton
2020Home Movie: The Princess Bride as Prince Humperdinck
2020Reunited Apart as Self
2020Cleanin' Up the Town: Remembering Ghostbusters as Self
2019Adventure Force 5 as Dr. Lawrence Abel
2019The Movies That Made Us as Winston Zeddemore (archive footage)
2019The Kelly Clarkson Show as Self
2019Infinity Train as Atticus (voice)
2019City on a Hill as Franklin Ward
2019L.A.'s Finest as Joseph Vaughn
2019The Masked Singer as Self - Special Guest
2018Carl Weber's The Family Business as L.C. Duncan
2018Nappily Ever After as Richard Jones
2018High & Outside: A Baseball Noir as Sanzone
2017APB as Ned Conrad
2016Heaven Sent as Donatello
2016Infinity Train as Atticus (voice)
2016Graves as Jacob Mann
2016MacGyver as Milton Bozer
2016Lethal Weapon as Hank Peterson
2016Spaceman as Joe
2016Ghostbusters as Uncle Bill
2016Ghostheads as Self
2016God's Not Dead 2 as Judge Stennis
2016Batman: Bad Blood as Lucius Fox (voice)
2016Angie Tribeca as Pete Tribeca
2016The Man in the Silo as Marcus Wells
2015Ballers as Mr. Hagerty
2015Grace and Frankie as Jacob
2015Gallows Road as Bob Collins
2015Horror Icon: Inside Michael's Mask with Tony Moran as Self
2014Merry Ex-Mas as Pastor Ed
2014You're Not You as John
2014Touched as Dr. Beck
2014Scorpion as Brooks
2014To Hell and Back as Joe
2014The Grim Sleeper as Detective Gerry Claymar
2014Late Night with Seth Meyers as Self
2014Showing Up as Self
2014The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon as Self
2014The Last Song as Guest
2013Dear Secret Santa as Pastor Avery
2013Doonby as Leroy Jackson
2013The Millers as Walter
2013Ironside as Bludso
2013Turning Point as Joe Johnson
2013Call Me Crazy: A Five Film as Percy
2013Battledogs as Max Stevens
2013The Last Leg as Self
2012Ambush at Dark Canyon as Cyrus Parker
2012Arrow as Roy Stewart
2012Deer Crossing as Captain Bailey
2012Guys with Kids as The Judge
2012Beverly Hills Chihuahua 3: Viva la Fiesta! as Pedro (voice)
2012The Adventures of Mickey Matson and the Copperhead Conspiracy as Ivan Stumpwater
2012Beautiful People as Jack
2012Scandal as Commander Randolph Boles
2012Comic Book Men as Self
2012Key & Peele as Dad
2011Once Upon a Time as King Poseidon
2011Hart of Dixie as Ernie Hayes
2011Underground Entertainment: The Movie as Ernie
2011Franklin & Bash as Judge Lawrence Perry
2011Deep Blue Breath as Lord Vater (voice)
2011Game of Death as Clarence
2011Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2 as Pedro
2010Transformers: Prime as Agent William Fowler (voice)
2010Nowhere to Land as Danny Gorlin
2010Blue Bloods as Darryl Ward
2010Stasis as Stranger
2010Rizzoli & Isles as Admiral Frost
2010Hot in Cleveland as Ernie Hudson
2010Machete Joe as Sheriff Taylor
2010Smokin' Aces 2: Assassins' Ball as Anthony Vejar
2009White Collar as Mr. Jeffries
2009Celebrity Ghost Stories as Self
2009Modern Family as Miles
2009Meteor as Gen. Brasser
2009Pastor Brown as Deacon Harold Todd
2009Dragonball Evolution as Master Mutaito
2009Fatal Secrets as Detective Carter
2009Lonely Street as Captain Morgan
2008Childrens Hospital as Hubert McGraw
2008The Secret Life of the American Teenager as Dr. Ken Fields
2008Final Approach as Agent Lorenzo Dawson
2007Private Practice as Captain Frank
2007All Hat as Jackson Jones
2007Nobel Son as Bill Canega
2006Torchwood as Stuart Owens
2006Heroes as Captain Lubbock
2006The Ron Clark Story as Principal Turner
2006Psych as William Guster
2006Snoop Dogg's Hood of Horror as Roscoe
2006Marilyn Hotchkiss' Ballroom Dancing & Charm School as Blake Rische
2005Halfway Decent as Tom
2005Criminal Minds as Lt. Al Garner
2005How I Met Your Mother as Ernie Hudson
2005Bones as David Barron
2005Fighting the Odds: The Marilyn Gambrell Story as Perry Beasley
2005Grey's Anatomy as Brad McDougall
2005Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous as Harry McDonald
2005Robot Chicken as Detective Ernie / Judge Hudson Jr. / Justin's Dad (voice)
2005Lackawanna Blues as Dick Barrymore
2005Confessions of an Action Star as Self / Commander
2004Desperate Housewives as Detective Ridley
2004Clifford's Really Big Movie as P.T. (voice)
2003Cold Case as Moses Jones
200310-8: Officers on Duty as Senior Deputy John Henry Barnes
2003Las Vegas as Bob Casey
2003Anne B. Real as Principal
2002Without a Trace as Manny Aybar
2002Everwood as Bill Hoover
2001A Town Without Christmas as Ted
2001Crossing Jordan as Colonel Wirth
2001Walking Shadow as Hawk
2000Miss Congeniality as Harry McDonald
2000Paper Bullets as Detective Ron Mills
2000Everything's Jake as Jake
2000The Watcher as FBI Special Agent in Charge Mike Ibby
2000Red Letters as Detective Glen Teal
1999A Stranger in the Kingdom as Rev. Walter Andrews
1999Shark Attack as Lawrence Rhodes
1999Interceptors as Major
1999Hijack as Senator Douglas Wilson
1999Michael Jordan: An American Hero
1999Stealth Fighter as President Westwood
1998October 22 as Arthur
1998Butter as Curtis '8-Ball' Harris
1998Best of the Best 4: Without Warning as Detective Gresko
1997Mr. Magoo as Agent CIA Gus Anders
1997Clover as Gaten Hill
1997The View as Self
1997Stargate SG-1 as Pernaux
1997Fakin' Da Funk as Joe Lee
1997Oz as Leo Glynn
1997Levitation as Downbeat
1997Operation Delta Force as Major Tipton
1996The Cherokee Kid as Nat Love aka Deadwood Dick
1996Just Your Luck as Willie
1996Superman: The Animated Series as Professor Felix (voice)
1996For Which He Stands as DEA Agent Baxter
1996Tornado! as Dr. Joe Branson
1996The Substitute as Claude Rolle
1995Congo as Captain Monroe Kelly
1995The Basketball Diaries as Reggie
1994Speechless as Ventura
1994Touched by an Angel as Norm McCloud
1994ER as Colonel James Gallant
1994Airheads as Sergeant O'Malley
1994The Cowboy Way as Officer Sam 'Mad Dog' Shaw
1994The Crow as Albrecht
1994No Escape as Hawkins
1994Sugar Hill as Lolly Jonas
1993Wild Palms as Tommy Lazlo
1992The Ben Stiller Show
1992Angel Street as Thurman Nickens
1992Batman: The Animated Series as Security Guard (voice)
1992The Hand That Rocks the Cradle as Solomon
1990Broken Badges as Toby Baker
1990Law & Order as Frank Gibson
1990Twin Peaks as Colonel Davis
1989The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!
1989Ghostbusters II as Winston Zeddemore
1989Tales from the Crypt as Zambini
1989Collision Course as Shortcut
1989Leviathan as Justin Jones
1989Trapper County War as Jefferson Carter
1988The Dirty Dozen: The Fatal Mission as Joe Hamilton
1988The Wrong Guys as Dawson
1987Weeds as Bagdad
1987Full House as Reggie "The Sandman" Martin
1986The Last Precinct as Sergeant Lane
1986The Last Precinct as Night Train
1985Love on the Run as Lamar
1985The Insiders as Brewster
1985The Super Powers Team: Galactic Guardians as Cyborg (voice)
1985California Girls as Ernie
1984Joy of Sex as Mr. Porter
1984Ghostbusters as Winston Zeddemore
1983Two of a Kind as Det. Skaggs
1983Women of San Quentin as Charles Wilson
1983Going Berserk as Muhammed Jerome Willy
1983Webster
1983Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone as Washington
1983The A-Team as Cal Freeman
1982The New Odd Couple as Moses Brown
1982St. Elsewhere as Jerry Close
1982Penitentiary II as Half Dead
1981Crazy Times as Harold 'Jazzman' Malloy
1981A Matter of Life and Death as Mr. Harrison
1981Flamingo Road
1981Underground Aces as African General
1980The Jazz Singer as Heckler
1980Bosom Buddies
1980The Octagon as Quinine
1980White Mama as Counsellor
1980The $5.20 an Hour Dream as Homer Burden
1980Skag
1979Detective School
1979The Main Event as Killer
1979Joni as Earl
1979Highcliffe Manor as Smythe
1979Roots: The Next Generations as Muslim at Door
1978The White Shadow as Johnson
1978Diff'rent Strokes
1978Taxi as Terry Carver
1978Last of the Good Guys as El Coliph
1978Fantasy Island as Jamu
1977Mad Bull as Black Bart
1977The Incredible Hulk as Lee
1977Man from Atlantis IV: The Disappearances as Minion
1976The Human Tornado as Bo
1976Leadbelly as Archie
1974Little House on the Prairie as William Thomas
1973Super Friends as Cyborg (voice)
—Sisters in Italy
—Oswald: Down The Rabbit Hole as Oswald Jebediah Coleman
—Famous
—Beautiful People as Jack
—Mr. Beebee as Wayne Proctor
—Deepest, Darkest









