LaMonica Garrett
| Name | LaMonica Garrett |
| Image |  |
| Caption | Garrett in 2022 speaking at a panel for The Terminal List |
| Birth Date | 1975-5-23 |
| Birth Place | San Francisco, California, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years Active | 2003–present |
| Spouse | Mina Ivanova (2017 – now) |
| Children | 1 |
LaMonica Garrett (born May 23, 1975) is an American actor and former professional Slamball player. He is best known for his roles as Deputy Sheriff Cane in the FX series Sons of Anarchy (2011–2014), Mike Ritter in the ABC/Netflix series Designated Survivor (2016–2018), John in Primal (2019), Mar Novu / Monitor and Anti-Monitor in the Arrowverse (2018–2020), Thomas in the Paramount+ series 1883 (2021–2022), and Tucker in the Paramount+ series Lioness (2023).
Early years and sports career
LaMonica Garrett was born in San Francisco, California. He was named after former Oakland Raiders quarterback Daryle Lamonica, of whom his parents were fans. During high school, Garrett was a football player. When his family moved to Los Angeles, he and a friend were transferred to Burbank High School. Garrett has said that although his friend made the varsity team, he was held back on the junior varsity team due to his ego and attitude. In an interview with Muscle and Fitness magazine, he refers to this setback as a "wake-up call, which taught him both humility and accountability—and drove him into the gym."
Because of this, Garrett started working out more intensively and managed to excel on offense. After high school, he attended a Los Angeles junior college where he played as a linebacker. Eventually, Garrett transferred to Central State University in Ohio where he continued to play. At one point, he led the team in tackles. Garrett was interested in joining the NFL, but despite having what he called "a great Pro Day" and having some workouts with the Detroit Lions and the Los Angeles Rams, he was not picked up.
Garrett had always been interested in acting, so he moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in entertainment. In the meantime, he worked as a FedEx driver to pay for acting classes. Garrett also started playing Slamball, a hybrid between basketball and football played with trampolines. During his time playing, he became the league's leading scorer and one of four players announced for the All Slamball Team.
Acting career
While still a Slamball player, Garrett landed a role on an episode of One Tree Hill that had a Slamball-related storyline. After that, he signed with an agent and continued to get minor roles in TV shows like Hawthorne, CSI: Miami, and NCIS, as well as films like Transformers: Dark of the Moon. In 2011, Garrett started a recurring role as Deputy Sheriff Cane on FX's Sons of Anarchy. He appeared in 17 episodes from 2011 to 2014.
In 2016, Garrett landed two key roles; the first one, as Lieutenant TAO Cameron Burk on TNT's The Last Ship, and the second as Secret Service agent Mike Ritter on ABC's Designated Survivor. David Guggenheim, creator and executive producer of the latter, said they "needed someone who could throw President Tom Kirkman into a car", but that had "an emotional core goodness". The character of Mike Ritter became a fan favorite and Garrett remained with the show through the first two seasons, until its initial cancelation. After the show was picked up by Netflix, Garrett confirmed on Twitter that after "lengthy negotiations" he would not return due to budget constraints.
In late 2018, he was cast as Mar Novu / The Monitor in the Arrowverse crossover event "Elseworlds" on The CW, which connects storylines from The Flash, Arrow, and Supergirl. He reprised the role throughout the spring 2019 episodes of Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl, and Legends of Tomorrow. He was later upgraded to a series regular for those shows, as well as Batwoman, to ensure his availability for all appearances prior to and in the "Crisis on Infinite Earths" crossover. In July 2019, it was announced that Garrett would also be portraying the Anti-Monitor in the crossover.
In 2021, Garrett was cast as Thomas in 1883, a spin-off of the Paramount Network show Yellowstone.
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Director | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Transformers: Dark of the Moon | Morshower's Aide | Michael Bay | |
| 2019 | Primal | John Ringer | Nick Powell | |
| Clemency | Logan Cartwright | Chinonye Chukwu | ||
| 2020 | DC: Crisis on Infinite Earths | Mar Novu/Monitor | AListProductions | Short fan film |
| 2025 | Osiris | Rhodie | William Kaufman | |
| 2026 | Sheriff 'Herc' Hitchens | Greg Jonkajtys |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Dog Eat Dog | Himself | Contestant |
| 2008 | One Tree Hill | Jerome | Episode: "Sympathy for the Devil" |
| 2011–2014 | Sons of Anarchy | Deputy Sheriff Cane | 17 episodes |
| 2012 | Suits | Roberto Solis | Episode: "Asterisk" |
| 2012–2013 | Mike & Molly | James | 2 episodes |
| 2012 | Political Animals | Agent Clark | 3 episodes |
| 2014 | Modern Family | Bouncer | Episode: "Haley's 21st Birthday" |
| 2016–2018 | Designated Survivor | Mike Ritter | Main role (season 1-2); 38 episodes |
| The Last Ship | Lt. TAO Cameron Burk | 15 episodes | |
| 2018–2019 | Supergirl | Mar Novu / Monitor Anti-Monitor | Guest star (season 4), Main (season 5); 5 episodes |
| 2018–2020 | Arrow | Guest star (season 7), Main (season 8); 8 episodes | |
| 2018–2019 | The Flash | Guest star (season 5), Main (season 6); 6 episodes | |
| 2019–2020 | Legends of Tomorrow | Guest star (season 4), Main (season 5); 2 episodes | |
| 2019 | Batwoman | Main (season 1); 2 episodes | |
| 2020 | Curb Your Enthusiasm | Officer Harris | Episode: "Insufficient Praise" |
| 2021 | Delilah | Casey Landon | |
| Brooklyn Nine-Nine | FBI Agent Feingold | "The Set Up" | |
| 2021–2022 | 1883 | Thomas | Main |
| 2022 | The Terminal List | Commander Bill Cox | Recurring Role; 5 episodes |
| 2023–present | Special Ops: Lioness | Tucker | Main role |
Video games
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Fight Night Champion | Andre Bishop | |
| Need for Speed: The Run | Rival Racer 2 / Highway Patrolman | ||
| 2019 | Call of Duty: Modern Warfare | Sergeant Griggs |
References
- Why rising actor LaMonica Garrett should be on your radar - AOL Entertainment, 15 July 2016, Aol.com, 2018-01-28
- Petski, Denise, ABC's 'Designated Survivor' Casts Garrett LaMonica, Deadline, 2016-03-01, 2018-01-28
- 'Designated Survivor' actor LaMonica Garrett goes from High School Football Player to Hollywood Star, Weinreb, Micheal, 24 October 2017, Muscle and Fitness, December 11, 2018
- LaMonica Garrett on Twitter, Twitter, September 21, 2018
- Designated Survivor star opens up about being dropped from the cast for season 3, Lee, Jess, Digital Spy, November 3, 2019, November 4, 2019
- Arrowverse Crossover Theme Is 'Elseworlds,' Casts Multiverse Observer, TVLine, Mitovich, Matt, September 26, 2018, September 26, 2018
- "Crisis on Infinite Earths": LaMonica Garrett to Play the Anti-Monitor, Anderson, Jenna, Comicbook.com, July 20, 2019, July 22, 2019
- '1883': Meet the Cast & Characters of the 'Yellowstone' Prequel, MSN, 25 August 2021, 2 January 2022
- Crisis' Monitor Lends Voice to Epic Marvel/DC vs. Doctor Manhattan Fan Film, 3 February 2020
- Dog Eat Dog: Episode 13 "High Heel Balance Challenge", en, 2022-03-17
External links
Category:1975 births
Category:21st-century American male actors
Category:American male film actors
Category:American male television actors
Category:American male video game actors
Category:Living people
Category:Male actors from San Francisco
Category:21st-century African-American male actors
Category:20th-century African-American male actors
Category:20th-century American male actors