Devale Ellis

Devale Ellis (born April 2, 1984, in Brooklyn, New York) is an American actor and former football player. He was signed by the Detroit Lions as an undrafted free agent in 2006. He played college football at Hofstra. Ellis finished his career with 176 catches for 2,207 yards (a 12.5 per-catch average) and 22 touchdowns. As a senior in 2005, he led Hofstra with 74 receptions for 943 yards and five touchdowns. He ranked second in the Atlantic 10 in receptions, third in receiving yards, and ninth in all-purpose yards (103.8 yards per game). As a junior, with Colston sidelined all season with an injury, Ellis led the team ranked second in the Atlantic 10 and 11th in I-AA with 74 catches, good for 1,067 yards (a 14.4 average) and 13 touchdowns.

Football career He went undrafted in the 2006 NFL draft, but was signed as a free agent to the Detroit Lions as a wide receiver (WR) after participating in the rookie mini-camp as a tryout player. He was signed to the Lions eight man practice squad on September 3, 2006. Although he played in the season opener against the Seattle Seahawks on the September 9th, he was waived from the active roster on September 11, and shortly afterwards re-signed with the practice squad. As of October 15, he had been upgraded to the active roster and made his first start against the Buffalo Bills. Ellis was waived by the Lions during final cuts on August 30, 2008.

After spending the 2008 regular season out of football, Ellis was signed to a future contract by the Cleveland Browns on December 31, 2008. He was waived on July 26, 2009.

Acting career In 2010s, Ellis began acting guest-starring on television series including Power, The Mysteries of Laura, Gotham, The Blacklist and NCIS. In 2019 he was cast as a series regular in the BET comedy-drama series, Sistas. Ellis also had a recurring role in another BET series, Bigger from 2019 to 2021 and guest-starred on The Equalizer. In 2022 he appeared in the thriller film Single Black Female for Lifetime starring opposite Amber Riley and Raven Goodwin. Also that year, Ellis played male lead opposite Eva Marcille in the Oprah Winfrey Network comedy-drama television film, A Christmas Fumble. In 2021, it was announced that BET+ ordered Zatima, a spin-off starring Ellis and Crystal Renee Hayslett. The series premiered in 2022. In 2023, he was cast opposite Christina Milian in the Netflix romantic comedy film Meet Me Next Christmas.

Personal life He is married to Khadeen Joseph (b. 1983). Together they have four sons: Jackson Carter (b. 2011), Kairo Shakur (b. 2016), Kaz Hendrix (b. 2017) and Dakota Marley (b. 2021).Devale and Khadeen have a comedy filled YouTube channel called "The Ellises" where they showcase their family vlogs and skits. In 2019, they created a podcast called “Dead Ass” together where they share stories, opinions and give advice on love, marriage and business.

Filmography Film

Television Year Title Role Notes 2014 Young Like Us Trent 2 episodes 2015 Power Light Skin Episode: "Time's Up" 2016 The Mysteries of Laura Cyclist Episode: "The Mystery of the Downward Spiral" 2017 Gotham Orderly Episode: "Wrath of the Villains: Unleashed" 2017 The Blacklist Chuck Shaw Episode: "Dembe Zuma (No. 10)" 2017 Master of None Security Guard Episode: "New York, I Love You" 2017 Giving Me Life (in the Land of the Deadass) Randall Episode: "Nala" 2017–19 Makeup X Breakup Gavin 13 episodes 2017 Placeholders Lonely Heart 2 episodes 2017–18 Tough Love Joseph 5 episodes 2017 Vish Merrick Vish Merrick 10 episodes 2019 It's Bruno! Nelson 5 episodes 2019 NCIS Dante Brown Episode: "Institutionalized" 2021 The Equalizer Preacher / Reggie Floyd Episode: "Judgment Day" 2019–21 Bigger Ken 7 episodes 2019–present Sistas Zac Taylor Main role 2022 Everything's Trash Damien Washington Episode: "Rom-Coms Are Mostly Trash" 2022–present Zatima Zac Taylor Main role202361st Street Mason2 episodes