The Wire Cast: Where Are They Now?

Veteran detective Lester Freamon is the surprise package of The Wire’s first season. The miniature doll-carving old timer seems unlikely to contribute much to the case, but as played with a twinkle by Clarke Peters turns out to be the greatest investigative force in the city of Baltimore.

Since wrapping The Wire, Peters has maintained a connection with David Simon, appearing like several of his cohorts on The Deuce, and enjoying a major role across Treme. In a major departure from the buttoned-down Freamon, he portrayed Albert Lambreaux, a flamboyant Mardi Gras Indian Chief, swapping glasses and pullovers for feather boas and pageantry.

Peters has appeared in a couple of Spike Lee joints, most recently this year’s excellent Da 5 Bloods, a Vietnam epic with a major role for the actor. He also had a smaller role in the Oscar winning Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.

With his sonorous voice and undeniable presence, he maintains an active theatre career, most notably starring in Othello alongside good pal Dominic West for a UK staging.