S. Epatha Merkerson (born Sharon Epatha Merkerson) is an American film, stage, and television actress. She has won a Golden Globe, Emmy Awards, a Screen Actors Guild Award, Obie Award, 4 NAACP Image Awards, and 2 Tony Award nominations. She is best known for her role as NYPD Lieutenant Anita Van Buren (1993–2010) on the long-running NBC police procedural drama series Law & Order, as well as the Law & Order TV movie Exiled. She appeared in 390 episodes of the series, more than any other cast member. She has a starring role as Sharon Goodwin on NBC's Chicago Med. She also had a recurring role as Reba (the mail carrier) on Pee-wee's Playhouse, and Ms. St. Marth on the TV series Here and Now. She has appeared in feature films including She's Gotta Have It, Loose Cannons, Jacob's Ladder, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Random Hearts, Radio, Black Snake Moan, Lincoln (2012), and Peeples. She has also appeared in TV movies including A Place for Annie, A Mother's Prayer, Breaking Through, Lac...
Terminator 2: Judgment Day
1991
Eye for an Eye
2025
Lincoln
2012
Radio
2003
Jersey Girl
2004
Jacob's Ladder
1990
Black Snake Moan
2006
Slipstream
2007
Navy Seals
1990
Mother and Child
2009
Peeples
2013
Random Hearts
1999
Barbecue
2020
Loose Cannons
1990
Exiled
1998
The Six Wives of Henry Lefay
2009
Girl, Positive
2007
We Grown Now
2024
Pee-wee's Playhouse Christmas Special
1988
Lackawanna Blues
2005
She's Gotta Have It
1986
You Can Go
2016
A Place for Annie
1994
The Challenger
2015
After the SIlence
1996
The Great Work Begins: Scenes from Angels in America
2020
An Unexpected Life
1998
The Gabby Douglas Story
2014
Life's Essentials with Ruby Dee
2014
The Best of The Tony Awards: The Plays
2006
A Mother's Prayer
1995
Moe's World
1990
Year by the Sea
2016
Blood Sugar Rising
2020
Paul Robeson: Here I Stand
1999
It's Nothing Personal
1993
The Rising Place
2001