What is Lance Gross's Net Worth?
Lance Gross is an American actor and model who has a net worth of $1.5 million. Lance Gross is best known for portraying Calvin Payne on Tyler Perry's cable television sitcom "House of Payne" which has aired over 300 episodes – more than any other television series with a predominantly African American cast – and which has netted him four NAACP Awards.
Early Years
Lance Gross was born in Oakland, California on July 8, 1981, to a Ghanaian father and an African American mother.
Lance Gross graduated from Bonanza High School in Nevada and went on to Howard University, a private federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C., from which he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in theater. After college, Lance Gross studied acting at the Ivanna Chubbuck Studio and the Tasha Smith Acting Studio.
Modeling
Lance Gross began his modeling career by working for Costa Rican fashion designer Karl Kani, the originator of the urban street fashion worn by many of the hip-hop elite. Lance Gross went on to model in campaigns for American fashion designers Perry Ellis and Marc Jacobs. He has also appeared in music videos for Mary J. Blige, Rihanna and Mariah Carey.
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Television
In 2006, Lance Gross appeared in the American television sitcoms "Eve" and "The Bernie Mac Show." That same year, he was cast as young professional Calvin Payne in Tyler Perry's new sitcom "House of Payne" which concerned a multi-generational Atlanta family all living under one roof.
In 2014, Lance Gross starred in the political drama "Crisis" on NBC and, the following year, guest-starred as Dr. Ethan Boyd in two episodes of the medical drama "Grey's Anatomy" and joined the cast of the American supernatural drama series "Sleepy Hollow" which aired on Fox.
From 2017 to 2019, Lance Gross portrayed the character of Maurice Jetter in the musical drama series "Star." During 2018, he took a recurring role on the television sitcom "The Paynes," which served as a sequel to "House of Payne" and aired on the Oprah Winfrey Network. That same year, he co-starred in the mini-series "The Bobby Brown Story" in which he played musical performer Bobby Brown's brother-in-law Steven Sealy.
In 2021, Lance Gross starred as Tyrique Chapman in the Fox dramatic television series "Our Kind of People" which follows the lives of upper-class African Americans who summer in Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts.
Film
Lance Gross made his film debut in 2008 in the romantic comedy-drama "Meet the Browns," which starred American actress Angela Bassett. Lance Gross next appeared in the 2010 film "Our Family Wedding" with actress America Ferrera.
In 2012, Lance Gross starred in the independent film "The Last Fall," about a retired football player struggling with personal and financial difficulties.
The 2013 film "Temptation: Confessions of a Marriage Counselor" was a romantic drama which paired Lance Gross with American actress Jurnee Smollett.
Lance Gross starred in the Netflix American crime drama "Deuces" in 2016 and, in 2017, the crime drama "When Love Kills: The Falicia Blakely Story" about a teenage mother who becomes a stripper, pimp and predator. The film received two nominations at the 49th NAACP Image Awards.
In 2021, Lance Gross played the leading role in the crime drama film "Dutch." He starred in the romantic comedy "Unthinkably Good Things" in 2022 and, the next year, in the action thriller "Call Her King."
Accolades
Lance Gross has won four National Association for the Advancement of Colored People Image Awards for "Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series" for his role in "House of Payne."
In 2021, Lance Gross was initiated into Kappa Alpha Psi, a historically African American fraternity founded at Indiana University Bloomington in 1911.
Talents
Lance Gross is a skilled photographer who has published a book of his photographs called "Dijon: A Journey Through Lens." He is also skilled on the piano and the drums.
Philanthropy
Lance Gross has donated financially to several worthwhile causes such as the Boys & Girls Club of America and the United Negro College Fund.
Personal Life
Lance Gross became engaged to American actress Eva Marcille, who he had been dating for two years, in 2008. They separated in 2010 and, on May 23, 2015, he married fashion stylist Rebecca Jefferson. They have two children; daughter Berkeley born in 2014 and son Lennon born in 2018.
