Eleanor Roosevelt High School (ERHS) graduate Tramell Tillman has won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for his performance as Seth Milchick in the Apple TV+ series Severance (for more on Tillman and that role see our May 8 issue). Tillman makes history as the first Black man to win the award. He’s also the first openly gay man to be nominated for an Emmy in that category.
Tillman, 40, was born in Washington, D.C., and grew up in Largo. He was the youngest of six children and his debut theatrical performance was a church musical production at the age of 10. He graduated from ERHS in 2003 and went on to attend Xavier University of Louisiana, then transferred to graduate with a degree in mass communications from Jackson State University. He worked for a nonprofit assisting children impacted by hurricanes, performing on the side. When he decided to pursue a career on stage, his entry to graduate school was delayed by the need to continue working but he eventually went to the University of Tennessee to study acting. He graduated at the top of his class in 2014 at the age of 29, the first Black man to graduate with a master of fine arts degree.
Tillman rose to fame for his performance in Severance and this year he starred in Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning. He is currently filming Spider-Man: Brand New Day, set to air next year. Tillman now lives in New York.
