Richard Young – ACTRA Toronto Diversity Showcase

About Richard Young

From a South Asian (Indo-Caribbean) background, Richard Young is an actor, writer and two-time Canadian Screen Award-nominee. Screen Acting credits include Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent (CityTV), Transplant (NBC), Jett (Cinemax) and Kim’s Convenience (CBC). He also voiced the Na’vi alien Tukru in the Ubisoft video game Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, based on James Cameron’s iconic sci-fi movie franchise. Stage acting credits include the theatre adaptation of the Oscar-winning film Network (Citadel/Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre) and three productions of The New Canadian Curling Club (Thousand Islands Playhouse, Western Canada Theatre, Alberta Theatre Projects – Betty Ross Nominee: Best Ensemble).

Richard’s screenwriting credits include Overlord and the Underwoods (CBC/Nickelodeon), Dino Ranch (CBC/Disney+), 16 Hudson (TVO) and Maternal (CBC Reflections – Best Short: Caribbean Tales Film Festival). Before disappointing his immigrant parents by pursuing the arts, Richard earned a Bachelor of Science in Psychology (Queen’s University) and a Master of Business Administration (York University).

Watch Showcase Reel

What Inspired you to pursue acting?

On top of telling heartfelt, compelling stories, two things drive my artistic career: inclusion, and satire told through/speculative fiction or comedy. As a BIPOC artist, one of my acting goals is to reflect the diversity of the world we live in; it’s not just that we underrepresented need to see our stories, but these stories are exciting for everyone! As well, I act in and write speculative fiction (like science-fiction/fantasy) and comedy because metaphor and laughter are effective ways to comment on today’s societal ills. I am most fulfilled when I perform in projects with a deeper message that changes people’s hearts and minds.

What is your dream role?

Any role in a Damon Lindelof project. His acclaimed series, such as Watchmen, Mrs. Davis and The Leftovers, weave together fantastical elements with complex, real and nuanced characters. Episodes from his shows have left me in stitches or in tears because his characters are so full, desperate to make sense of their lives. I laugh or cry with them because I see myself in them. To play a character in a series like that would be a dream and an honour.