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Who is Emmanuel Lewis?
American actor Emmanuel Lewis was born in Brooklyn, New York City USA, on 9 March 1971, making Pisces his zodiac sign. He has 16 acting credits, and although he hasn’t been active in the film industry since 2007, Emmanuel hasn’t officially retired from acting; he’s perhaps still known best for starring as Webster Long in all 150 episodes of the popular family comedy series “Webster”, which also starred Alex Karras and Susan Clark, and was created by Stu Silver. It follows George Papadapolis and his wife Katherine whose lives have changed now that George’s former football teammate’s orphaned son Webster has moved in with them; the series aired from 1983 through 1989 and won two of its 13 award nominations. This was also Emmanuel’s debut TV series role.
Education and early life
Emmanuel was raised in Brooklyn alongside his siblings Roscoe, Chris and Lizziebeth, by their mother Margaret Lewis who was a computer scientist, and father whose name and profession remain undisclosed.
Emmanuel became interested in acting at a very early age, and was nine when he finally convinced his mother to start taking him to auditions. He was 11 when he made his debut film appearance, portraying Human Child in the 1982 fantasy comedy “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”, which starred James Hurdle and Diane Venora, and was directed by Emile Ardolino. It follows Theseus who’s defeated Hippolyta in a battle, and has now made her his bride.
Emmanuel continued acting parallel to attending school. He studied at Midwood High School, from which he matriculated in 1989, and he then attended Clark Atlanta University, but only the fall semester every year, because he spent the summer, winter and spring acting, so only finally graduating with a Bachelor’s degree in 1997.
Roles in movies
Emmanuel appeared in the 1984 family drama “The Secret World of the Very Young”, which starred John Ritter and Shelley Duvall, and was directed by Sterling Johnson. It follows the lives of several preschoolers, and the film was nominated for a 1985 Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Individual Achievement – Informational Programming for Ruth Gordon.
Emmanuel could then have been seen appearing in the 1984 family drama “A Christmas Dream” and the 1985 drama “Lost in London”. Concentrating on TV shows, his following film role came 10 years later, when cast to voice Publisher in the 1995 animated family fantasy “The New Adventures of Mother Goose”.
In 2002, he played a supporting character in the popular comedy “Frank McKlusky, C. I.”, which starred Dave Sheridan and Cameron Richardson, and was directed by Arlene Sanford. It follows an insurance agent whose work partner’s just been murdered.
Emmanuel was then cast to appear in the 2003 comedy “Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star”, which starred Alyssa Milano and David Spade, and was directed by Sam Weisman. It follows a former child actor who’s now in his 30s, and has hired a foster family because he didn’t have a childhood; the movie won one of its two award nominations.
Emmanuel’s only other film role has been in the 2007 sports comedy “Kickin’ It Old Skool”.
Roles in TV series
Emmanuel played Timmy Somers in the 1984 episode “Only the Good Die Young” of the romantic comedy “The Love Boat”, and he spent the remainder of the decade focused on shooting for “Webster”, thus not appearing in any other series.
In 1996, he appeared in the episode “Close Encounters of the Worst Kind” of the comedy “In the House”, which starred Maia Campbell and LL Cool J, and was created by Winifred Hervey. It follows a Football Player who’s spent all of his money, and has now been forced to rent part of his house to a single mother and her two children; the series aired from 1995 through 1999 and won one of its 11 award nominations.
Emmanuel could then have been seen appearing in an episode of the adventure comedy “Family Matters”, the family comedy “Moesha”, and the comedy “Malcolm & Eddie”.
The year 1999 saw him play a supporting character in the episode “Buried” of the action science fiction comedy “Good vs Evil”, which starred Clayton Rohner and Richard Brooks, and was created by Jonas and Josh Pate. It follows the heavenly Corps agents as they’re fighting the demonic Morlocks in Hollywood, Los Angeles and the series was nominated for only a single award.
Emmanuel’s only other TV series role has been an appearance in the 2005 episode “Where’s My Yemmy?” of the comedy “One on One”.
Other credits
Emmanuel sang the song “Big Day Ahead” in the 1984 movie “The Secret World of the Very Young”.
He competed in the game-show “The Surreal Life: Fame Games” in 2007.
Emmanuel made a guest appearance in two episodes of the 2012 talk-show “The Hour”, and in an episode of the 2013 talk-show “Between Two Ferns with Zach Galifianakis”.
He appeared in the 2013 short movie “#Deception”.
Emmanuel co-produced the 2022 comedy movie “The American King – As told by an African Priestess”.
Awards and nominations
Emmanuel won four People’s Choice Awards for Favorite Young Performer from 1984 through 1987, and was nominated for four Young Artist Awards for Best Young Actor in a Comedy Series from 1984 through 1987, all for his performance in “Webster”.
Love life and relationships
Emmanuel’s highly secretive when it comes to speaking about his love life, and there are no women, and/or perhaps men whom he’s been with, that we know about.
Most of Emmanuel’s fans believe that he has a hard time finding a partner because of his height, while some have recently claimed to have seen him spending time with his girlfriend in public in Los Angeles; Emmanuel hasn’t commented on any of these rumors.
There are also those who believe him to be gay, but these rumors haven’t been confirmed either.
Emmanuel seems to be unattached as of July 2023, hasn’t married and doesn’t have children.
Interesting facts and hobbies
Emmanuel’s mother took great care of him when he launched his acting career, and he credits her with keeping him off the destructive path which many other child stars have travelled by.
He didn’t allow fame to get to him, and unlike some other stars who were driven to film sets in limousines, Emmanuel’s mother drove him to the set and back of “Webster” every day.
He was friends with the late American singer-songwriter Michael Jackson.
Emmanuel became a businessman in the 2010s, a co-owner of a car wash service and a limousine company; he had previously founded his record label Emmanuel Lewis Entertainment in June 2000.
He was two when his parents divorced, and he then lived with his mother.
Johnny Depp’s one of Emmanuel’s favorite actors, and some of his favorite movies include “Edward Scissorhands”, the franchise “Pirates of the Caribbean” and “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory”.
Height, eyes and wealth
Emmanuel’s age is 52. His eyes are brown and hair is black, he’s 4ft 3ins (1.3m) tall and weighs around 90lbs (40kgs); Emmanuel isn’t suffering from any condition, and the doctors haven’t been able to find a reason behind his short stature.
Emmanuel’s net worth’s been estimated at over $600,000, as of July 2023.
