Who Am I?

Leonard Douglas Thomas, affectionately known as ‘Lenny’ is quickly making a name for himself as a talent to watch and you can currently see him starring in Tyler Perry’s Ruthless, the spinoff of BET’s popular drama, The Oval. Ruthless premiered on BET+ March 19 (2020) and follows the story of a woman named Ruth who kidnaps her young daughter to join her in the dark underworld of a fanatical religious cult. Lenny excels in the role of ‘Dikahn’, second hand man to ‘The Highest’ (Matt Cedeño) who is the cult’s god.

To date, booking Ruthless is one of Lenny’s most rewarding moments as an actor as it was done entirely through self-tape. The whole experience was a whirlwind and adrenaline rush as he booked the role on a Thursday, had his bags
packed and headed to Atlanta on Sunday and was shooting by the following Wednesday. Lenny’s favorite part of playing the menacing character is having the opportunity to tell the story of someone who had the opportunity to redeem themselves, but instead chose not to and is now paying the price. Lenny also stars in the comedy short, Puppet Seizure, as well as the independent thriller, Blood Conscious, both set to be released this year.

Born and raised in New York City, Lenny attended Midtown West School, a performance and art based elementary school in Manhattan however, acting didn’t become an interest of his until a few years later. As a kid, Lenny dreamed of becoming a professional football player but that path was quickly derailed when he was hit by a car at age 13. In his junior year of high school Lenny’s Spanish teacher taught improv as an elective class and he knew the moment he dipped his toes in, that performing was something he wanted to pursue.

The following year Lenny was cast in a play called Take the Giant Step and after the performance his teacher encouraged him to continue to pursue and hone his talent. With that advice in mind, Lenny went on to take community college classes as a liberal arts major which is where he learned about local acting conservatories. Lenny joined Neighborhood Playhouse School of Theater which he says, “shot him out of the cannon”. Studying at the conservatory was a game change for him and is where he confirmed acting is what he was meant to do.

In 2016, after spending many years of studying his craft under James Brill and performing in local theater, Lenny signed with and agent and landed his first television role as a Costar in USA’s Falling Water just a month later. Lenny has since gone on to book several television and film projects including: The Breaks (VH1), I Am Homicide (Investigation Discovery), The Blacklist (NBC), The Things In Between, and The Dark Room (shorts), to name a few.

In his free time, Lenny enjoys sharpening his cinematography skills and creating fun, engaging content with fellow actors and friends. He leans to video games and yoga to clear his mind and is in the process of developing and recording his first motivational podcast. Lenny currently resides in Atlanta, GA.