Sterling Reputation

With a hit TV show, a range of high-profile films, and a trove of awards, STERLING K. BROWN has proved hes Hollywood gold.

- Glynis Costin

Sterling K. Brown looks ridiculously suave in bright pink jeans and a checkered Gucci coat as he nonchalantly unloads a bag of groceries from a vintage Porsche.

This is the way all Hollywood stars dress to do chores, right? Nah. The in-demand actor is merely playing along for this photo shoot. Normally he is a fan of more dad-friendly athletic attire and deems the designer clothes he is wearing on these pages “expansive.”

That word could also describe the 42-year-old’s career, 16 years of which he spent paying his dues (his “incognegro” period, he jokes). All that changed roughly two years ago, when he received his first Emmy nomination (and win) for playing prosecutor Christopher Darden in Ryan Murphy’s American Crime Story: The People vs. O.J. Simpson. Next, his portrayal of the sensitive perfectionist Randall Pearson on NBC’s hit show This Is Us earned him more awards, including another Emmy and a Golden Globe. And earlier this year his brief but pivotal role in the runaway blockbuster Black Panther skyrocketed him even further into the celebrity stratosphere.

Now, at the start of the third season of This Is Us, Brown, who also has two feature films in the hopper (a revenge thriller called The Rhythm Section with Blake Lively and Waves, a teen romance with a musical twist), kicks back to reflect on breaking through.

GLYNIS COSTIN: This is the Best-Dressed Issue. What’s your typical everyday look?

STERLING K. BROWN: I would call it athletic casual. As a dad [to sons Andrew, 7, and Amaré, 3], I want to be ready to play. I want to look presentable at an executive meeting, but then when it’s like, “Daddy, wanna come play soccer?” I can say, “Yeah, man, let’s do it.” So a comfortable pair of tennis shoes, a nice pair of jeans or shorts.