IronE Singleton

After spending 13 years in the background, Irone Singleton broke into Hollywood with his role as Alton, a tough guy who bullies Sandra Bullock's character in 2009's "The Blind Side." But Singleton truly stepped into the limelight when he was cast in Frank Darabont's hugely successful television series "The Walking Dead," based on the hit indie comic book series by Robert Kirkman. The actor portrays T-Dog, a tough-as-nails survivor of the zombie apocalypse who never hesitates to put his bickering fellow group members in their place. But despite his high-profile accomplishments, including starring opposite Nicolas Cage, January Jones, and Guy Pearce in the 2011 thriller "Seeking Justice," the word "irony" is part of his name for a reason: Singleton grew up in an Atlanta housing project, experiencing hardships at every turn. With his brother in prison and his mother dead from HIV/AIDS, Singleton could have easily slipped into the cracks. Instead, his troubled upbringing inspired him to pursue Theater and Speech Communications at the University of Georgia, after which he created his emotional one-man show "IronE...The Resurrected" based on his own life and became a motivational speaker. In addition to his roles in "The Blind Side" and "The Walking Dead," Singleton has landed single-episode stints on the television series "One Tree Hill," "Franklin & Bash," and the dramedy "Single Ladies."