Lloyd Avery II attended Beverly Hills High School and brushed up against the sons and daughters of the famous. According to King magazine, he was friends with the son of Quincy Jones, Quincy Jones III, and Smokey Robinson’s daughter, Tamla. Avery did well academically, but after graduation, he drifted until he got a shot at acting. His first foray into Hollywood came when his friend John Singleton (above) tapped him to be in “Boyz n the Hood” in a small but pivotal role as the killer of one of the main protagonists.
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Singleton cast Avery in his follow-up film “Poetic Justice.” “Lloyd had a presence that I think was undeniable,” casting director Robi Reed told the Chicago Defender. “When people refer to that ‘it’ factor, it’s really intangible — you just know when you see it.” Jaki Brown, the casting director for “Boyz N the Hood,” told the outlet he believed “with more acting experience he would be a leading man one day.” Even as Avery’s behavior became more and more erratic — he racked up assault and other charges, and the makers of the film “Lockdown” threw him off the set for unruly behavior — he continued getting accolades. Writer-director Roger Roth, who cast Avery in his final role in “Shot,” told the Chicago Defender he was “one of the best actors I ever worked with.”
