The new Hulu sports drama Clipped features an impressive ensemble cast, with many actors portraying real-life NBA players and coaching staff. Clipped is based on the controversial true 2013 scandal about Donald Sterling, the former owner of the Los Angeles Clippers NBA team. 2013 was a big year for the organization, which to this day has yet to win an NBA title, because of the acquisition of former Boston Celtics head coach Doc Rivers who coached the 2008 C’s to their first NBA Championship since 1986. Rivers is portrayed by the legendary Laurence Fishburne in the new Hulu limited series, which consists of six total episodes.

The first two episodes of Clipped premiere exclusively on Hulu on June 4, 2024, with the remaining four episodes released weekly on Tuesdays until the series finale airs on July 2, 2024. The series featured Ed O’Neill as the controversial figure Sterling along with Jacki Weaver playing his wife Shelly, and Cleopatra Coleman as V. Stiviano, Sterling’s assistant/mistress who recorded his conversations and released a clip of Sterling making extremely offensive and hate-fueled comments. As a result, Sterling received a lifetime ban from the NBA, lost ownership of the team, and was fined a staggering $2.5 million.

Laurence Fishburne as Doc Rivers

Actor: Laurence Fishburne is a prolific actor who is best known for his role as Morpheus in The Matrix franchise. He is a 3-time Emmy winner for his work in #Freerayshawn (2020), Miss Evers’ Boys (1997), and Tribeca (1993). He was also nominated for Best Actor in 1993’s What’s Love Got to Do With It? and is a 4-time Emmy nominee for Oustanding Comedy Series as an executive producer on Blackish. Fishburne has appeared in more than 130 films and television series after rising to prominence in 1979’s Apocalypse Now. Fishburne also stars in Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis and is set to appear in Transformers One, Slingshot alongside Casey Affleck, and The Amateur alongside Rami Malek and Rachel Brosnahan, which releases in 2025.

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Character: Fishburne portrays Doc Rivers in Clipped, the real-life NBA coach who joined the Los Angeles Clippers in 2013 after coaching the Boston Celtics to their first NBA title in 22 years. Rivers has coached several other NBA teams including the Orlando Magic and the Philadelphia 76ers and is currently the head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks.

Ed O’Neill as Donald Sterling

Actor: Ed O’Neill is a celebrated actor best known for his role as Jay Pritchett on Modern Family (2009–2020). At 78 years old, O’Neill has starred in dozens of classic films and television series such as Wayne’s World (1992), Blue Chips (1994), and Little Giants (1994). He was the protagonist of Married… with Children, an Emmy-nominated sitcom that aired 263 episodes from 1987 to 1997, 260 of which O’Neill starred in. O’Neill has also been featured in some now-classic animated movies such as Wreck-It Ralph (2012) and Finding Dory (2016). Clipped marks O’Neill’s highly anticipated return to television after Modern Family ended in 2020 with 250 episodes. O’Neill has been nominated for 3 Emmys for his work on Modern Family.

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Character: O’Neill portrays Donald Sterling in Clipped, the controversial former owner of the Los Angeles Clippers NBA team who received a lifetime ban and a $2.5 million fine. An infamous tape was released in 2013 of Sterling making extremely offensive and racist comments in response to his mistress V. Stiviano wanting to invite NBA legend Magic Johnson to a Clippers game.

Jacki Weaver as Shelly Sterling

Actor: Jacki Weaver is a celebrated actress who was nominated for 2 Academy Awards for her supporting roles in Silver Linings Playbook (2012) and Animal Kingdom (2010). Weaver, born in 1947, also has a recurring role in Yellowstone as Caroline Weaver and has starred in other recent television series such as Hello Tomorrow! and Bloom. Weaver has also appeared in critically acclaimed films such as The Five-Year Engagement (2012), Parkland (2013), Magic in the Moonlight (2014), The Disaster Artist (2017), Bird Box (2018), Widows (2018), Poms (2019), Stage Mother (2020), and Father Stu (2022). The actress has starred in more than 90 films and television series after making her feature film debut in the 1966 Michael Powell movie They’re a Weird Mob.

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Character: Weaver portrays Shelly Stelring, the wife of Donald Stelring who was at odds with V. Stiviano, her husband’s assistant and mistress in Clipped.

Cleopatra Coleman as V. Stiviano

Actor: Born in 1987, Cleopatra Coleman is best known for her roles as Em Foster in Brandon Cronenberg’s psychological horror Infinity Pool (2023) starring Alexander Akarsgård and rising horror star Mia Goth. She can also be seen as Grace Pell in the critically acclaimed Hulu limited series Dopesick which also stars Michael Keaton, Peter Sarsgaard, Michael Stuhlberg, Rosario Dawson, and Will Poulter. Recently, Coleman starred as Devra in Zack Snyder’s Rebel Moon – Part One: A Child of Fire and Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver. She made her television debut as a regular on the sci-fi series Silversun in 2004. She is currently 36 years old and is originally from Wentworth Falls, New South Wales, Australia​​​​​​.

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Character: Coleman portrays V. Stiviano, who plays a crucial role in exposing Donald Sterling’s racist comments to the public in Clipped.

Clipped Supporting Cast & Characters

Kelly AuCoin as Andy Roeser: Kelly AuCoin portrays Andy Roeser in Clipped, the former President of the Los Angeles Clippers. AuCoin is best known for his work on Billions, The Girl from Plainville, The Americans, Law & Order, and the celebrated Oscar-winning 2023 drama The Holdovers.

Rich Sommer as Seth Burton: Rich Sommer is best known for his celebrated role as Harry Crane in the Emmy-winning drama series Mad Men. He portrays Seth Burton in Clipped, the former Senior Vice President of Communication for the Los Angeles Clippers. Sommer recently starred in the HBO limited series White House Plummers and the acclaimed 2023 film Blackberry.

Corbin Bernsen as Pierce O’Donnell: Corbin Bernsen portrays Pierce O’Donnell in Clipped, an experienced attorney who represented Shelly Sterling in the $2-billion sale of the Clippers. Bernsen’s most notable works include Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Major League, and the recent Nathan Fielder and Emma Stone comedy series The Curse.

Clifton Davis as Elgin Baylor: Clifton Davis appears as Elgin Baylor in Clipped, an NBA Hall of Famer who played for the Los Angeles Lakers and was the former Vice President of Basketball Operations for the Clippers. Davis is best known for Madam Secretary, Iron Fist, Billions, and Any Given Sunday.