Innocence Ambassadors

Adam Conover is the creator and host of the truTV show Adam Ruins Everything.

Follow Adam on Twitter @AdamRuins

Aisha Hinds’ career began in schools, churches, prisons, group homes, and on the streets of New York City as a cast member with a local Brooklyn-based group of young artists called the Health Watch Players. She got her first big break on the critically-acclaimed drama NYPD Blue. Since then, she has gradually made her mark through appearances on a string of television hits such as ER, CSI: NY, Medium, Boston Legal, The Shield, SG-1, Lost, Judging Amy, Lincoln Heights, Prison Break, Cold Case, NCIS: LA, and more. On television, Hinds is currently a series regular on Ryan Murphy’s hit FOX series 9-1-1 and is featured on Anthony Hemingway’s highly anticipated USA series Unsolved, which aired February 27.  She will also be featured in the legendary film Godzilla: King of Monsters (2019).

Follow Aisha on Twitter @AishaHinds.

Amy Brenneman is a prominent film, television and stage actress currently starring in the HBO production of The Leftovers.

Follow Amy on Twitter at @TheAmyBrenneman

A world-renowned actor, author, producer, and director, Bob Balaban is best known for his starring roles in the major motion pictures Gosford Park, The Monuments Men, and The Grand Budapest Hotel. He is also an acclaimed television actor reprising roles in Seinfeld and HBO’s Girls.

Follow Bob on Twitter at @BobBalaban

For over two decades, Busta Rhymes has been at the forefront of contemporary culture and music through his roles as hip-hop mogul, rap revolutionary, record executive, actor, and producer. He is now leading the charge on criminal justice reform issues as an activist against wrongful conviction.

Follow Busta on Twitter at @BustaRhymes

Candice Patton is an American actress and Mississippi native who is best known for her role as Iris West in The CW television series The Flash and as her recurring role as Tori in the BET television series The Game.

Follow Candice on Twitter at @candicekp

Singer, songwriter, Coldplay lead vocalist and global rock icon, Chris Martin became an Innocence Ambassador in 2016. Thanks to his activism against wrongful conviction, the Innocence Project is set to accompany Coldplay during the US leg of their 2016 A Head Full of Dreams tour.

Follow Chris and his bandmates on Twitter at @coldplay

As one of Hollywood’s leading Latina actresses, Dascha Polanco is an independent, driven, mother of two who migrated to the United States from the Dominican Republic at an early age. Having gained national acclaim for her breakout role as “Dayanara Diaz” on the seven-season hit Netflix original series, “Orange is the New Black,” she’s shifting gears in 2021 and starring in the highly anticipated film adaption of the famed musical “In The Heights” by Lin-Manuel Miranda and directed by Jon M. Chu of “Crazy Rich Asians” fame. In addition, Polanco will also captivate audiences as the female lead alongside Sylvester Stallone in ‘Samaritan,” set to release in theaters in 2021. Currently, Polanco is the lead host of Netflix’s new weekly Latinx podcast, “Con Todo: Brown Love,” which celebrates the multi-faceted US Latinx experience of some of Netflix’s rising stars and their life stories in Hollywood.

Esperanza Spalding is a Grammy-Award-winning bassist, genre-bending composer, vocalist, bandleader, educator, and activist. Her genre of music embraces jazz, jazz fusion, bossa nova, neo soul, funk, and R&B, along with influences from Brazilian music. A lot of Spalding’s music takes on a keen social consciousness. She dedicated Land of the Free to Innocence Project client Cornelius Dupree, who was exonerated after spending more than 30 years in prison for a crime he did not commit.

Follow Esperanza on Twitter @EspeSpalding

Gale Anne Hurd is one of the industry’s most respected film and television producers. In 1984, she produced and co-wrote her first feature film, The Terminator, which became a box office hit and has since become a genre classic. The success was quickly followed by a number of award-winning films, including Aliens, The Abyss, and Terminator 2: Judgment Day, just to name a few. She is currently the recording secretary for the Producers Guild of America and also the founder of Valhalla Entertainment.

Follow Gale on Twitter at @GunnerGale.

Deemed “one of the most exciting political comics in stand-up today” by The New York Times, Hari Kondabolu joins the Innocence Project’s Artist’s Committee as an Innocence Ambassador and committed advocate for human rights and criminal justice reform.

Follow Hari on Twitter at @harikondabolu and join him in the fight against wrongful conviction.

Best known for his starring roles in the television shows CSI: NY, Limitless and Homeland, actor, author and activist Hill Harper joins the fight against wrongful conviction as an Innocence Ambassador.

Follow Hill on Twitter at @hillharper.

Jessica Sanders is an Academy Award-nominated filmmaker and award-winning commercial director who directed the documentary After Innocence – a compelling look at the lives of seven exonerated men who spent decades in prison for crimes they did not commit.

Follow her on Twitter at @Jessicafilm

A Grammy-winning, legendary folk artist, activist and singer-songwriter, Joan Baez has performed publicly for over 50 years and released numerous albums. She has strongly supported the Innocence Project for many years and vocally advocated against wrongful conviction.

Follow Joan on Twitter at @joancbaez

John Grisham is a bestselling writer, attorney, politician, and activist widely known for his legal thrillers. Follow John on Twitter @JohnGrisham.

Innocence Project supporter John Mulaney is a comedian and author, best known for his work as a writer on Saturday Night Live. Follow John on Twitter at @mulaney.

John Wesley Shipp is an actor known for his various television roles, including The Flash, Dawson’s Creek, NYPD Blue, and The NeverEnding Story II: The Next Chapter.

Follow John on Twitter at @JohnWesleyShipp.

Musician, entertainer and Innocence Ambassador Jonathan Batiste is widely known for his nightly appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert where he delights audiences along with his band Stay Human. He performed at the Innocence Project’s annual gala in 2008.

Follow Jon Batiste on Twitter at @JonBatiste.

Marin Ireland is a stage, film, and television actress and winner of the 2009 Theatre World Award. She was also nominated for a 2009 Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play for her performance in reasons to be pretty. She is also known for her appearances in Hell or High Water” (2016); Glass Chin (2014); and Homeland (2011).

Follow Marin on Twitter at @MarinIreland.

Mike O’Malley is an actor, producer, and writer who has appeared in many films and television series, including Meet Dave (2008); Glee (2009); and Sully (2016). He hosted the early 1990s children’s game show Nickelodeon Guts before moving to Los Angeles to star in his own sitcom, The Mike O’Malley Show. Also a playwright, he’s probably best known for his role as Jimmy Hughes on the hit series Yes, Dear. 

Follow Mike on Twitter at @TheMikeOMalley.

Nia Long is an actress best known for her roles in the television series The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and Third Watch and in the films Boyz n the Hood and Friday. 

Follow Nia on Twitter at @NiaLong

Niecy Nash is a multi-talented comedian, Emmy® winner, actress, and producer who’s been featured in roles on HBO’s Getting On; FOX’s Scream Queens; Showtime’s Masters of Sex; and TV Land’s The Soul Man. She’ll also star in Ava DuVernay’s Central Park Five, a four-episode narrative series set to premiere on Netflix in 2019 and is headlining the new dramedy series Claws on TNT.

Follow Niecy Nash on Twitter @NiecyNash

Innocence Ambassador and Emmy Award-winning director Paris Barclay is one of television’s most successful and honored cinéastes. He has directed over 150 episodes of hit shows, including NYPD Blue, Glee, and Smash.

He is currently serving his second term as the President of the Director’s Guild of America.

Follow Paris on Twitter at @Harparbar

Paul Schneider is an actor widely known for his role as Mark Brendanawicz on Parks and Recreation. He won a Best Actor in a Narrative Feature award at the 2014 Tribeca Film Festival for his performance in Goodbye to All That and the Best Supporting Actor Award from the National Society of Film Critics for his role in Bright Star.

Phony Ppl is a critically acclaimed and innovative soul-rock music band from Brooklyn, New York. Since its inception in 2008, this five-man group has become recognized as a true global talent, with an ever-growing fan base across the country and internationally. Phony Ppl has written and recorded several hit songs and albums to rave reviews, including their latest compilation, mō’zā-ik., released in October 2018.

Follow Phony Ppl on Twitter @PhonyPpl

Actor and activist Romany Malco joined the Innocence Project as an Innocence Ambassador in December 2016.

You can follow Romany on Twitter at @TeamRomany.

Actor, director and writer Ryan Phillippe has been a long-time supporter of the Innocence Project and a committed activist against wrongful conviction.

He is known for his many starring roles in films such as I Know What You Did Last Summer, Gosford Park, Cruel Intentions, Flags of Our Fathers, and 54, among others.

Follow Ryan on Twitter at @RyanPhillippe

Jason Fraticelli, better known by his stage name Silent Knight or “SK,” is an independent hip-hop recording and performing artist who has captivated crowds on many world-renowned stages and opened for—or collaborated with—an assortment of acts, including Inspectah Deck of the Wu-Tang Clan; Nneka; Talib Kweli; 112; and members of The Roots.

Follow SK on Twitter @SilentKnightter

Innocence Ambassador Stephen Colbert is an award-winning writer, actor and producer and best known as the television host of The Colbert Report and The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. He has won two Peabody Awards, two Emmys, and two Grammys.

Follow Stephen on Twitter at @StephenAtHome

An Academy Award-winning actress and social justice crusader, Susan Sarandon has joined the Innocence Project as an Innocence Ambassador and continues to help us lead the charge against wrongful conviction and for criminal justice reform.

Follow Susan on Twitter at @SusanSarandon

Taryn Simon is a multidisciplinary artist who works in photography, text, sculpture, and performance. Her photography work includes The Innocents (2002), which documents the stories of individuals who served time in prison for violent crimes they did not commit. 

Tony Goldwyn is an actor, producer, director, political activist, and co-chair of the Innocence Project’s ambassadors program. He starred in the ABC drama Scandal and co-created the legal drama series The Divide. He also directed the movie Conviction, which tells the story of Betty Anne Waters’ journey to free her brother Kenny, a former Innocence Project client.

Toshi Reagon is a gifted singer-songwriter-guitarist of several genres—folk, blues, R&B, gospel, rock, country, spirituals, and funk.

Follow Toshi on Twitter at @biglovely1

An EGOT-winning actress and committed criminal justice activist, Whoopi Goldberg has been a longtime Innocence Ambassador and vocal supporter of the Innocence Project.

You can follow Whoopi on Twitter at @WhoopiGoldberg.

Orji is co-star on HBO’s hit comedy-series Insecure in which she plays a high-powered attorney who routinely confronts issues related to the intersectionality of race and gender dynamics in the corporate law setting. She is currently developing a sitcom loosely based on her life, First Gen, which follows a Nigerian girl who trades in medical school for a career in stand-up comedy—and the adventures that follow when her strict African mom gets wind of her plans. When she’s not filming, Orji travels internationally for comedic performances and is also dedicated to charitable efforts.

Follow Yvonne on Twitter  @YvonneOrji

Longtime supporter of the Innocence Project and vocal Innocence Ambassador, Zooey Deschanel “writes music, sings, and acts on screens, small and big.” She is also a co-founder of hellogiggles – a “positive online community for women” and one half of the indie folk band She & Him.

Follow her on Twitter at @ZooeyDeschanel