Tramell Tillman

Tramell Tillman (/trəˈmɛl/ trə-MEL; born June 17, 1985) is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Seth Milchick in the Apple TV+ series Severance (2022–present), for which he became the first Black person and the first openly gay person to win the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series.

Tillman was born in Washington, D.C., on June 17, 1985. His mother worked for the U.S. federal government, while his father worked for Amtrak. Tillman is the youngest of five siblings, and was raised Baptist in Largo, Maryland.

Tillman attended Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Greenbelt, Maryland and graduated in 2003. He was then enrolled at Xavier University of Louisiana in New Orleans as a pre-med student with plans to become an orthopedic surgeon, but did not enjoy it. In 2005, after Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, Tillman's parents convinced him to transfer to Jackson State University, where he switched his major to mass communications. He graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in 2008. In 2014, Tillman became the first African-American man to obtain a Master of Fine Arts in acting from the University of Tennessee.

Tillman has said that he has always admired acting as an art form, and has credited his mother—who inadvertently gave him his first acting role at the age of 10, when she volunteered to appear in their church's Christmas play and needed someone to play her character's son—with inspiring him to go into acting to overcome his shyness.

Tillman worked in the nonprofit sector for over a decade before pursuing acting professionally, and drew on his own experiences in corporate America for his breakthrough role as Seth Milchick in the sci-fi thriller series Severance (2022–present). He referred to Milchick as "an amalgamation of colleagues, of former bosses, [and] of caricatures of people" who he worked with during that time. Tillman's performance, especially during the second season, received widespread critical acclaim. In September 2025, he won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series, becoming the first Black person and the first openly gay person to win the award. He was the first openly gay Black person to be nominated for it.

In August 2025, Tillman joined the cast of the Marvel Cinematic Universe film Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

Tillman has lived in New York City since 2014. He is gay.

• Official website
• Tramell Tillman at IMDb