Donnell Turner was born on January 8th in Tacoma, Washington, but his family relocated to Chicago when he was a baby. Turner's love for acting began at a young age, participating in church plays as a child. In high school, he played basketball and trumpet in the band, and even briefly played semi-pro basketball as a shooting guard before focusing on acting full-time.
After relocating to Los Angeles in 2001, Turner booked over 100 print ads worldwide for major brands such as Nike, Pepsi, Hilton, Disney, AT&T, Coke, and Infinity. He has also worked in nine national commercial campaigns in the United States, Europe, and South Africa, and was the 2014 Mercedes Benz C-Class Spokesman.
Turner has modeled across the United States and internationally, including Hong Kong, Thailand, France, Italy, Amsterdam, Belgium, and Spain. He has trained with several acting studios, including Northern California Casting, Van Marr Academy, Beverly Hills Playhouse, and Lesley Kahn Acting Studios.
In 2014 and 2015, Turner led two plays in Los Angeles, including the classic "The Black Doctor" and the modern "Crescent City Ghosts". He has also appeared in numerous television shows, including "How To Get Away With Murder", "Dexter", "Anger Management", "Rizzoli and Isles", "2 Broke Girls", "Revenge", "The Mindy Project", "Teen Wolf", "CSI", "90210", and "Parks and Recreation".
Turner has also had a successful career in daytime drama, playing Dr. Aiden Williams on "Days of Our Lives" and a doctor on "The Young and the Restless". He began writing to the casting director of "General Hospital" in the 1990s and auditioned for the role of the District Attorney in 2014. However, ABC offered him a 4-year contract to play the original character Curtis Ashford, which he has been playing since November 30th, 2015.
Turner is a strong advocate for theater training, stating that it is vital for any actor. He has given motivational speeches and has been an honored guest speaker at events such as the Autism Speaks Walk Now event. In his free time, Turner enjoys fitness activities such as hiking and kickboxing, and has trained in various martial arts styles.
Turner believes that his urban-to-countryside transition has given him range as an actor, and that he uses his real-world experiences as a point of reference for his performances.
