Black Cop refers to a commonly used role in movies and television shows involving law enforcement, that typically features a middle aged African-American man in a high-position in the city's police force, usually the Chief of Police or Sergeant. The first modern example of Black Cop that created the trend was Sgt. Al Powell, played by Reginald VelJohnson in the hit movie 1988 film Die Hard. The most notable recent usage of the character can be seen in Miami Vice, Batman Begins, Red Dragon, and NYPD Blue. While it varies from movie to movie what actors are used to fulfill this role, the most commonly used actor in the last few years has been Barry Shabaka Henley, starring as Lt. Martin Castillo in Miami Vice and Sgt. Albert Simms in Robbery Homicide Division. Bill Duke had previously been the favourite for the role. Other actors that have played the role sporadically include Samuel L. Jackson in SWAT and Colin McFarlane as the incumbent commissioner in the aforementioned Christopher Nolan's Batman Begins. Another prominent favourite for the role is Chi McBride, who has played senior law enforcement officers in I, Robot, Killer Instinct, and Narc.

The scripted character of "Black Cop" is very prominent in movies with cop characters that are so-called "Loose Cannons". Often, the "Black Cop" is tough and uncompromising, and he/she the one that has to take the fall for the main character's mistakes from their superiors yet still continues to have faith in the protagonists, which in the end pays dividends as the villain is brought to justice. It is this stereotype as a "stern father" figure that has led to the persona of the "Black Cop" archetype being entrenched in modern films involving police and law enforcement.

The character has had mixed reviews in the last 30 years. Early on it received praise for portraying black people in a high-position job, especially a police unit, but recently studios have come under fire from various groups from what they believe to be overrusing the role. Some even go as far as to say it is reverse racism that high-ranking police officials are exclusive to this role. According to Blog Critic Stephen Reid it has become "[one of] the worst cliches in a cop movie"<ref>http://blogcritics.org/archives/2004/02/21/042233.php</ref> Many people are also offended by the generalization that black characters are typecasted in police movies as chiefs of police, sergeants and politicans<ref>http://www.spectacle.org/1295/blacks.html</ref>.

Despite this criticism, many still praise the role's uniqueness and still believe it was a key step to equality when the role was first introduced. The role of Barry Shabaka Henley in Miami Vice shows that the role has not lost popularity among movie-makers. However, with the overuse of this particular archetype in recent years and with the criticisms subsequently levelled at its use, it remains to be seen whether the "Black Cop" stereotype shall continue to remain a constant in police and law enforcement films in the future.

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