William Mercado is an American actor, writer, director and producer that was born and raised in The Bronx. Being an only child, his best friends growing up were film and television. After High School he worked all sorts of jobs while pursuing his acting career, including working on the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange and becoming an N.Y.P.D. Police Officer. While working such a demanding job as a police officer he still managed to train in his craft at many schools including, H.B. Studios and The Puerto Rican Traveling Theater. He also continued to work on projects including "Hell's Kitchen" boxing against Mekhi Phifer and "City of Thieves" Which won the 2000 Avignon/New York Film Festival Award for "Best Short". In 2009 he retired early from the N.Y.P.D. so he could act full time. Since then he has been an active member of the award winning Long Island Repertory Company, "The Bare Bones Theater" where he starred in their production of Arthur Miller's "A View from the Bridge" and produced and starred in their critically acclaimed 2013 Off Broadway production of "The Hunter's Moon", which was nominated for "Best ensemble in a play" by BroadwayWorld.com. He also has had starring and supporting roles in over 30 other projects including: Netflix's "Daredevil", "The Jimmy Fallon Show", "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart" and the award winning international film, "The Owner". His latest endeavor, "Christmas Tears" which he directed, starred in and produced was an official selection at the Big Apple Film Festival.