Wood was up in an African-American family; his father, John, was a bus driver, and his mother, Mattie, was a seamstress. Surprisingly, both of them were part-time performers who had little success following their goals of becoming movie stars. However, the fact that they did not attain their objectives was just the example and inspiration that young Wood required in his early life.
After graduating from high school in 1988, he took a gap year to travel throughout the country before enrolling in Northern Illinois University (NIU), where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Theater Arts. Later in his career, he enrolled in New York University, where he earned a Master of Arts degree. During his studies, he began starring in a variety of independent plays and was also cast in the role that catapulted him to stardom.
