Ephraim Manessah Sykes (born July 17, 1985 in St. Petersburg, Florida) is an American actor. Sykes played the role of George Eacker in the Broadway musical Hamilton. In December 2016, he played Seaweed J. Stubbs in NBC's live production of Hairspray Live!. In 2017, Sykes originated the role of David Ruffin in the musical Ain't Too Proud, a stage musical based on the life of The Temptations.