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Chris Messina

American actor (born 1974)

Field	Value
name	Chris Messina
image	Chris Messina 2014.jpg
caption	Messina in 2014
birth_date
birth_place	Northport, New York, U.S.
occupation	{{flatlist
years_active	1995–present
spouse	{{plainlist
* {{marriage	Rosemarie DeWitt	1995	2006	end	divorced}}
relatives	Suzanne Todd (sister-in-law)
children	2

Actor
director
writer
producer
Jennifer Todd

Christian Messina (born August 11, 1974) is an American actor. He is best known for starring as Danny Castellano in the series The Mindy Project (2012–2017), which earned him two nominations for the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actor in a Comedy Series.

Messina's film appearances include Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008), Julie & Julia (2009), Devil (2010), Argo (2012), Ruby Sparks (2012), Celeste and Jesse Forever (2012), Cake (2014), Birds of Prey (2020), I Care a Lot (2020), Call Jane (2022), Air (2023), and The Boogeyman (2023). Messina wrote, executive produced, and starred in the comedy film Fairhaven (2012). He also directed and starred in the drama film Alex of Venice (2014).

On television, Messina appeared as Ted Fairwell in the HBO drama series Six Feet Under (2005), Chris Sanchez in the Audience Network legal thriller series Damages (2011–2012), Reese Lansing in the HBO political drama series The Newsroom (2012–2014), Richard Willis in the HBO miniseries Sharp Objects (2018), Nick Haas in the USA Network crime drama series The Sinner (2020), Angelo Lano in the Starz political miniseries Gaslit (2022), and as Nathan Bartlett in the Peacock comedy thriller Based on a True Story (2023).

Early life and education

Messina was raised in Northport, New York, on Long Island, where he studied theater in high school.

Career

He studied acting privately with teachers around Manhattan, and started his career as an off-Broadway actor. He has appeared in episodes of the television series Law & Order, Third Watch, and Medium. He had a recurring role in the fifth and final season of the HBO drama series Six Feet Under as Ted Fairwell. His film credits include Rounders, The Siege, You've Got Mail, and Towelhead.

He starred in an HBO pilot Anatomy of Hope, directed by J. J. Abrams. Simon Callow also starred, but the pilot was not picked up to series. In October 2007, Daily Variety named him as one of ten actors to watch. He starred in Devil, under the direction of John Erick Dowdle and Drew Dowdle, for producer M. Night Shyamalan and Universal Pictures. In April 2010, Monogamy, directed by Dana Adam Shapiro and starring Messina and Rashida Jones, premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival, where the film won the jury prize for Best New York Narrative.

Messina joined the cast of Damages for its fourth and fifth seasons. He played a recurring character on HBO's The Newsroom. Messina was a series regular on the Fox/Hulu sitcom The Mindy Project, playing Dr. Danny Castellano, until his character was eventually phased out in seasons 4 and 5. He made his return in three episodes, including the season and series finale, in season 6.

In 2014, Messina played the role of a cheating spouse in the music video for Sam Smith's "I'm Not the Only One". That same year, he directed the independent drama, Alex of Venice, starring Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Don Johnson and Matthew Del Negro. He co-starred in Ben Affleck's crime drama Live by Night, which was released in December 2016. In 2018, Messina starred in a leading role alongside Amy Adams in the HBO series Sharp Objects.

In 2020, Chris Messina starred as mob killer Victor Zsasz in Birds of Prey. When asked how he felt about playing a twisted character, Messina replied, "I've played too many nice guys in my career. So it was like just really a lot of fun to let loose."

In 2021, Messina portrayed attorney Dean Ericson in the black comedy thriller I Care a Lot.

Personal life

He was married to actress Rosemarie DeWitt for 12 years, divorcing in 2006.

Messina and his second wife Jennifer Todd have two sons.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1995	When Dating Turns Dangerous	Zach	Educational film
1998	Rounders	Higgins
**	Corporal
You've Got Mail	Fox Salesperson
2000	Turn It Up	Baz
2001	Ordinary Sinner	Silvio
2005	Road	Larry
Bittersweet Place	Seymour
**	Nephew
2006	Ira & Abby	Ira Black
2007	Security	Zelly	Short film
Towelhead	Barry
2008	Humboldt County	Max
Made of Honor	Dennis
Vicky Cristina Barcelona	Doug
2009	Brief Interviews with Hideous Men	Subject #19
Away We Go	Tom Garnett
Julie & Julia	Eric Powell
2010	Greenberg	Philip Greenberg
Monogamy	Theo
Devil	Detective Bowden
**	Ben Smith
2011	Like Crazy	Mike Appletree
**	NJ
2012	Celeste and Jesse Forever	Paul
28 Hotel Rooms	Man	Also executive producer
**	Tim
Fairhaven	Dave	Also writer and executive producer
Denise	Brad	Short film
Ruby Sparks	Harry Weir-Fields
Argo	Malinov
2013	Palo Alto	Mitch
2014	**	Narrator	Short film
Showing Up	Himself	Documentary
Alex of Venice	George	Also director
Manglehorn	Jacob
Cake	Jason
2015	Digging for Fire	Billy T
2016	Ordinary World	Jake
Live by Night	Dion Bartolo
The Sweet Life	Kenny
2017	Blame	Jeremy Woods
2019	The True Adventures of Wolfboy	Denny
2020	Birds of Prey	Victor Zsasz
She Dies Tomorrow	Jason
Love Is Love Is Love	Jack
I Care a Lot	Dean Ericson
The Secrets We Keep	Lewis Reid
2022	Call Jane	Will
**	Seth
Dreamin' Wild	Matt Sullivan
2023	Air	David Falk
The Boogeyman	Will Harper
I.S.S.	Gordon Barrett
2024	Juror #2	Eric Resnik
2026	Pressure	Irving P. Krick	Post-production
	Lear Rex	Duke of Cornwall	Post-production

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1995	Law & Order	Tommy Bell	Episode: "Rebels"
1996	Law & Order	Kevin Turner	Episode: "Homesick"
2000	Third Watch	Charlie	Episode: "History"
2001	Big Apple	Ricky	Episode: "A Ministering Angel"
2003	Law & Order	Don Cushman	Episode: "Suicide Box"
2005	Six Feet Under	Ted Fairwell	6 episodes
2007	Medium	Casey Edward Frank	Episode: "The Whole Truth"
2011–2012	Damages	Chris Sanchez	16 episodes
2012–2014	**	Reese Lansing	12 episodes
2012–2017	**	Dr. Daniel Castellano	Main role (season 1–4)
Recurring (season 5–6): 90 episodes
2018	Sharp Objects	Detective Richard Willis	Main role: 8 episodes
2019	Robot Chicken	Various voices	Episode: "Boogie Bardstown in: No Need, I Have Coupons"
2020	The Sinner	Nick Haas	Main role (season 3): 5 episodes
2022	Gaslit	Agent Angelo Lano	Recurring role: 4 episodes
2023–2024	Based on a True Story	Nathan Bartlett	Main role, Executive Producer (S2)
TBA		TBA	Season 4

Stage

Year	Title	Role	Run	Theater and production
1997	**	Sidney Margolies/
Charley/Ralph/
Walter	October 19, 1997 –
unknown	Signature Theatre Company at
The Peter Norton Space
1999	**	Director	August 9–20, 1999	All Seasons Theatre Group at
The Ensemble Studio Theatre
1999	Refuge	Nat	November 18 – December 12, 1999	Playwright's Horizon Studio Theater
2000	**	Joe Buck	March 27 – April 9, 2000	McGinn/Cazale Theater
2000	**	Frankie	November 5 – December 16, 2000	The Flea Theater
2001	Tamicanfly	C.J.	January 17 – February 4, 2001	McGinn/Cazale Theater
2001	Blur	Joey D'Amico	May 17 – June 24, 2001	Manhattan Theater Club at
New York City Center Stage II
2001–02	Good Thing	Bobby	December 16, 2001 – January 6, 2002	The New Group at
The Theater at St. Clements Church
2002	This Thing of Darkness	Abbey/Reef	May 30 – June 16, 2002	Atlantic Theater Company at
Linda Gross Theater
2002	Faster	Skram	September 8 – October 13, 2002	Rattlestick Theater
2002–03	Far Away	Todd	November 11, 2002 –
January 18, 2003	New York Theatre Workshop
2003	*Salome by Oscar Wilde:
The Reading*	The Young Syrian
(Captain of the
Guard)	April 30 – June 12, 2003	Ethel Barrymore Theater	Broadway debut
for Messina
2003	St. Scarlet	Director	June 13 – July 12, 2003	Ontological Theater at
St. Mark's Church
2004	Motel Blues: Management	Mike	March 25 – April 11, 2004	Apartment 929 at
Greenwich Street Theatre
2004	**	Treplev	May 24–29, 2004	White Heron Theater company at
Second Stage Theatre
2004	**	Trofimov	August 11–22, 2004	Williamstown Theatre Festival at
Adams Memorial Theater
2004	Late Night, Early Morning		October 21–31, 2004	2004 Tribeca Theatre Festival

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Work
2011	CinEuphoria Award	Best Supporting Actor - International Competition	Away We Go
2012	Awards Circuit Community Award	Best Cast Ensemble	Argo
Detroit Film Critics Society Award	Best Ensemble
San Diego Film Critics Society Award	Best Ensemble Performance
Phoenix Film Critics Society Award	Best Ensemble Acting
Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award	Best Ensemble
2013	Central Ohio Film Critics Association Award	Best Ensemble
Palm Springs International Film Festival	Best Ensemble
Critics' Choice Movie Award	Best Acting Ensemble
Screen Actors Guild Award	Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
2014	Critics' Choice Television Award	Best Actor in a Comedy Series	The Mindy Project
Seattle International Film Festival	New American Cinema Award	Alex of Venice
2015	Critics' Choice Television Award	Best Actor in a Comedy Series	The Mindy Project

References

Hochberg, Mina. "[https://www.newsday.com/entertainment/movies/chris-messina-stars-in-ruby-sparks-e71151 Chris Messina stars in 'Ruby Sparks']". ''[[Newsday]]'' (Long Island, New York). August 8, 2012: "...the actor, who turns 38 Saturday [August 11, 2012]. After graduating from Northport [New York] High School, he enrolled in Marymount Manhattan College on a theater scholarship. Seized by doubts about acting, he dropped out….
Chang, Kee. (23 January 2012). "Sundance '12: Q&A with Chris Messina". Anthem.
Champagne, Christine. (October 19, 2007). "10 Actors To Watch: Chris Messina : 'Six Feet Under' Actor Emerges With Full Slate". Variety.
[http://www.fangoria.com/home/news/9-film-news/4306-messina-goes-to-the-devil-for-shyamalan-and-the-dowdles.html Messina goes to the DEVIL for Shyamalan and the Dowdles] {{webarchive. link. (October 18, 2009)
Duboff, Josh. (April 29, 2010). "''When We Leave'' Scores Top Honors At Tribeca Film Festival". [[Vulture (blog).
"Chris Messina Joins Damages". TVGuide.com.
(July 25, 2012). "Chris Messina on Starring in What Seems Like Everything". Vulture.
"Margot Robbie, Chris Messina Talk 'Birds of Prey'".
Menta, Anna. (February 22, 2021). "I Care A Lot: Chris Messina Is Having a Blast Playing Bad Guys". Decider.
Rosen, Christopher. (August 3, 2012). "Chris Messina, 'Celeste And Jesse Forever' Star, On His Crazy Year". Huffington Post.
Callegari, Caitlyn. (September 9, 2014). "Who Is Jennifer Todd? 'Mindy Project' Star Chris Messina Has a Highly Successful Partner". bustle.com.
(April 15, 2014). "Meet the 2014 Tribeca Filmmakers #33: Chris Messina on How He Completed 'Alex of Venice' While Shooting 'The Mindy Project'".
"Chris Messina Loves Women".
"Lortel Archives: Internet Off-Broadway Database listing for "The American Clock"".
(December 2023). "The American Clock". The Commonwealth Foundation.
Sommer, Elyse. "A CurtainUp Review: The American Clock". CurtainUp.com.
Daniels, Robert L.. (October 25, 1997). "Legit Reviews: The American Clock". Variety.
McGrath, Sean. "All Seasons Group at NYC's E.S.T., Aug. 9-20". Playbill.
Goldberg, Jessica. (2000). "Refuge". Dramatists Play Service Inc..
Weber, Bruce. (March 28, 2000). "Theater Review: Those Credible Aliens, Not Quite Adult and Well Beyond Reason". New York Times.
"PHOTO CALL: Colors Come Out At Hologram Theory Opening March 27". Playbill.
Finkle, David. "Review: The Hologram Theory". Theatermania.com.
Bacalzo, Dan. "Review: The Light Outside". Theatermania.com.
"The Light Outside: Ticket information". Theatermania.com.
VanGelder, Lawrence. (January 20, 2001). "THEATER REVIEW; Got the Horse Right Here, Its Name Is Tamicanfly". [[The New York Times]].
"Lortel Archives: Internet off-Broadway Database listing for "Blur"".
Weber, Bruce. (May 18, 2001). "Theater Review: Through the Eyes of the Beholder". New York Times.
"Lortel Archives: Internet Off-Broadway Database listing for "Good Thing"".
Weber, Bruce. (December 18, 2001). "Theater Review: A Competition in Squalor From Adjoining Kitchens". New York Times.
Finkle, David. "Review: Good Thing". Theatermania.com.
"Lortel Archives: Internet Off-Broadway Database listing for "This Thing of Darkness"".
"Lortel Archives: Internet Off-Broadway Database listing for "Faster"".
Isherwood, Charles. (September 12, 2002). "Legit Reviews: Faster". Variety.
"Lortel Archives: Internet Off Broadway Database listing for "Far Away"".
"IBDB listing for "Salome"".
"Who's Who in the Cast: Salome". Playbill.
"OffOffOff Theater Review of "St. Scarlet"". OffOffOff.com.
Weber, Bruce. (June 30, 2003). "Theater Review: Siblings at Odds, A Stranger Uninvited". New York Times.
"Motel Blues: Show information". Theatermania.com.
"CurtainUp Review of "Motel Blues"". CurtainUp.com.
Isaac, Dan. (June 16, 2004). "Review: The Seagull". Backstage.com.
Brantley, Ben. (August 17, 2004). "THEATER REVIEW; Conflicting Impulses Of Chekhov's Last Play". New York Times.
Rizzo, Frank. (August 17, 2004). "Legit Reviews: The Cherry Orchard". Variety.
"Williamstown Theatre Festival webpage". wtfestival.org.
(March 2007). "Theatre World, Vol 61, 2004-2005". Hal Leonard Corporation.
"Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Awards list (2012)".

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