Chris Ellis
Chris Ellis is an American film and television actor who was born April 14, 1956 in Dallas, Texas. Ellis always wanted to be an actor because of television. He grew up in the 50's in the deep south in a "world of privation and violence", but saw on television people who seemed to have lives of ease and privilege. It took him seven years to finish college however, because "I have always been shiftless". During those years Chris became involved in community theatre in Memphis, where "I did and do still think the quality of the work has always been quite good". By the time he moved to New York, he had worked with many excellent actors in about two dozen plays, classical and contemporary. "I cannot imagine what might have supplanted that background for a newcomer in New York." His first part in either television or film came in 1979, where he played a truck driver in the TV movie The Suicide's Wife, which starred Angie Dickinson. The role resulted in very little TV or film work. After working in regional theatre for a year or so, Chris fell off the radar screen and did not work for about ten years. During that time he lived in "bone-grinding poverty" in Manhattan's Hell's Kitchen. In one nine-month period of 1987, Chris accepted 102 dinner invitations. "I don't know why they kept arriving, nor why I counted them, though I do know why I accepted them." In 1990, a break came when he got a part in Days of Thunder, which starred Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, Cary Elwes, Robert Duvall, and Randy Quaid. John C. Reilly and Fred Dalton Thompson also appear. This seemed to jump-start Ellis' career as parts in films like My Cousin Vinny with Joe Pesci and Marisa Tomei, a small part in Addams Family Values, and a larger one in Apollo 13 as former NASA Mercury Seven astronaut Deke Slayton, alongside Tom Hanks, followed. He also began picking up credits on well-known television shows like Melrose Place, NYPD Blue, and The X-Files. Since working with Hanks on Apollo 13, the two have worked together on That Thing You Do, the TV miniseries From the Earth to the Moon, and Catch Me If You Can. Ellis returned to a fictional NASA Mission Control when he played a Flight Director in 1998's Armageddon. Additional films in which Ellis has appeared include Home Fries, October Sky, Live Free or Die Hard, and Transformers. His television credits also include The West Wing, Ghost Whisperer, Chicago Hope, The Pretender, Alias, JAG, CSI: NY, Burn Notice, and Cold Case. He appeared in three season one episodes of Millennium as group member Jim Panseayres. He has established a reputation as being particularly talented at portraying Southern lawmakers or serious military or police-type characters. He also appeared in Criminal Minds as Sheriff Jimmy Rhodes who calls for the BAU's help in investigating a string of murders in New Mexico. In addition to that, he also had two guest appearances in NCIS as Gunnery Sergeant John Deluca. Ellis's appearance in the Season 1 episode, "The Curse" was uncredited while his second and final appearance in Season 2's "The Bone Yard" was credited. Description above from the Wikipedia article Chris Ellis (actor), licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Known For
Credits
- 2024 · The Ghost Trap as Doug Kane
- 2021 · Silo as Mr. Adler
- 2020 · 9-1-1: Lone Star as Derek Poole
- 2018 · Homecoming as Richard Lehmann
- 2018 · Kenny as Al
- 2018 · The Oath as Hank
- 2018 · What Still Remains as Harvey
- 2017 · Young Sheldon as Marty Steinbecker
- 2017 · The Show as Keller
- 2017 · Amelia 2.0 as Senator Thaddeus
- 2017 · Pitching Tents as Principal Don Bishop
- 2015 · K.C. Undercover as Christos Markos
- 2014 · Jessabelle as Sheriff Pruitt
- 2014 · The Guest as Hendricks
- 2014 · Faults as Dad
- 2012 · The Dark Knight Rises as Fr. Reilly
- 2012 · Political Animals as Jubal Jacobs
- 2012 · The Finder as Warden Nick Larsen
- 2011 · Fairly Legal as Maddox Resor
- 2010 · Law & Order: LA as Walter Exley
- 2010 · Justified as Douglas Cooper
- 2009 · Teenage Dirtbag as Pops
- 2009 · G-Force as NSA Director
- 2009 · Warehouse 13 as Colonel Arnold Cassell
- 2008 · The Mentalist as Sherrif Mullery
- 2008 · Crazy as Glen the Carousel Manager
- 2008 · Gospel Hill as L Donn Murray
- 2008 · Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles as Hayes
- 2007 · Mad Men as Del Hill
- 2007 · Burn Notice as Virgil Watkins
- 2007 · Transformers as Admiral Brigham
- 2007 · Live Free or Die Hard as Scalvino
- 2006 · Sissy Frenchfry as Willinger McDodey
- 2006 · The Unit as Congressman Bruce Gelber
- 2005 · Fun with Dick and Jane as Vice President - Grand Cayman Bank
- 2005 · Ghost Whisperer as Captain Ken Nilsen
- 2005 · Criminal Minds as Sheriff Rhodes
- 2005 · The Devil's Rejects as Coggs
- 2005 · The Island as Aces & Spades Barman
- 2005 · The Office as Chris O'Keefe
- 2004 · CSI: NY as Vincent Williams
- 2004 · Veronica Mars as Reverend Ted Capistrano
- 2004 · Tiger Cruise as Captain Anderson
- 2004 · Helter Skelter as Sgt. Whiteley
- 2004 · Death and Texas as Phillip Brodeur
- 2004 · In Enemy Hands as Samuel Littleton
- 2003 · Cold Case as Jim Horn (2008)
- 2003 · NCIS as John DeLuca (uncredited)
- 2003 · NCIS as John Deluca
- 2003 · Las Vegas as Dr. Sassen
- 2003 · My Dinner with Jimi as Sergeant
- 2002 · Love Liza as Patriot Model Aeronautics Clerk
- 2002 · Catch Me If You Can as Special Agent Witkins
- 2002 · Birds of Prey as Larry Ketterly
- 2002 · First Monday as
- 2001 · Beyond the City Limits as Det. Hanson
- 2001 · Domestic Disturbance as Detective Warren
- 2001 · Daddy and Them as Dewey
- 2001 · Alias as Agent Chapman
- 2001 · Planet of the Apes as Commander Karl Vasich
- 2001 · Six Feet Under as Construction Worker #2
- 2000 · CSI: Crime Scene Investigation as Clinton Malton
- 2000 · The Watcher as Hollis
- 1999 · Roswell as T. Greer
- 1999 · The West Wing as Congressman Fields
- 1999 · Family Law as Mr. Reese
- 1999 · October Sky as Principal Turner
- 1998 · Home Fries as Henry Lever
- 1998 · Armageddon as Flight Director Clark
- 1998 · Godzilla as General Anderson
- 1998 · From the Earth to the Moon as Bob Parker
- 1997 · Wag the Dog as Officer
- 1997 · Sparkler as Buddy #1
- 1997 · Bean as Detective Butler
- 1997 · Con Air as BOP Official Grant
- 1996 · Her Costly Affair as Wes
- 1996 · Millennium as Jim Penseyres
- 1996 · That Thing You Do! as Phil Horace
- 1996 · The Pretender as Daniel Crockett
- 1996 · Promised Land as Brian Pascal
- 1996 · If These Walls Could Talk as Crowd Leader
- 1996 · Arliss as Henneman
- 1995 · Space: Above and Beyond as Adm. Stenner
- 1995 · Murder One as Mr. Switzer
- 1995 · The Tie That Binds as Security Guard #1
- 1995 · Apollo 13 as Deke Slayton
- 1995 · Crimson Tide as Additional Magician
- 1995 · A Little Princess as Policeman
- 1994 · Chicago Hope as
- 1994 · In the Line of Duty: The Price of Vengeance as News Vendor
- 1993 · Addams Family Values as Moving Man
- 1993 · Diagnosis: Murder as Leonard Wilson
- 1993 · The X-Files as Sheriff Lance Hindt
- 1993 · Undercover Blues as Burt
- 1992 · Melrose Place as Cop
- 1992 · My Cousin Vinny as J.T.
- 1990 · Days of Thunder as Harlem Hoogerhyde
- 1982 · Rascals and Robbers: The Secret Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn as Clown