Chris Messina

Chris Messina

Birth : 1974-08-11, New York City, New York, USA

History

Christopher Messina (born August 11, 1974) is an American actor and film director. He has appeared in supporting roles in films such as Vicky Cristina Barcelona, Argo, Julie & Julia, Ruby Sparks, Celeste and Jesse Forever, You've Got Mail, and Birds of Prey. He starred in the film The Giant Mechanical Man. On television, he appeared in roles as Chris Sanchez in Damages, Reese Lansing in The Newsroom and as Danny Castellano in The Mindy Project, the latter of which earned him two nominations for the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actor in a Comedy Series.

Profile

Chris Messina
Chris Messina
Chris Messina

Movies

I.S.S.
Gordon Barrett
When a world war event occurs on Earth, America and Russia, both nations secretly contact their astronauts aboard the I.S.S. and give them instructions to take control of the station by any means necessary.
Dreamin’ Wild
Matt Sullivan
“Dreamin’ Wild” tells the true story of the Emerson family and the tumult that followed the success of their self-recorded pop-funk album of the same name, which went largely unnoticed until critics rediscovered and reappraised it decades later. Now, as an adult, Donnie is forced to confront the ghosts from the past and grapple with the emotional toll his dreams have taken on the family who supported him.
The Boogeyman
Will Harper
Still reeling from the tragic death of their mother, a teenage girl and her younger sister find themselves plagued by a sadistic presence in their house and struggle to get their grieving father to pay attention before it’s too late.
Air
David Falk
Discover the game-changing partnership between a then undiscovered Michael Jordan and Nike's fledgling basketball division which revolutionized the world of sports and culture with the Air Jordan brand.
Call Jane
Will
A married woman with an unwanted pregnancy lives in a time in America where she can't get a legal abortion and works with a group of suburban women to find help.
The Aviary
Seth
A twisted journey of two women’s desperate flee to escape the clutches of Skylight, an insidious cult. Lured in by the promise of “freedom” in the isolated desert campus called The Aviary, Jillian and Blair join forces to escape in hopes of real freedom. Consumed by fear and paranoia, they can’t shake the feeling that they are being followed by the cult’s leader, Seth, a man as seductive as he is controlling. The more distance the pair gains from the cult, the more Seth holds control of their minds. With supplies dwindling and their senses failing, Jillian and Blair are faced with a horrifying question: how do you run from an enemy who lives inside your head?
Love is Love is Love
Jack (segment "Two for Dinner")
Three sto­ries that explore love, com­mit­ment, and loy­al­ty between cou­ples and friends. "Two for Din­ner" where a mar­ried cou­ple tem­porar­i­ly liv­ing in two dif­fer­ent loca­tions are more sep­a­rat­ed than they think. "Sail­ing Les­son" about a long-mar­ried cou­ple who spend a day on a sail­boat rekin­dling their romance… and unex­pect­ed events arise. "Late Lunch" where a young woman who recent­ly lost her moth­er gath­ers togeth­er a group of her moth­er’s friends to share mem­o­ries, with sur­pris­ing rev­e­la­tions.
I Care a Lot
Dean Ericson
A court-appointed legal guardian defrauds her older clients and traps them under her care. But her latest mark comes with some unexpected baggage.
The Secrets We Keep
Lewis
In post-World War II America, a woman, rebuilding her life in the suburbs with her husband, kidnaps her neighbor and seeks vengeance for the heinous war crimes she believes he committed against her.
She Dies Tomorrow
Jason
Amy is ravaged by the notion that she is going to die tomorrow, which sends her down a dizzying emotional spiral. When her skeptical friend Jane discovers Amy’s feeling of imminent death to be contagious, they both begin bizarre journeys through what might be the last day of their lives.
Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn)
Victor Zsasz
Harley Quinn joins forces with a singer, an assassin and a police detective to help a young girl who had a hit placed on her after she stole a rare diamond from a crime lord.
The True Adventures of Wolfboy
Denny
Follows a young boy who runs away from home in the search of his estranged mother.
Zeroville
Brian De Palma
A young actor arrives in Hollywood in 1969 during a transitional time in the Industry.
Light of My Life
Thanks
Parent and child journey through the outskirts of society a decade after a pandemic has wiped out half the world's population. As a father struggles to protect his child, their bond—and the character of humanity—is tested.
Too Long at the Fair
Lee
Charlie and Val are best friends and owners of a fledgeling Princess party business in Los Angeles. After a mishap at a client’s party, the two find themselves in the hole and desperate for funds. They meet a charming divorcee, and what begins as a provocative yet seemingly harmless adventure take a downward turn.
Blame
Jeremy Woods
A drama teacher's taboo relationship with an unstable student strikes a nerve in her jealous classmate, sparking a vengeful chain of events within their suburban high school that draws parallels to "The Crucible".
The Sweet Life
Kenny
Kenny is an ice cream vendor in Chicago with a crisp white uniform and an apathetic heart. When he encounters Lolita, a sharp-tongued but despondent insurance actuary, their heated conversation, natural spark and mutual hopelessness lead to an unusual proposal for a meet-cute: to travel to San Francisco, where they will jump off the Golden Gate Bridge together.
Live by Night
Dion Bartolo
A group of Boston-bred gangsters set up shop in balmy Florida during the Prohibition era, facing off against the competition and the Ku Klux Klan.
Ordinary World
Jake
Perry is a happily married father of two living a comfortable but sedate life in the suburbs. On the occasion of his 40th birthday, he seeks to revisit his former life as the lead singer in a popular punk band though his middle-aged reality quickly (and hilariously) clashes with the indulgences of his youth.
Digging for Fire
Tango
Tim and Lee are married with a young child. The chance to stay at a fancy home in the Hollywood Hills is complicated by Tim's discovery of a bone and a rusty old gun in the yard. Tim is excited by the idea of a mystery, but Lee doesn't want him to dig any further, preferring that he focus on the family taxes, which he promised to do weeks ago. This disagreement sends them on separate and unexpected adventures over the course of a weekend, as Tim and his friends seek clues to the mystery while Lee searches for answers to the bigger questions of marriage and parenthood.
Manglehorn
Jacob
AJ Manglehorn is an aging, ordinary guy in a small town. He nurses his sick cat, squeezes out a conversation with the local bank teller every Friday, and eats at the same place every day. But there is more to Manglehorn than meets the eye: he’s an ex-con who, 40 years ago, gave up the woman of his dreams for a big ‘job’. After a dramatic effort to start over, Manglehorn faces a terrifying moment and is unmasked as a guy with a very, very dark past.
Alex of Venice
George
After her stay-at-home husband leaves her, a workaholic lawyer finds that she is not completely up to the tasks of caring for her young son, ailing father and household all by herself.
Alex of Venice
Director
After her stay-at-home husband leaves her, a workaholic lawyer finds that she is not completely up to the tasks of caring for her young son, ailing father and household all by herself.
The Oven
Narrator
A young couple get into a fight before a very important party. Little do they know an outsider has tuned into their conversation.
Cake
Jason Bennett
After having visions of a member of her support group who killed herself, a woman who also suffers with chronic pain seeks out the widower of the suicide.
Showing Up
Self
An unprecedented look at the audition, compiled from more than 50 interviews with notable artists including Kristin Chenoweth, Richard Griffiths, Zoe Kazan, Nathan Lane, Chris Messina, Sam Rockwell and Eli Wallach.
Palo Alto
Mitch
Shy, sensitive April is the class virgin, torn between an illicit flirtation with her soccer coach Mr. B and an unrequited crush on sweet stoner Teddy. Emily, meanwhile, offers sexual favors to every boy to cross her path — including both Teddy and his best friend Fred, a live wire without filters or boundaries. As one high school party bleeds into the next — and April and Teddy struggle to admit their mutual affection — Fred's escalating recklessness starts to spiral into chaos.
Fairhaven
Executive Producer
Long-time friends reconnect when one returns to their small Massachusetts town for a funeral.
Fairhaven
Dave
Long-time friends reconnect when one returns to their small Massachusetts town for a funeral.
Celeste & Jesse Forever
Paul
Celeste and Jesse met in high school and got married young. They laugh at the same jokes and finish each other’s sentences. They are forever linked in their friends’ minds as the perfect couple – she, a high-powered businesswoman and budding novelist; he, a free spirit who keeps things from getting boring. Their only problem is that they have decided to get divorced. Can their perfect relationship withstand this minor setback?
Ruby Sparks
Harry
Calvin is a young novelist who achieved phenomenal success early in his career but is now struggling with his writing – as well as his romantic life. Finally, he makes a breakthrough and creates a character named Ruby who inspires him. When Calvin finds Ruby, in the flesh, sitting on his couch about a week later, he is completely flabbergasted that his words have turned into a living, breathing person.
Denise
Brad
A girl helps a guy untangle his web of lies.
The Giant Mechanical Man
Tim
An offbeat romantic comedy about a silver-painted street performer and the soft spoken zoo worker who falls for him.
Argo
Malinov
As the Iranian revolution reaches a boiling point, a CIA 'exfiltration' specialist concocts a risky plan to free six Americans who have found shelter at the home of the Canadian ambassador.
28 Hotel Rooms
Executive Producer
While traveling for work in a city far from their homes, a novelist and a corporate accountant find themselves in bed together. Although she’s married, and he’s seeing someone, their intense attraction turns a one-night stand into an unexpected relationship and a respite from the obligations of daily life. Through a series of moments – some profound, some silly, some intensely intimate – we see a portrait of an evolving relationship that could become the most significant one of their lives.
28 Hotel Rooms
Man
While traveling for work in a city far from their homes, a novelist and a corporate accountant find themselves in bed together. Although she’s married, and he’s seeing someone, their intense attraction turns a one-night stand into an unexpected relationship and a respite from the obligations of daily life. Through a series of moments – some profound, some silly, some intensely intimate – we see a portrait of an evolving relationship that could become the most significant one of their lives.
Like Crazy
Mike Appletree
A British college student falls for an American student, only to be separated from him when she's banned from the U.S. after overstaying her visa.
The Trouble with Bliss
NJ
35-year-old Morris Bliss is clamped in the jaws of New York City inertia: he wants to travel but has no money, he needs a job but has no prospects, he still shares an apartment with his widowed father, and the premature death of his mother has left him emotionally walled up. When he finds himself wrapped up in an awkward relationship with Stephanie, the 18-year-old daughter of a former classmate, Morris quickly discovers his static life unraveling and opening up in ways that are long overdue.
An Invisible Sign
Ben Smith
Mona Gray is a 20-year-old loner who, as a child, turned to math for salvation after her father became ill. As an adult, Mona now teaches the subject and must help her students through their own crises.
Devil
Detective Bowden
A group of people are trapped in an elevator high above Philadelphia, and one of them is the devil.
Greenberg
Phillip Greenberg
A New Yorker moves to Los Angeles in order to figure out his life while he housesits for his brother, and he soon sparks with his brother's assistant.
Monogamy
Theo
Exhibitionism, voyeurism, jealousy, lust. Brooklyn wedding photographer Theo’s side business shooting surveillance-style photos of clients on the sly takes an unexpected turn - and creates a rift with his fiancée - when he’s hired by a provocative mystery woman.
Secret Ingredients: Creating Julie & Julia
Behind the scenes of 'Julie & Julia'.
Brief Interviews with Hideous Men
Subject #19
After her boyfriend mysteriously leaves her with little explanation, a doctoral candidate in anthropology at a prestigious East Coast university Sara Quinn is left looking for answers as to what went wrong.
Julie & Julia
Eric Powell
Julia Child and Julie Powell – both of whom wrote memoirs – find their lives intertwined. Though separated by time and space, both women are at loose ends... until they discover that with the right combination of passion, fearlessness and butter, anything is possible.
Away We Go
Tom Garnett
Verona and Burt have moved to Colorado to be close to Burt's parents but, with Veronica expecting their first child, Burt's parents decide to move to Belgium, now leaving them in a place they hate and without a support structure in place. They set off on a whirlwind tour of of disparate locations where they have friends or relatives, sampling not only different cities and climates but also different families. Along the way they realize that the journey is less about discovering where they want to live and more about figuring out what type of parents they want to be.
Humboldt County
Max
Peter is a medical student about to graduate and begin his residency. When his professor fails him, he winds up in bed with an actress and singer named Bogart rolling through Los Angeles. He accompanies her to the redwoods of northern California, where he encounters her eccentric family of pot farmers. But when Bogart runs away without a word, Peter is thrust into the picturesque and bizarre world.
Towelhead
Barry
A young Arab-American girl struggles with her sexual obsession, a bigoted Army reservist, and her strict father during the Gulf War.
Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Doug
Two girlfriends on a summer holiday in Spain become enamored with the same painter, unaware that his ex-wife, with whom he has a tempestuous relationship, is about to re-enter the picture.
Made of Honor
Dennis
Tom and Hannah have been platonic friends for 10 years. He's a serial dater, while she wants marriage but hasn't found Mr. Right. Just as Tom is starting to think that he is relationship material after all, Hannah gets engaged. When she asks Tom to be her 'maid' of honor, he reluctantly agrees just so he can attempt to stop the wedding and woo her.
Ira & Abby
Ira Black
A neurotic, young psychology student, with low self-esteem, has a chance encounter with a free-spirited, extremely gregarious woman who works at the Paris Health Club in New York City, and who suggests that they immediately get married to see how it will work out. Both of the student's parents are analysts, and they provide the happy couple with a gift certificate for a year of marriage counseling as a wedding present.
Turn It Up
Baz
Trying to bootstrap his way out of Brooklyn's mean streets is Diamond, a rap musician. With his long-time pal Gage acting as his manager, he's trying to lay down a demo tape with cut-rate studio time. To pay the bills, he and Gage run drugs for "Mr. B." Inside a week, Diamond's beloved mother dies suddenly, his father appears after an absence of 12 years and wants a relationship, and his girlfriend Kia tells him she's pregnant, asking him if he's ready to be a father. Gage steals $100,000 in a multiple-felony robbery so that Diamond can record a full album, not knowing it's Mr. B's money he's taken. B wants his money, Diamond wants his music, Tia wants an answer.
You've Got Mail
Fox Salesperson
Book superstore magnate, Joe Fox and independent book shop owner, Kathleen Kelly fall in love in the anonymity of the Internet—both blissfully unaware that he's trying to put her out of business.
The Siege
Corporal
The secret US abduction of a suspected terrorist from his Middle East homeland leads to a wave of terrorist attacks in New York. An FBI senior agent and his team attempt to locate and decommission the enemy cells, but must also deal with an Army General gone rogue and a female CIA agent of uncertain loyalties.
Rounders
Higgins
A young reformed gambler must return to playing big stakes poker to help a friend pay off loan sharks.
We're Just Married
A suburban wife ends her marriage after having an affair with her neighbor.