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Name: Michael Chiklis
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Date of Birth:
August 30, 1963
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Place of Birth:
Lowell, Massachusetts, USA
Mini-bio:
Though known mainly for his role as complicated police officer Vic Mackey on F/X's television cop drama The Shield, Massachusetts native Michael Chiklis has been acting professionally since the age of... read more 13, when he made several appearances at the Town and Country Playhouse in Salem, NH. From there, Chiklis enlisted in a variety of classical, occasionally Shakespearian theatrical productions at the prestigious Merrimack Repertory Theatre and ultimately studied acting in the drama program at Boston University's College of Fine Arts. After graduating, Chiklis traveled to New York and began the auditioning process. In 1988, he was picked to portray John Belushi in the feature film Wired, though litigation and controversy delayed the release and proper promotional process, and the picture itself was a wretched mess (not to mention a depressing affair).By 1991, after making guest appearances in some of the most popular sitcoms of the time (Murphy Brown, L.A. Law, and Seinfeld, to name a few), Chiklis was cast as amiable police commissioner Tony Scali on ABC's The Commish. Though a few extra pounds at that time helped him land the role after his audition, his subsequent weight loss required him to wear a "fat suit" to remain in character (though the actor was only in his mid-twenties, series producers created the role for someone much older). When The Commish ceased to be after a five-year run, Chiklis took on a small role in Oliver Stone's Nixon (1995) and starred in the ill-fated NBC sitcom Daddio (2000). Two years later, the series premiere of The Shield catapulted Chiklis back into the forefront of network success. His role on the popular series would bring him two Best Actor nominations from the Golden Globes, as well as one from the Screen Actor's Guild.Chiklis contented himself with this part for several years, but in 2005, he returned to cinematic ventures and went big budget with the FX-laden summer extravaganza Fantastic Four. This film - like the famous Stan Lee comic strip - concerns a group of individuals who journey into outer space to investigate a cosmic storm, and find each of their DNA codes altered in a unique way; one by one, they become The Human Torch, The Thing, The Invisible Girl, and Mr. Fantastic (four superheroes, each of whom has a unique power) -- and must collectively take on the seemingly invincible Doctor Doom (Julian McMahon). Chiklis plays The Thing (nee Ben Grimm), a creature made entirely of stone. Though broadly derided in the press, the public ignored the negative critical responses and helped The Fantastic Four reel in an estimated worldwide gross of around $330 million -- paving the way for a 2007 sequel, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer. In that outing, the quartet of demigods take on the nefarious titular villain, who has set about destroying the Earth.In that same year's supernatural thriller Rise: Blood Hunter, Chiklis played Detective Rawlins - an unfortunate man whose daughter was bitten and turned into a blood-sucking vampire. The film saw Rawlins pooling his efforts with those of vampire fighter Sadie Blake (Lucy Liu) to destroy an evil vampiric host ironically named Bishop (James D'Arcy). Following this outing, Chiklis signed for a supporting role in director D.J. Caruso's psychological thriller Eagle Eye (2008). ~ Tracie Cooper, Rovi
Michael Chiklis mini-bio: Educated at Boston University's School for the Arts, majoring in acting, before moving to New York City. Michael has numerous theater credits including the roles of Stanley in A Streetcar Named Desire and Touchstone in Shakespeare's As You Like It.
Spouse
Michelle Morán (21 June 1992 - present) 2 children
Trivia
Daughter, Autumn, was born on October 9, 1993.
Daughter, Odessa, born 1999
Chosen over 200 other candidates for the role of John Belushi in the fantasy biopic Wired (1989).
After his show "Daddio" (2000) went off the air, his wife suggested that Chiklis slim his weight down and change his self image with a different look and a totally different acting part, even if they have to create one themselves for him. He then shaved his head, lost more than 50 pounds, worked out vigorously and the two of them started to write a "rogue cop" movie role for him. Chiklis eventually read "The Shield" (2002)'s pilot script (originally called "Rampart"), which was similar to his "rogue cop" movie script, and aggressively pursued the part of Vic Mackey until he got it. When he read for the the part, he generated anger by being furious at the prospect of not getting it.
Is Greek, his family hailing from the island of Lesbos.
When he was on "The Commish" (1991), a hostage situation broke out down the street from his house. Two LAPD plainclothes detectives came up to him when he was out in his yard and explained the situation to him, thinking he was the LAPD commissioner.
Said when he arrived in New York City, that he was going to kick the city's ass. Three years later when he was a struggling actor so poor that he couldn't afford a can of Spam, he was sitting on the Brooklyn Bridge begging for forgiveness. It was that day when he got the role in Wired (1989).
Moved to New York City the day of his graduation to pursue his career
Shares a birthday with baseball legend, Ted Williams
He does charity work pertaining to autism, as Vic's son on 'The Shield' suffers from the condition.
Is the only actor from Fantastic Four (2005) that is actually a fan of the comic book series.
Growing up, his childhood idol was the heroic comic book character Ben Grimm, aka The Thing of the Fantastic Four. In fact, at the age of 18, he told his brother that if a Fanatastic Four movie was ever made, he would play Ben Grimm. He lived his fantasy and got to play what he called "my dream role" in 2005 when he played the character in "The Fantastic Four".
He is very proud of his Greek heritage and encourages his daughters to learn of Greece and the Greek language.
Has a brother called Peter
His parents owned a Barbershop.
Always knew he wanted to be an actor even when advised against it by his parents who still supported him when he chose to act.
His worst job was "unloading 18 wheel trucks for 12 hours a day".
Attends the Greek Orthodox Chuch services every year without fail during the Greek Easter period, his name day and Christmas period.
Lost an incredible amount of weight to play Vic Mackey in the Shield. Trained with weights especially bench-press.
Loves traveling overseas, especially to his house in Lesbos, Greece.
Loves Greek dancing
His real daughter, Autumn, plays his daughter Cassidy on "The Shield." He has said that his daughter is not to witness any violence on the show and is to be kept apart from all scenes except for the scenes she is in.
He loves classic rock.
Is a huge fan of the New England Patriots and Boston Red Sox.
