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Birthday: Apr 14, 1956
Place of Birth: Dallas, Texas, USA

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.

Filmography
Movie Cast Year
Armageddon Flight Director Clark 1998
Godzilla General Anderson 1998
Apollo 13 Deke Slayton 1995
Bean Detective Butler 1997
Catch Me If You Can Special Agent Witkins 2002
Live Free or Die Hard Scalvino 2007
My Cousin Vinny J.T. 1992
The Watcher Hollis 2000
Sparkler Buddy #1 1997
Gospel Hill L Donn Murray 2008
In Enemy Hands Samuel Littleton 2004
Home Fries Henry Lever 1998
Teenage Dirtbag Pops 2009
My Dinner with Jimi Sergeant 2003
October Sky Principal Turner 1999
Wag the Dog Officer 1997
G-Force NSA Director 2009
In the Line of Duty: The Price of Vengeance News Vendor 1994
Jessabelle Sheriff Pruitt 2014
Tiger Cruise Captain Anderson 2004
Helter Skelter Sgt. Whiteley 2004
Undercover Blues Burt 1993
Sissy Frenchfry Willinger McDodey 2006
That Thing You Do! Phil Horace 1996
Faults Dad 2014
A Little Princess Policeman 1995
Love Liza Patriot Model Aeronautics Clerk 2002
The Ghost Trap Doug Kane 2024
Beyond the City Limits Det. Hanson 2001
The Dark Knight Rises Fr. Reilly 2012
What Still Remains Harvey 2018
Crazy Glen the Carousel Manager 2008
Death and Texas Phillip Brodeur 2004
The Tie That Binds Security Guard #1 1995
The Show Keller 2017
Transformers Admiral Brigham 2007
Pitching Tents Principal Don Bishop 2017
If These Walls Could Talk Crowd Leader 1996
The Island Aces & Spades Barman 2005
Planet of the Apes Commander Karl Vasich 2001
Amelia 2.0 Senator Thaddeus 2017
The Oath Hank 2018
Kenny Al 2018
Her Costly Affair Wes 1996
Addams Family Values Moving Man 1993
Daddy and Them Dewey 2001
Fun with Dick and Jane Vice President - Grand Cayman Bank 2005
The Devil's Rejects Coggs 2005
Domestic Disturbance Detective Warren 2001
The Guest Hendricks 2014
Days of Thunder Harlem Hoogerhyde 1990
Con Air BOP Official Grant 1997
Crimson Tide Additional Magician 1995
Silo Mr. Adler 2021
Rascals and Robbers: The Secret Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn Clown 1982
Believe in Me Jim Stovall 2006
Series Cast Year
Six Feet Under Construction Worker #2 2001
Veronica Mars Reverend Ted Capistrano 2004
Ghost Whisperer Captain Ken Nilsen 2005
Alias Agent Chapman 2001
The Pretender Daniel Crockett 1996
The Unit Congressman Bruce Gelber 2006
Cold Case Jim Horn (2008) 2003
CSI: NY Vincent Williams 2004
Burn Notice Virgil Watkins 2007
Criminal Minds Sheriff Rhodes 2005
The X-Files Sheriff Lance Hindt 1993
9-1-1: Lone Star Derek Poole 2020
Millennium Jim Penseyres 1996
Melrose Place Cop 1992
Roswell T. Greer 1999
First Monday 2002
Chicago Hope 1994
Family Law Mr. Reese 1999
NCIS John DeLuca (uncredited) 2003
K.C. Undercover Christos Markos 2015
Birds of Prey Larry Ketterly 2002
Diagnosis: Murder Leonard Wilson 1993
The West Wing Congressman Fields 1999
Political Animals Jubal Jacobs 2012
Mad Men Del Hill 2007
From the Earth to the Moon Bob Parker 1998
The Mentalist Sherrif Mullery 2008
Law & Order: LA Walter Exley 2010
Space: Above and Beyond Adm. Stenner 1995
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation Clinton Malton 2000
The Finder Warden Nick Larsen 2012
Justified Douglas Cooper 2010
Promised Land Brian Pascal 1996
Fairly Legal Maddox Resor 2011
Murder One Mr. Switzer 1995
Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles Hayes 2008
Warehouse 13 Colonel Arnold Cassell 2009
NCIS John Deluca 2003
Young Sheldon Marty Steinbecker 2017
Homecoming Richard Lehmann 2018
The Office Chris O'Keefe 2005
Arliss Henneman 1996
Las Vegas Dr. Sassen 2003
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