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Josh Charles
American actor (born 1971)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Joshua Aaron Charles (born September 15, 1971) is an American film, television, and theater actor best known for playing Will Gardner on The Good Wife, a role which earned him two Primetime Emmy Award nominations. He also appeared in Sports Night, Dead Poets Society and Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead.
Early life
Joshua Aaron Charles was born on September 15, 1971[1][2] to Allan Charles, an advertising executive, and Laura Peyton.[3][4][5][6][7] He is Jewish on his father's side and identifies as Jewish himself.[1][8][9] He began his career performing comedy at the age of 9. As a teenager, he spent several summers at Stagedoor Manor Performing Arts Center in New York.[10] He attended the Baltimore School for the Arts, where he was a classmate of Jada Pinkett and Tupac Shakur.
Career
Film
Charles's film debut was in John Waters's Hairspray in 1988. The following year, he starred alongside Robin Williams and Ethan Hawke in Dead Poets Society. He had also appeared in Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead, Threesome, Pie in the Sky, Muppets from Space, S.W.A.T, Four Brothers, After.Life, Crossing the Bridge, and Brief Interviews with Hideous Men.
Television
Charles played sports anchor Dan Rydell in Aaron Sorkin's Sports Night (1998–2000), for which he was nominated for the Screen Actors Guild Award.[11] In 2008, Charles appeared in season one of HBO's In Treatment.[12] He played a recurring role in The Good Wife, for which he was nominated for an Emmy Award twice; once in 2011 and another in 2014.
In 2011, Charles narrated the debut episode for NFL Network's A Football Life based on New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick.[13] In 2022, he starred in the HBO limited series We Own This City.[14]
In May 2025, Charles joined the cast of the American remake of the British series Doc Martin called Best Medicine.[15]
Theatre
Charles headlined a production of Jonathan Marc Sherman's Confrontation in 1986. In 2004, he appeared in the revival of Neil LaBute's The Distance from Here which received a Drama Desk Award for Best Ensemble Cast. In January 2006, he appeared in Richard Greenberg's The Well-Appointed Room at the Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Chicago and Caryl Churchill's A Number at the American Conservatory Theater, San Francisco. In 2007, he appeared in Adam Bock's The Receptionist at the Manhattan Theatre Club, New York City.
Charles appeared in the off-Broadway production of Annie Baker's The Antipodes at the Signature Theatre in 2017.[16][17] He made his Broadway debut in Straight White Men by Young Jean Lee at the Hayes Theater in 2018.[18][19][20]
Others
Charles appeared in Taylor Swift's music video for "Fortnight" in 2024, alongside his Dead Poets Society co-star, Ethan Hawke.[21]
Personal life
In September 2013, Charles married ballet dancer and author Sophie Flack. The couple lives in New York City.[22][23][24][25][26] On December 9, 2014, Flack gave birth to the couple's first child, a son.[27] On August 23, 2018, Charles revealed on his Instagram that Flack gave birth to their second child, a daughter.[28]
Charles supports the Baltimore Ravens and Baltimore Orioles.[11]
Politics
In 2011, Charles appeared in a Human Rights Campaign video in support of same-sex marriage. He also supported the 2012 Maryland same-sex marriage referendum.[29][30]
Charles supported Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign in 2016.[31] In 1999, Clinton's campaign of for the U.S. Senate had requested a copy of a Sports Night episode in which Charles's character Dan Rydell talks about his admiration for Clinton and recounts attending a fundraiser for her off-screen.[32][33][34]
In August 2014, Charles was amongst the Hollywood signatories for an open letter condemning Hamas attacks on Israel during the 2014 Gaza War.[35][36] In October 2023, he signed an open letter calling on President Joe Biden to work toward the release of all Israeli hostages following the October 7 attacks.[37][38]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Hairspray | Iggy | |
| 1989 | Dead Poets Society | Knox Overstreet | |
| 1991 | Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead | Bryan | |
| 1992 | Crossing the Bridge | Mort Golden | |
| 1994 | Threesome | Eddy | |
| 1995 | Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead | Bruce | uncredited |
| 1995 | Coldblooded | Randy | |
| 1996 | The Grave | Tyn | |
| 1996 | Crossworlds | Joe Talbot | |
| 1996 | Pie in the Sky | Charlie Dunlap | |
| 1997 | Cyclops, Baby | Brush Brody | |
| 1997 | Little City | Adam | |
| 1999 | Muppets from Space | Agent Barker | |
| 2000 | Meeting Daddy | Peter Silverblatt | |
| 2003 | S.W.A.T. | T. J. McCabe | |
| 2004 | Seeing Other People | Lou | |
| 2005 | Four Brothers | Detective Fowler | |
| 2006 | The Darwin Awards | Paramedic | |
| 2006 | The Ex | Forrest Mead | |
| 2009 | After.Life | Tom Peterson | |
| 2009 | Brief Interviews with Hideous Men | Subject No. 2 | |
| 2014 | Bird People | Gary Newman | |
| 2014 | Adult Beginners | Phil | |
| 2015 | I Smile Back | Bruce Brooks | |
| 2015 | Freeheld | Bryan Kelder | |
| 2016 | Whiskey Tango Foxtrot | Chris | |
| 2016 | Norman | Arthur Taub | |
| 2016 | The Drowning | Tom Seymour | |
| 2018 | Amateur | Coach Gaines | |
| 2019 | Framing John DeLorean | Bill Collins | [39] |
| 2023 | Memory | Isaac | |
| 2024 | Mothers' Instinct | Damian Jennings |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Murder in Mississippi | Andrew Goodman | Television film |
| 1993 | Cooperstown | Jody | Television film |
| 1996 | Norma Jean & Marilyn | Eddie Jordan | Television film |
| 1997 | The Underworld | Ehrlich | Television film |
| 1998–2000 | Sports Night | Dan Rydell | 45 episodes |
| 2002 | Our America | Dave Isay | Television film |
| 2005 | Stella | Jeremy | Episode: "Meeting Girls" |
| 2007 | Six Degrees | Ray Jones | 4 episodes |
| 2008 | In Treatment | Jake | 8 episodes |
| Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Sean Kelley | Episode: "Confession" | |
| 2009–2016 | The Good Wife | Will Gardner | 107 episodes, also director (3 episodes) |
| 2014–2016 | Inside Amy Schumer | Various | 4 episodes |
| 2015 | Masters of Sex | Dan Logan | 10 episodes |
| Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp | Blake | 6 episodes | |
| 2016–2017 | Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt | Duke Snyder | 5 episodes |
| 2016–2019 | Drunk History | Various | 3 episodes |
| 2017 | Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later | Blake | 6 episodes |
| Law & Order True Crime | Dr. Jerome Oziel | 7 episodes | |
| Last Week Tonight with John Oliver | Forensic Scientist | Episode: "Forensic Science" | |
| 2019 | The Loudest Voice | Casey Close | 3 episodes |
| 2020 | Away | Matt Logan | 10 episodes |
| 2021 | Law & Order: Organized Crime | Vince Baldi | Episode: "Forget it, Jake; It's Chinatown" |
| 2022 | We Own This City | Daniel Hersl | Miniseries, main cast |
| 2023 | The Power | Daniel Dandon | Recurring role |
| 2024 | The Veil | Max Peterson | 4 episodes |
| 2025 | The Handmaid's Tale | Commander Wharton | 4 episodes |
| The American Revolution | Joseph Warren / David Ramsay (voice) | 5 episodes | |
| 2026 | Best Medicine | Dr. Martin Best | Main role |
Music videos
| Year | Title | Artist | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | "Fortnight" | Taylor Swift ft. Post Malone | [40] |
