Michael Pitt stars as Jimmy Darmody in the first and second seasons.
Biography[]
A native of West Orange, New Jersey, Pitt announced to his parents that he wanted to be an actor when he was ten years old. His folks scraped together the money to send him to an acting school and age 16, the aspiring performer crossed the Hudson and settled in NYC. Sustaining himself as a bike messenger, Pitt began landing roles, including a bit part on the ABC soap "All My Children", a guest spots on "Dellaventura" and "Law & Order" as well as roles in student films and the occasional independent production (e.g., "54" and "The Hi-Life" both 1998). He made his Off-Broadway debut in 1999 in the Depression-era drama "The Trestle at Pope Lick Creek". Pitt earned generally positive notices for his performance as an impressionable young man who comes under the spell of a slightly older woman (Alicia Goranson), A casting agent spotted the actor—who bears a slight resemblance to Leonardo DiCaprio—and suggested him for the "Dawson's Creek" role.
Since he found the TV work financially rewarding but artistically unimpressive, Pitt segued to supporting roles in mainstream films. Director Gus Van Sant tapped him to play the preppy pal of Anna Paquin and newcomer Rob Brown in "Finding Forrester" (2000) and novice helmer Faye Dunaway cast him in her directorial debut "The Yellow Bird" (lensed 2000), which is set to air on the WE Network. Pitt saw his profile rise with his strong turn as Tommy, a military brat with singing aspirations who becomes a rock star under the tutelage of an East German transsexual in the terrific musical film "Hedwig and the Angry Inch" (2001). which premiered to rapturous acclaim at Sundance. Pitt's good looks, charisma and acting ability tagged him as one to watch. He solidified his rising star status with a chilling but humorous performance as a perpetually drugged out Florida teen who goes along with his girlfriend when she agrees to participate in a murder in the disturbing "Bully" (also 2001). He followed by co-starring with Sandra Bullock in the thriller "Murder by Numbers" (2002).
In the psychological drama, “Rhinoceros Eyes” (2003), Pitt played an eccentric recluse, Chep, who works at a prop house and is smitten with a set designer (Paige Turco) whose requests for objects become increasingly bizarre. Chep loses touch with reality when he begins to resort to drastic—and often violent—means to obtain props for his unrequited love. After playing an American exchange student caught in the midst of the ’68 Paris riots and an unusual love triangle in “The Dreamers” (2003), Pitt had a small role in “The Village” (2004), M. Night Shyamalan’s predictable thriller about a 19th-century village held at bay by a race of strange forest creatures surrounding their idyllic town. Pitt then reunited with Van Sant for a fictional recounting of troubled rock star Kurt Cobain’s decline and fall in “Last Days” (2005). Playing an increasingly pressured and isolated artist, Blake, Pitt gave a fine turn in a film that borrowed liberally from Cobain’s tortured life.
- Also Credited As: Michael Carmen Pitt
Trivia[]
Education[]
- American Academy of Dramatic Arts, New York, New York
Milestones[]
- 1997 Primetime debut in a guest appearance in Dellaventura (CBS)
- 1998 Feature acting debut in The Hi-Life
- 1998 Feature debut in an uncredited bit role as a dance student in 54
- 1999 Had recurring role as football player Henry Parker on Dawson s Creek
- 1999 Starred in the Off-Broadway play The Trestle at Pope Lick Creek
- 2000 Appeared on stage in Birdy, playing the title character as a teenager at production staged at Duke University
- 2000 Cast as a student in Finding Forrester, directed by Gus Van Sant
- 2001 Acted in Faye Dunaway s directorial debut The Yellow Bird ; based on a Tennessee Williams play; aired on WE network
- 2001 Co-starred as Tommy Gnosis in the film adaptation of Hedwig and the Angry Inch
- 2001 Played supporting role as a stoner who becomed involved in a murder plot in Bully
- 2002 Acted on stage in the Off-Broadway play Monster, loosely based on Mary Shelley s Frankenstein
- 2002 Had one of the leads in Murder by Numbers, about two high school students who think they have committed the perfect murder
- 2004 Appeared in M. Night Shyamalan s The Village, which starred Bryce Dallas Howard and Joaquin Phoenix
- 2004 Starred in Bernardo Bertolucci s The Dreamers as an American student in Paris who befriends a brother and sister. Set against the background of the 68 Paris student riots
- 2005 Starred In Gus Van Sant s Last Days, based loosely on the final hours of Kurt Cobain
- 2006 Co-starred with Paul Giamatti for the southern-themed The Hawk is Dying, based on the novel by Harry Crews
- 2007 Co-starred with Keira Knightley as a French husband and wife in director François Girard s Silk
- 2007 Co-starred with Naomi Watts and Brady Corbet in Funny Games
- At age 10, announced to parents he wanted to be an actor; sent to drama school
- Moved to NYC at age 16
- TV acting debut, an under five role on the ABC soap All My Children
Appearances[]
Credits[]
Star