| Birth Name: | Joseph Peter Pantoliano |
| Birth Date: | 12 September 1951 |
| Birth Place: | Hoboken, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Other Names: | Joey Pants |
| Occupation: | Actor |
| Years Active: | 1974–present |
| Children: | 4 |
Joseph Peter Pantoliano (born September 12, 1951) is an American actor who has played over 150 roles across film, television, and theater.[1] [2] He is best known for portraying Ralph "Ralphie" Cifaretto on the HBO crime drama The Sopranos (1999–2007), for which he won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series, and Cypher in the sci-fi action film The Matrix (1999).
After early roles in the television series M*A*S*H and the comedy film Risky Business, Pantoliano gained recognition for numerous supporting roles in films and television shows such as Hill Street Blues, The Goonies, La Bamba, Empire of the Sun, Midnight Run, NYPD Blue, Memento, and Bad Boys and its sequels. He also appeared in The Fugitive and its spin-off U.S. Marshals. He began working with the Wachowskis in their directorial debut Bound, and later appeared in their film The Matrix and their sci-fi series Sense8.
Pantoliano has published two memoirs and is active in the field of mental health, having documented his mother's issues and his own. He founded the nonprofit No Kidding, Me Too! which is dedicated to removing the stigma from mental illness.[3]
Joseph Peter Pantoliano was born in Hoboken, New Jersey, on September 12, 1951,[4] the son of parents Mary (née Centrella) and Dominic "Monk" Pantoliano.[5] His mother was a bookmaker and seamstress, while his father was a hearse driver and factory foreman.[6] [7] His family moved to Cliffside Park, New Jersey, where he attended Cliffside Park High School.[8] He attended the HB Studio and studied extensively under actors Herbert Berghof and John Lehne.[9]
Pantoliano first grew to fame as Guido the killer pimp in 1983's Risky Business. In 1985 he appeared as the villainous Francis Fratelli in teen classic The Goonies. He gained fame among a new generation as Cypher in the 1999 landmark sci-fi film The Matrix. He won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for the role of Ralph Cifaretto in HBO's The Sopranos.[10]
Pantoliano is also known for his role as Eddie Moscone, the foul-mouthed, double-crossing bail bondsman, in the Robert De Niro comedy Midnight Run, as Captain Conrad Howard in Bad Boys, Bad Boys II, Bad Boys for Life and , as double-crossed mafioso Caesar in Bound, as John "Teddy" Gammell in Memento, and as investigative journalist Ben Urich in Mark Steven Johnson's 2003 Daredevil adaptation. He played Deputy U.S. Marshal Cosmo Renfro in The Fugitive along with Tommy Lee Jones and reprised the role in the sequel U.S. Marshals.
In 2003 Pantoliano replaced Stanley Tucci in the Broadway play Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune.
In 2012 Pantoliano starred as the eccentric pawn broker Oswald Oswald in the film adaptation of Wendy Mass's popular children's book Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life, written and directed by Tamar Halpern.[11] In 2013, he was cast as Yogi Berra in the Broadway production of Bronx Bombers,[12] but dropped out during rehearsals due to "creative differences."[13] From 2015 to 2018 he played Michael Gorski in the Wachowskis' Netflix series Sense8.
Pantoliano was married to Morgan Kester from 1979 until they divorced in 1985. He married his second wife, former model Nancy Sheppard, in 1994; they have four children together,[14] and reside in Connecticut.[15] He was introduced to Sheppard by actress Samantha Phillips.[16]
During his tenure on The Sopranos, Pantoliano struggled to stay anonymous in his native New Jersey; when filming his scenes as Ralph, he prevented the public from recognizing him by wearing a wig based on the hairstyle of filmmaker Christopher Nolan, who had previously directed him in Memento.[17] Ralph's secret use of a wig later became a minor plot point in one episode of the show.[18]
On October 9, 2007, Pantoliano announced on the National Alliance on Mental Illness blog that he had been suffering from clinical depression for the last decade, although he was only formally diagnosed recently. He also has dyslexia. He said that his 2006 film Canvas helped him come to terms with his depression.[19] Rather than hide his illness from the public, he chose to speak out about it to remove some of the stigma commonly associated with mental illness. He founded a nonprofit organization called No Kidding, Me Too! which aims to unite members of the entertainment industry in educating the public about mental illness.[20] The title comes from the response he has frequently heard after revealing how mental illness affected him and his family. He directed, wrote, and starred in the documentary No Kidding! Me 2!! (2009).
Pantoliano is the author of two memoirs: Who's Sorry Now: The True Story of a Stand-Up Guy and Asylum: Hollywood Tales From My Great Depression: Brain Dis-Ease, Recovery, and Being My Mother's Son. He revealed in the latter that he struggled with alcoholism, food addiction, sex addiction, and addictions to Vicodin and Percocet before being diagnosed with clinical depression.[21]
On May 1, 2020, Pantoliano suffered a concussion and chest trauma when he was struck by a vehicle while walking in his neighborhood.
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | Road Movie | Mugger | Credited as Joseph Pantoliano | |
| For Pete's Sake | Undercover Cop | Uncredited | ||
| 1980 | data-sort-value="Idolmaker, The" | The Idolmaker | Gino Pilato | |
| 1982 | Monsignor | Private Joe Musso | ||
| 1983 | data-sort-value="Final Terror, The" | The Final Terror | Eggar Buelton | |
| Risky Business | Guido | |||
| Eddie and the Cruisers | "Doc" Robbins | |||
| 1985 | data-sort-value="Mean Season, The" | The Mean Season | Andy Porter | |
| data-sort-value="Goonies, The" | The Goonies | Francis Fratelli | ||
| 1986 | Running Scared | "Snake" | ||
| 1987 | Scenes from the Goldmine | Manny Ricci | ||
| La Bamba | Bob Keane | |||
| data-sort-value="Squeeze, The" | The Squeeze | Norman | ||
| Amazon Women on the Moon | Sy Swerdlow | Segment: "Hairlooming" | ||
| Empire of the Sun | Frank Demarest | |||
| 1988 | data-sort-value="in Crowd, The" | The in Crowd | Perry Parker | |
| Midnight Run | Eddie Moscone | |||
| 1990 | Ardouous Moon | Unknown | Short film | |
| Downtown | White | |||
| Blue Heat | Wayne Gross | |||
| Short Time | Scalese | |||
| Backstreet Dreams | Paul Antangeli | Uncredited | ||
| 1991 | Zandalee | Gerri | ||
| 1992 | Used People | Frank | ||
| 1993 | Three of Hearts | Mickey | ||
| data-sort-value="Fugitive, The" | The Fugitive | Deputy U.S. Marshal Cosmo Renfro | ||
| Calendar Girl | Harvey Darpinian | |||
| Me and the Kid | Roy | |||
| 1994 | Robot in the Family | The Father | ||
| Teresa's Tattoo | Bruno | |||
| Baby's Day Out | Norbert "Norby" LeBlaw | |||
| 1995 | Bad Boys | Captain Conrad Howard | ||
| Congo | Eddie Ventro | |||
| data-sort-value="Last Word, The" | The Last Word | Doc | ||
| Steal Big Steal Little | Eddie Agopian, Ruben's Lawyer | |||
| data-sort-value="Immortals, The" | The Immortals | Pete Tunnell | ||
| 1996 | data-sort-value="Flight of the Dove, The" | The Flight of the Dove | Attorney Brezner | |
| Bound | Caesar | |||
| 1997 | Top of the World | Vince Castor | ||
| Aliens Attack | Captain Nevins | |||
| Tinseltown | Arnie | |||
| Natural Enemy | Stuart | Direct-to-video | ||
| 1998 | U.S. Marshals | Deputy U.S. Marshal Cosmo Renfro | ||
| Hoods | Charlie Flynn | |||
| Taxman | Al Benjamin | |||
| 1999 | Forces of Nature | Cab Driver | Uncredited cameo | |
| data-sort-value="Matrix, The" | The Matrix | Cypher / Mr. Reagan | ||
| Black and White | Bill King | |||
| data-sort-value="Life Before This, The" | The Life Before This | Jake MacLean | ||
| New Blood | Hellman | |||
| 2000 | Ready to Rumble | Titus Sinclair | ||
| Memento | James Edward "Teddy" Gammell | |||
| data-sort-value="Better Way to Die, A" | A Better Way to Die | "Flash" | ||
| 2001 | Cats & Dogs | Peek (voice) | ||
| 2002 | data-sort-value="Call for Help, A" | A Call for Help | Charlie | |
| data-sort-value="Adventures of Pluto Nash, The" | The Adventures of Pluto Nash | Mogan | ||
| 2003 | Daredevil | Ben Urich | ||
| Bad Boys II | Captain Conrad Howard | |||
| Silver Man | Norbert | |||
| 2004 | Second Best | Elliot | ||
| Perfect Opposites | Louis Carbonelli | |||
| data-sort-value="Easter Egg Adventure, The" | The Easter Egg Adventure | Terrible Timothy Takit (voice) | ||
| 2005 | Racing Stripes | Goose (voice) | ||
| data-sort-value="Check Up, The" | The Check Up | The Inspector | Short film | |
| data-sort-value="Amateurs, The" | The Amateurs | Some Idiot | ||
| 2006 | Mayor Maurice T. Gunn | |||
| Wedding Daze | Smitty | |||
| Canvas | John Marino | |||
| Unknown | Bound Man / Brockman | |||
| 2007 | Spring Break '83 | Sergeant Coltrane | Unreleased | |
| 2009 | data-sort-value="Job, The" | The Job | Perriman | |
| Deadly Impact | David Kaplow | |||
| Falling Up | George | |||
| 2010 | data-sort-value="Legend of Secret Pass, The" | The Legend of Secret Pass | Chucksta (voice) | |
| Gabe Ugliano | ||||
| Peek (voice) | ||||
| New York Street Games | Himself | Documentary | ||
| 2011 | Loosies | Carl | ||
| Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life | Oswald Oswald III | |||
| 2014 | data-sort-value="Identical, The" | The Identical | Avi Hirshberg | |
| 2016 | data-sort-value="Perfect Match, The" | The Perfect Match | Marty | |
| 2017 | Just Getting Started | Joey | ||
| 2018 | Happy Anniversary | Aldo | ||
| Feast of the Seven Fishes | Uncle Frankie | |||
| data-sort-value="Brawler, The" | The Brawler | Al Braverman | ||
| 2019 | From the Vine | Marco Gentile | ||
| 2020 | Bad Boys for Life | Captain Conrad Howard | ||
| 2021 | Hide and Seek | Collin Carmichael | ||
| 2024 | Captain Conrad Howard | [22] |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | McNamara's Band | Frankie Milano | Television film | |
| 1978 | Free Country | Louis Peschi | 3 episodes | |
| 1979 | From Here to Eternity | Private Angelo Maggio | 3 episodes | |
| 1980 | Ray Neal | Television film | ||
| 1981–1984 | Hart to Hart | Frank Tisdale / Nate Volkman | 2 episodes | |
| 1981 | M*A*S*H | Corporal Gerald Mullen / Josh Levin | Episode: "Identity Crisis" | |
| 1982 | Chicago Story | Cooney | Episode: "Who Needs the Truth?" | |
| 1983 | Hardcastle and McCormick | Teddy Hollins | Episode: "The Crystal Duck" | |
| 1984 | Mister Roberts | Insignia | Television film | |
| Hill Street Blues | Sonny Orsini | 2 episodes | ||
| Trapper John, M.D. | Michael Merrow | Episode: "Where There's a Will" | ||
| Simon & Simon | Carl | Episode: "Who Killed the Sixties?" | ||
| 1985 | Robert Kennedy & His Times | Roy Cohn | Episode #1.1 | |
| 1986 | Amazing Stories | Joe | Episode: "One for the Road" | |
| L.A. Law | Rob Cavanaugh | Episode: "Pilot" | ||
| 1987 | Destination America | Lieutenant Mike Amico | Television film | |
| 1987 | Beverly Hills Buntz | Jimmy Montaigne | Episode: "Pilot" | |
| 1988 | Rock 'n' Roll Mom | Ronnie | Television film | |
| 1989 | Nightbreaker | Sergeant Jack Russell | Television film | |
| data-sort-value="Hitchhiker, The" | The Hitchhiker | Brother Charles | Episode: "Miracle of Alice Ames" | |
| Tales from the Crypt | Ulrich The Undying | Episode: "Dig That cat...He's real gone" | ||
| 1990 | El Diablo | "Kid" Durango | Television film | |
| 1990–1991 | data-sort-value="Fanelli Boys, The" | The Fanelli Boys | Dominic Fanelli | 19 episodes |
| 1991 | One Special Victory | Daniel | Television film | |
| 1992 | Through the Eyes of a Killer | Jerry | Television film | |
| Dr. Wilder | Episode: "Deadly Medicine" | |||
| 1994 | Dangerous Heart | Barclay | Television film | |
| Beethoven | Sparky (voice) | 12 episodes | ||
| 1995 | data-sort-value="Marshal, The" | The Marshal | Cameris | Episode: "Unprotected Witness" |
| NYPD Blue | Vinnie Greco | 3 episodes | ||
| 1996 | Ed McBain's 87th Precinct: Ice | Detective Meyer Meyer | Television film | |
| Life with Louie | Jojo Stomopolous (voice) | Episode: "Caddy on a Hot Tin Roof" | ||
| Arliss | Vic Freed | Episode: "The Client's Best Interest" | ||
| 1996–1997 | EZ Streets | Jimmy Murtha | 12 episodes | |
| 1998–2000 | Victor "Animal" Palotti (voice) | 8 episodes | ||
| 1998 | Hercules | King Pan (voice) | Episode: "Hercules and the King for a Day" | |
| data-sort-value="Lionhearts, The" | The Lionhearts | Director (voice) | 5 episodes | |
| 1999 | Sugar Hill | Joe | Pilot | |
| data-sort-value="Outer Limits, The" | The Outer Limits | Stan Harbinger | Episode: "Alien Radio" | |
| Olive, the Other Reindeer | Martini (voice) | Television special | ||
| 2001–2004 | data-sort-value="Sopranos, The" | The Sopranos | Ralph Cifaretto | 21 episodes |
| 2001 | Roswell | Kal Langley | 2 episodes | |
| 2002 | data-sort-value="Nick Cannon Show, The" | The Nick Cannon Show | Himself | 2 episodes |
| 2003–2004 | data-sort-value="Handler, The" | The Handler | Joe Renato | 16 episodes |
| 2003 | Gary the Rat | Anthony "The Heel" Stilletto (voice) | Episode: "Sleeps with the Fishes" | |
| 2004 | Dr. Vegas | Tommy Danko | 7 episodes | |
| 2006 | Deceit | Anthony | Television film | |
| Waterfront | Jimmy Centrella | Unreleased series | ||
| data-sort-value="Simpsons, The" | The Simpsons | Dante (voice) | Episode: "The Mook, the Chef, the Wife and Her Homer" | |
| 2011 | How to Make it in America | Felix DiFlorio | 2 episodes | |
| 2014 | More Time with Family | Stan Rizzo | Pilot | |
| 2015 | Deadbeat | Famous Actor | Episode: "The Emancipation Apparition" | |
| 2015–2017 | Sense8 | Michael Gorski | Uncredited 5 episodes | |
| 2017 | SpongeBob SquarePants | Stickyfins Whiting (voice) | Episode: "The Getaway" | |
| 2018 | Henderson | Television film | ||
| 2020–2023 | Tacoma FD | Eddie Penisi Sr. | 4 episodes | |
| 2020–2021 | MacGyver | Eric Andrews | 2 episodes | |
| 2021 | data-sort-value="Santa Stakeout, The" | The Santa Stakeout | Francis Miller | Television film |
| 2022 | Chucky | Himself | Episode: "Death on Denial"[23] | |
| 2023 | The Patrick Star Show | Stickyfins Whiting (voice) | Episode: "Patrick's Prison Pals" |
| Year | Title | Character | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Majestic | Tim Pritchard | Episode 4 | |
| Grand Theft Auto III | Luigi Goterelli | |||
| 2013 | Albert "Weasel" Arlington | Mob of the Dead expansion | ||
| 2021 | Luigi Goterelli | Archival Recordings Remaster of Grand Theft Auto III only |
| Year | Association | Category | Nominated work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Saturn Awards | Best Supporting Actor | Bound | |
| Television Critics Association | Individual Achievement in Drama | EZ Streets | ||
| Viewers for Quality Television | Best Supporting Actor in a Quality Drama Series | |||
| 2002 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series | The Sopranos | |
| 2003 | Primetime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series | ||
| 2004 | Screen Actors Guild Awards | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series |