Nestor Carbonell

Although his upbringing was one of privilege, Nestor Carbonell persevered and pursued his heart's desire to become an actor. Although born in NYC, he and family traveled frequently during his formative years and Spanish was actually his first language. After attending prep school, Carbonell enrolled as an English major at Harvard, where he first was exposed to performing as a freshman. After graduating, he embarked on a career, landing bit roles on daytime TV and making his primetime debut on an episode of "Law & Order". Frequently cast as Europeans or Hispanics, he went on to make guest appearances on "Melrose Place" and "A Different World" before he landed the regular role of Gianni, a handsome gigolo, on the short-lived sitcom "Muscle" (The WB, 1995). Later that year, he made his screen debut in the little-seen "Love & Happiness", which played at one theater in Los Angeles. Having proven his comedic abilities, he soon landed the role of Luis Rivera, the too suave staff photographer, supporting Brooke Shields in the NBC sitcom "Suddenly Susan" (1996-2000). Carbonell added screenwriter to his credits with the dark comedy "Blue Light Special" (lensed 1998), in which he plays a successful TV actor whose life unravels after he agrees to a public appearance at a Texas department store.

• Also Credited As:
  Nestor Gastón Carbonell
• Born:
  Nestor Gastón Carbonell on December 1, 1967 in New York City, New York, USA
• Job Titles:
  Actor, Screenwriter

Significant Others

• Wife: Shannon Kenny. Met while both were working on Attention Shoppers (2000)

Education

• Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, English, BA, 1990
• Deerfield Academy, Deerfield, MA

Milestones

• 1991 Primetime TV acting debut in an episode of NBC s Law & Order
• 1995 Appeared in the feature Love & Happiness
• 1995 Had regular role of Gianni, a gigolo kept by older wealthy women, in the WB sitcom Muscle
• 1996 Had regular role of Luis Rivera, the staff photographer, on the NBC sitcom Suddenly Susan
• 2000 Co-starred and co-wrote Attention Shoppers
• 2000 Had recurring role on the Showtime series Resurrection Blvd.
• 2001 Returned to series TV as co-star of the FOX series The Tick
• 2001 Starred in the Sundance-screened indie Jack the Dog
• 2002 Portrayed filmaker Moisés Kaufman in The Laramie Project, the true story of an American town in the wake of the murder of Matthew Shepard
• 2006 Appeared as assassin Pasquale Acosta in the film Smokin Aces
• 2006 Cast in Andy Garcia s feature directorial debut The Lost City
• 2007 Cast as Frank Duque in the short-lived Cane (CBS)
• 2007 Joined the third season of Lost (ABC) playing Richard Alpert, one of the Others; resumed role at the end of the fourth season
• 2008 Cast as the mayor of Gotham City in Christopher Nolan s The Dark Knight
• Began acting as an undergraduate at Harvard
• Father s buisness took the family to various locations; lived in Mexico, Venezuela, England and various states