Bobby Cannavale

Bobby Cannavale ( ; born May 3, 1970) is an American actor. His breakthrough came with the leading role as FDNY Paramedic Roberto "Bobby" Caffey in the NBC series Third Watch, a role he played from 1999 to 2001.

Cannavale received the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series for Will & Grace in 2005, and received nominations for his recurring role on Nurse Jackie (2012, 2013). He won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for portraying Gyp Rosetti in Boardwalk Empire in 2013. Other television roles include Vinyl, Mr. Robot, Blue Bloods and Master of None. He has also starred in the Amazon Prime series Homecoming (2018–20), the Hulu series Nine Perfect Strangers (2021), and Netflix's The Watcher (2022).

Cannavale made his Broadway debut in the 2008 Theresa Rebeck play Mauritius for which he earned a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play. In 2011, he starred in the Stephen Adly Guirgis comedic play The Motherfucker with the Hat, earning a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play nomination. He portrayed Richard Roma in the 2012 revival of David Mamet's Glengarry Glen Ross.

Cannavale has acted in the drama films The Station Agent (2003), Win Win (2011), Blue Jasmine (2013), I, Tonya (2017), Motherless Brooklyn (2019), The Irishman (2019), and Blonde (2022) as well as the comedy films Paul Blart: Mall Cop (2009), The Other Guys (2010), Annie (2014), Spy (2015), and Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017). He entered the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) portraying Jim Paxton in Ant-Man (2015) and Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018). He has voiced recurring roles for the animated Netflix series BoJack Horseman and Big Mouth, and provided voice acting work for The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature, Ferdinand (both 2017), Tom & Jerry, Sing 2 (both 2021) and Under the Boardwalk (2023).

Early life Cannavale was born on May 3, 1970, in Union City, New Jersey, where he grew up, the son of Isabel and Salvatore "Sal" Cannavale. His father is of Italian descent, while his mother is Cuban and moved to the U.S. in 1960. His uncle is Enzo Cannavale, an Italian actor who performed in the Academy Award–winning Cinema Paradiso. He was raised Catholic and attended St. Michael's Catholic School, where he participated in a number of extracurricular activities, including being an altar boy and member of the chorus.

When he was eight, Cannavale secured the plum role of the lisping boy, Winthrop, in his school's production of The Music Man and later played a gangster in Guys and Dolls, which cemented his love for performing. Cannavale's parents divorced when he was 13 and his mother moved the family to Puerto Rico. After two years in the American territory, they settled in Margate, Florida. From 1983 to 1986, Cannavale attended Coconut Creek High School, but during his senior year, he was expelled "for being a cutup."

Career

Cannavale began his acting career in the theater – with no acting training – and gained early film roles in Night Falls on Manhattan (1997) and The Bone Collector (1999), Cannavale became well known when he starred as Bobby Caffey for two seasons on Third Watch. Following this, in 2001, he starred with Alan Arkin in 100 Centre Street – which was written and directed by Sidney Lumet, his then-father-in-law.

In 2002, he joined the cast of Ally McBeal for the last five episodes, but the show was then cancelled. Following this, he starred with Yancey Arias and Sheryl Lee in the miniseries Kingpin. In 2003, Cannavale briefly appeared on the last two episodes of Oz. He also appeared in the film The Station Agent as a man who befriends a little person removed from society. From 2004 to 2006, he had a recurring guest role on Will & Grace as Vince D'Angelo, the boyfriend (and eventual husband) of Will Truman (Eric McCormack). However, in the reboot, they are revealed not to be married. For this role, he won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series in 2005. He has also appeared in the films The Guru (2002), Shall We Dance? (2004), Romance & Cigarettes (2005) and Snakes on a Plane, and guest-starred in Sex and the City, Six Feet Under, Oz, Law & Order – and its spin-off series Law & Order: Criminal Intent and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. He appeared in The Take (2007) as Agent Steve Perelli, alongside John Leguizamo and Tyrese Gibson.

Cannavale serves as the voice of Corado R. Ciarlo, known as "Babe", in the Ken Burns PBS film series The War (the story of World War II) from the perspective of the men who fought in combat and their loved ones at home. He also read the audiobook versions of Richard Price's 2008 novel Lush Life and Ed Falco's 2012 novel The Family Corleone. On August 25, 2008, ABC ordered his pilot Cupid, a remake of the 1998 program which had starred Jeremy Piven and Paula Marshall, to series. In the new version of the series, Cannavale starred opposite Sarah Paulson with script development overseen by original series creator Rob Thomas. Cupid premiered on March 31, 2009, but was cancelled by ABC after less than two months, on May 19, 2009.

In 2008, he received a Tony Award nomination for his role as Dennis in the Broadway play, Mauritius. In 2009, CBS announced Cannavale would reprise his role of Det. Eddie Saccardo on the television show, Cold Case, for three episodes, starting with the third episode of Season 7. Cannavale was in the film The Other Guys (2010), and played the role of Terry Delfino in the film Win Win (2011). He later starred in the Broadway play The Motherfucker with the Hat alongside Chris Rock and Annabella Sciorra. On May 3, 2011 (his 41st birthday), he was nominated for a Tony Award for his leading role in that production.

In 2012 and 2013, he guest-starred in the fourth and fifth seasons of Showtime's Nurse Jackie, for which he was nominated twice again for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series in 2012 and 2013, as well as joining the cast of HBO's Boardwalk Empire, portraying the psychopathic Sicilian gangster Gyp Rosetti in the third season. His performance on Boardwalk Empire won critical acclaim, earning him the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series in 2013. That same year he also played Lewis, a vengeful clown on Modern Family during the third season, for which he was nominated for Best Guest Performer in a Comedy Series at the 2nd Critics' Choice Television Awards in 2012. TV Guide, in its "Cheers & Jeers 2012" issue, praised Cannavale for this "trifecta of great performances", commenting, "This guy is so good at playing bad, it's scary." He played what Matt Zoller Seitz of RogerEbert.com called a "heroically moving" lead role in Danny Collins in 2015.

Since 2015, Cannavale has been involved with voice-over work for Playing On Air, a non-profit organization that "records short plays [for public radio and podcast] written by top playwrights and performed by outstanding actors." He has starred in three short plays, including Crazy Eights by David Lindsay-Abaire, co-starring Rosie Perez and John Leguizamo; Mere Mortals by David Ives; and 2 Dads by David Auburn.

In January 2020, Cannavale appeared with his real-life partner Rose Byrne in the play Medea, written and directed by Simon Stone. In 2021, Cannavale played Tony Hogburn in the Nicole Kidman-led Hulu miniseries Nine Perfect Strangers (based on the novel of the same name by Liane Moriarty), which also featured Melissa McCarthy, Michael Shannon, Luke Evans, Samara Weaving, and Asher Keddie. In 2022, Cannavale was seen portraying Dean Braddock in the 2022 Netflix series, The Watcher.

Personal life

From 1994 to 2003, Cannavale was married to actress/screenwriter Jenny Lumet – director Sidney Lumet's daughter and performer Lena Horne's granddaughter – with whom he has a son, actor Jake Cannavale. Cannavale has been in a relationship with Australian actress Rose Byrne since 2012. Their first son was born in 2016, and a second son in 2017.

Acting credits Film Year Title Role Notes 1996 Night Falls on Manhattan Vigoda Assistant #1 1999 Gloria Jack Jesus Nunez The Bone Collector Detective Steve 2000 3 A.M. Jose 2002 Washington Heights Angel The Guru Randy 2003 Shortcut to Happiness Cop The Station Agent Joe Oramas 2004 Fresh Cut Grass Billy Pecchio Haven Lieutenant Shall We Dance? Chic The Breakup Artist Neighbor 2005 Happy Endings Javier Duran Romance & Cigarettes Chetty Jr. / "Fryburg" 2006 The Night Listener Jess Fast Food Nation Mike Snakes on a Plane Henry "Hank" Harris 10 Items or Less Bobby 2007 The Ten Marty McBride Dedication Don Meyers 2008 The Take Agent Steve Perelli Diminished Capacity Lee Vivyan The Promotion Mark Timms 100 Feet Lou Shanks 2009 Paul Blart: Mall Cop Commander James Kent The Merry Gentleman Michael Elkhart Brief Interviews with Hideous Men Subject #40 Louis C.K.'s Last Chance Porn Producer Short film 2010 F—K Bobby The Other Guys Jimmy Apples Nino Short film Weakness Joshua Polansky 2011 Win Win Terry Delfino Roadie Randy Stevens 2013 Movie 43 Superman Segment: "Super Hero Speed Dating" Parker Jake Fernandez Lovelace Butchie Peraino Blue Jasmine Chili 2014 Chef Tony Adult Beginners Danny Annie Guy Danlily 2015 Danny Collins Tom Donnelly Spy Sergio De Luca Ant-Man Jim Paxton Daddy's Home Emilio Francisco 2016 The Fundamentals of Caring Cash Uncredited 2017 Hair Bobby Cannavale Short film The Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature Frankie (voice) I, Tonya Martin Maddox Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle Professor Russell Van Pelt Credited as Van Pelt Ferdinand Valiente/Valiente's father (voice) The Photographer Photographer Short film 2018 Boundaries Leonard Ant-Man and the Wasp Jim Paxton 2019 Motherless Brooklyn Tony Vermonte The Irishman Felix “Skinny Razor” DiTullio The Jesus Rolls Petey Martha the Monster Kevin / Doormat (voice) short film 2020 Superintelligence George Churchill 2021 Tom & Jerry Spike (voice) Thunder Force William "The King" Stevens Jolt Detective Vicars This Is the Night Frank Larocca Sing 2 Jimmy Crystal (voice) 2022 Seriously Red Wilson Allswell in New York Gabe Blonde Joe DiMaggio Angry Neighbors Kevin 2023 Ezra Max Brandel Also executive producer Old Dads Connor Brody Under the Boardwalk Bobby (voice) 2024 MaXXXine Detective Torres Incoming Mr. Studebaker Unstoppable Rich 2025 Blue Moon Eddie Trap House Andre Washburn 2026 One Night Only Detective SannogaleTBA Judgment Day Post-production

Television Year Title Role Notes 1998 When Trumpets Fade Capt. Thomas Zenek Television film 1999–2001 Third Watch Roberto Caffey Main cast; 38 episodes 2000 Sex and the City Adam Ball Episode: "Easy Come, Easy Go" 2001–2002 100 Centre Street Jeremiah Jellinek 5 episodes 2002 Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Kyle Novacek Episode: "Monogamy" Ally McBeal Wilson Jade 5 episodes Law & Order Randy Porter Episode: "Hitman" 2003 Kingpin Chato Cadena Main cast; 6 episodes Law & Order: Criminal Intent Julian Bello Episode: "The Gift" Oz Alonzo Torquemada 2 episodes 2004 Six Feet Under Javier 3 episodes 2004–2006, 2018 Will & Grace Vince D'Angelo 17 episodes 2005 N.Y.-70 Det. Niko Corso Pilot The Exonerated Jesse Tafero Television film Recipe for a Perfect Christmas Alex Stermadapolous 2006–2007 The Days of Pets Burke Zuko Recurring cast 2007 The War Corado R. "Babe" Ciarlo (voice) 2 episodes The Knights of Prosperity Enrico Cortez 2 episodes Law & Order J.P. Lange Episode: "Murder Book" M.O.N.Y. Joe Capanelli Pilot 2008–2009 Cold Case Eddie Saccardo 7 episodes 2008 Lipstick Jungle Chris "Parks" Parker Episode: "Chapter Seven: Carpe Threesome" 2009 Cupid Trevor Pierce Main cast; 7 episodes 2010 American Dad! Detective Chaz Migliaccio (voice) Episode: "Cops and Roger" Louie Chris 2 episodes Marry Me Adam 2 episodes 2010–2011 Blue Bloods Charles Rosselini 3 episodes 2012 Modern Family Lewis Episode: "Send Out the Clowns" Boardwalk Empire Gyp Rosetti 11 episodes 2012–2013 Nurse Jackie Dr. Mike Cruz 12 episodes 2014 Submissions Only Man with Paper Episode: "Petit Sweet Ending with N" Robot Chicken Various (voice) Episode: "Super Guitario Center" 2016 Vinyl Richie Finestra Main cast; 10 episodes 2017 Master of None Chef Jeff 4 episodes Comrade Detective Petre Bubescu (voice) Episode: "Two Films for One Ticket" 2017, 2019 Mr. Robot Irving 9 episodes 2018 Angie Tribeca Angela "A.J." Giles Jr. 10 episodes 2018, 2020 BoJack Horseman Vance Waggoner (voice) 2 episodes Big Mouth Gavin the Hormone Monster / Nick's Agent (voice) 3 episodes 2018–2020 Homecoming Colin Belfast 11 episodes 2019 The Detour Castro (voice) Episode: "The Groom" SpongeBob SquarePants Tony (voice) Episode: "Shell Games" 2020 Mrs. America Tom Snyder Episode: "Phyllis & Fred & Brenda & Marc" 2021 Nine Perfect Strangers Tony Hogburn 8 episodes 2022–2023 Human Resources Gavin Reeves / Guyvin Reeves (voice) 8 episodes 2022 The Last Movie Stars Elia Kazan (voice) 2 episodes The Watcher Dean Brannock 7 episodes 2023 Bupkis Uncle Tommy 2 episodes 2025 Only Murders in the Building Nicky Caccimelio Recurring role Platonic Brett Coyote Episode: "Brett Coyote's Last Stand" 2026 Man on Fire Paul Rayburn Recurring role, Netflix series Scarpetta Pete Marino Main role

Theater Year Title Role Theatre Ref. 1998 The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told Steve Williamstown Theatre Festival 2012 Glengarry Glen Ross Richard Roma 2013 The Big Knife Charlie Castle American Airlines Theater, Broadway 2016 White Rabbit Red Rabbit Performer Westside Theatre, Off-Broadway 2018 The Lifespan of a Fact John Studio 54, Broadway 2020 Medea Lucas Harvey Theatre, BAM, Brooklyn 2023 Here We Are Leo Brink The Shed, Off-Broadway 2025 Art Marc Music Box Theatre, Broadway

Awards and nominations Organizations Year Category Work Result Ref. Alliance of Women Film Journalists 2013 Best Supporting Actor Blue Jasmine Critics' Choice Television Awards 2012 Best Guest Performer in a Comedy Series Modern Family 2018 Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series Mr. Robot Drama Desk Awards 2011 Outstanding Actor in a Play The Motherfucker with the Hat Primetime Emmy Awards 2005 Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series Will & Grace (season 7) 2012 Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series Nurse Jackie (episode: "Disneyland Sucks") 2013 Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series Nurse Jackie (episode: "Walk of Shame") Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series Boardwalk Empire (episode: "Sunday Best") Screen Actors Guild Awards 2003 Outstanding Cast in a Motion Picture The Station Agent 2012 Outstanding Ensemble in a Comedy Series Nurse Jackie Outstanding Ensemble in a Drama Series Boardwalk Empire 2019 Outstanding Cast in a Motion Picture The Irishman Tony Awards 2008 Best Featured Actor in a Play Mauritius 2011 Best Leading Actor in a Play The Motherfucker with the Hat