Chance Kelly Biography

Chance Kelly is an American film and television actor who plays Detective Ed Cutler on the NBC series Aquarius. He is also known for starring as Lt. Col. "Godfather" Ferrando in the 2008 HBO miniseries Generation Kill and the Fox television series Fringe.

Career

After playing football at Ithaca College, Chance transferred to New York University where he earned a BA in English & Writing, with the intention of pursuing a career as a writer. But, after losing a bet and in spite of a profound fear of public speaking, he entered an acting class. He was so terrified that he gave his first monologue (Brick from Cat on a Hot Tin Roof) to a brick wall. While pursuing his acting career, he also entered the amateur boxing circuit in NYC, winning the Superheavyweight division of the NYC Metros tournament. The following year, he entered the NYC Golden Gloves, winning his first fight by knockout, only to have to subsequently drop out of the competition for work on the film The Devil's Own. A few years later, he also earned an MS from Columbia University. He played Lt. Col. Stephen "Godfather" Ferrando in HBO's Generation Kill. After reading the book upon which the adaptation was based, Kelly embarked on a five-month shoot in Africa, from May to December 2007. He also developed a unique, raspy voice for the role. The Boston Globe praised the "fierce edge" Kelly's performance brought to the series, opining, "Godfather leads with the competitive fury of a high school football coach. His eyes are cold fire, and Kelly, like a few other members of this cast, deserves notice at Emmy time next year." On Memorial Day 2009, he was appointed Honorary Marine by the Marine Corps League (Cpl. Philip A. Reynolds Detachment - 203, Freehold, New Jersey) for his work in Generation Kill.

Chance appeared in the first season of the science fiction series Fringe as Agent Mitchell Loeb, beginning with the episode "In Which We Meet Mr. Jones". He portrayed Bart McDade, President and COO of Lehman Brothers, in the HBO film Too Big to Fail. Kelly appears as a mysterious interrogator in the American television series Homeland. He has also played recurring characters on Power (Starz), Banshee (Cinemax), House of Cards (Netflix), Legends (TNT), Hostages (CBS), Army Wives, The Whole Truth, Delocated, Rescue Me and The Black Donnellys, He has played seven different characters on seven different Law & Order episodes. Additionally, he has also guest starred on The Blacklist (NBC), Alpha House (Amazon), Motive, Nikita, Burn Notice & The Jury, NYC 22, Blue Bloods, Unforgettable, Body of Proof, and Golden Boy. He played the disturbing "Orange Suit Man" in M. Night Shyamalan's film Unbreakable. He has also appeared in the feature films American Sniper, Little Children, The Taking of Pelham 123, Stake Land, and Broken City.

Chance has had the distinct honor of portraying seven different characters on seven different Law & Order episodes between 2002 and 2011: 1. Court Officer #1 (Law & Order: Criminal Intent episode #115 "Semi Professional" 2002); 2. Det. Finch (Law & Order: "Criminal Intent episode #318 "Ill Bred" 2004); 3. Kyle Marsden (Law & Order: episode #1503 "The Brotherhood" 2004); 4. Fireman Charlie Hugo (Law & Order: Criminal Intent episode #604 "Maltese Cross" 2006); 5. State Trooper Lawley (Law & Order: SVU episode #819 "Florida" 2007); 6. Elvis Howell (Law & Order: Criminal Intent episode #910 "Disciple" 2010); 7. Sergeant Forde (Law & Order: Los Angeles episode #113 "Reseda" 2011).

Chance continues his writing pursuits and has several scripts in development.

Personal life

Chance's grandfather was screenwriter William Fay (Kid Galahad, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Schlitz Playhouse).

Chance holds a BA from New York University and an MS from Columbia University.

Chance is married with three children.