kids encyclopedia robot

Oliver Platt facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
Quick facts for kids
Oliver Platt
Oliver Platt (2010).jpg
Platt in 2010
Born (1960-01-12) January 12, 1960 (age 65)
Nationality American
Education Tufts University
Occupation Actor
Years active 1985–present
Spouse(s)
Camilla Campbell
(m. 1992)
Children 3
Parent(s)
  • Nicholas Platt (father)
Relatives Adam Platt (brother)

Oliver Platt (born January 12, 1960) is an American actor. He is well-known for his roles in movies and TV shows. He has been nominated for many awards. These include five Primetime Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award.

Platt started acting in the 1988 movie Married to the Mob. He became famous for his roles in films like The Impostors (1998) and Frost/Nixon (2008). He also appeared in Working Girl (1988), Flatliners (1990), and Beethoven (1992). Other popular movies include Dr. Dolittle (1998) and 2012 (2009).

On TV, Platt has had important roles in series such as The Big C and Chicago Med. He was nominated for Emmys for his work in The West Wing and Huff. More recently, he plays Uncle Jimmy in the Hulu series The Bear.

Platt also acts on stage. He made his Broadway debut in the play Shining City in 2006. For this role, he was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play. He later starred in the musical Guys and Dolls on Broadway.

Oliver Platt's Early Life and School

His Family

Oliver Platt was born on January 12, 1960. He was born in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. His parents were Americans. His mother was Sheila Maynard, a social worker. His father, Nicholas Platt, was a diplomat. A diplomat is someone who represents their country in other nations. His father worked as a U.S. ambassador in Pakistan, Zambia, and the Philippines.

Oliver's older brother, Adam Platt, is a food critic. This means he writes reviews about restaurants. Oliver's family moved back to the United States when he was just three months old.

Growing Up

Because his father was a diplomat, Oliver Platt moved around a lot. He spent parts of his childhood in Asia and in Washington, D.C. He went to twelve different schools! This included the American School in Japan. Oliver has said that he sometimes wishes he had grown up in one place.

His family often visited Washington, D.C. They had season tickets to watch the Redskins football team. Oliver is also a big fan of the Boston Red Sox baseball team.

When he was nine, Oliver visited the Kennedy Center. There, he saw a play that inspired him to become an actor. He watched a performance by a young Morgan Freeman. Oliver said Freeman was "so riveting" and held the audience's attention. For Oliver, drama classes helped him feel stable. He said acting gave him a "subculture to plug into wherever I ended up."

His Education

Platt went to a boarding school in Colorado. Later, he studied drama at Tufts University. There, he became good friends with actor Hank Azaria. After college, he worked in theater in Boston for three years. He called this "the best training I could have had."

He then joined a theater group called Shakespeare and Company. They toured schools, which helped him get his Actors' Equity card. This card is needed to work professionally in theater. After that, he moved to New York.

In New York, Oliver performed in many Off-Broadway plays. He met actor Bill Murray at a Christmas party. Murray saw Oliver perform and told director Jonathan Demme about him. This led to Oliver's first movie role in Married to the Mob in 1988.

Oliver Platt's Acting Career

Oliver Platt chooses acting roles that are "different from what I just did." After his first movie, Married to the Mob, he appeared in many other films. These include Working Girl (1988), Flatliners (1990), and Beethoven (1992). He also starred in The Three Musketeers (1993) as Porthos.

In 1998, Platt worked with Stanley Tucci in The Impostors. They played two actors who pretend to be other people. Tucci and Platt created these characters together years before.

In 1999, Oliver Platt played Hector in the movie Lake Placid. Hector was a rich man who loved crocodiles. Oliver described Hector as "abrasive and obnoxious" but hoped he would "grow on you."

Oliver Platt's first main role on TV was in the show Deadline. He played Wallace Benton, a newspaper columnist. The show had a good cast but was canceled quickly. After this, Oliver avoided TV roles for a while. However, he later took a guest role in The West Wing. He played Oliver Babish, a serious White House lawyer. He was nominated for an Emmy for this role.

His role as Russell Tupper in the TV series Huff (2004-2006) was very popular. He received two Emmy nominations and a Golden Globe.

In 2005, Platt was in the movie The Ice Harvest. He played a businessman involved in a crime. He also played Papprizzio in Casanova. For his role in Casanova, he won an award for best supporting actor.

Oliver Platt-21feb09
Platt greets fans outside the Nederlander Theatre in Manhattan after a performance of Guys and Dolls on February 21, 2009.

In 2006, Oliver Platt made his Broadway debut in Shining City. He played the main character, John. The play's director said Oliver has a lot of "humanity." He can make people laugh and feel sad at the same time. Oliver visited Dublin to prepare for the role. He was nominated for a Tony award for "Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play."

In 2007, Platt played Yankees owner George Steinbrenner in the TV mini-series The Bronx Is Burning. He joined the show because John Turturro was playing Billy Martin. Oliver said, "This thing lives or dies by that portrayal."

In 2009, Platt starred as Nathan Detroit in the Broadway musical Guys and Dolls. He performed alongside Lauren Graham. The show ran for 113 performances.

Platt was also in the disaster movie 2012 (2009). He played Carl Anheuser, the White House Chief of Staff. In 2011, he appeared in the X-Men spin-off, X-Men: First Class. In 2012, he was in the romantic comedy The Oranges. He also voiced Wiser the Owl in the animated movie Dorothy of Oz (2013).

Oliver Platt's Personal Life

Oliver Platt married Mary Camilla Bonsal Campbell on September 12, 1992. They got married in Kittery, Maine. They have three children, born in 1995, 1997, and 1999.

In 1998, Oliver had an open airline ticket. This meant he could fly home often when he was filming. His family did not travel with him to filming locations. In an interview, he said he chose to focus on film and TV roles. This was because it was easier for his family life than theater work. Oliver has a home in North Haven, Maine.

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
1988 Married to the Mob FBI Agent Ed Benitez
Working Girl David Lutz
1989 Crusoe Mr. Newby
1990 Flatliners Randy Steckle
Postcards from the Edge Neil Bleene
1992 Beethoven Harvey
Diggstown Daniel Patrick O'Shannon 'Fitz' Fitzpatrick
1993 The Temp Hartsell
... Proposal Jeremy
Benny & Joon Eric
The Three Musketeers Porthos
1995 Tall Tale Paul Bunyan
Funny Bones Tommy Fawkes
The Infiltrator Yaron Svoray
1996 Executive Decision Dennis Cahill
A Time to Kill Harry Rex Vonner
1998 Dangerous Beauty Maffio Venier
Bulworth Dennis Murphy
The Impostors Maurice
Dr. Dolittle Dr. Mark Weller
Simon Birch Ben Goodrich
1999 Lake Placid Hector Cyr
Three to Tango Peter Steinberg
Bicentennial Man Rupert Burns
CinderElmo Fairy Godperson
2000 Ready to Rumble Jimmy 'The King' King
Gun Shy Fulvio Nesstra
2001 Don't Say a Word Dr. Louis Sachs
2002 Liberty Stands Still Victor Wallace
Ash Wednesday Moran
Zig Zag Mr.Walters / The Toad
2003 Pieces of April Jim Burns
Hope Springs Doug Reed
2004 Kinsey Herman B Wells
2005 The Ice Harvest Pete Van Heuten
Casanova Paprizzio
2007 The Ten Marc Jacobson
Martian Child Jeff
2008 Frost/Nixon Bob Zelnick
2009 Wonder Woman Hades (voice) Direct-to-DVD
Year One High Priest
2012 Carl Anheuser
2010 Please Give Alex
Love & Other Drugs Bruce Jackson
Letters to Juliet Bobby Uncredited
2011 X-Men: First Class Man In Black Suit
2012 The Oranges Terry Ostroff
Chinese Zodiac Lawrence
Ginger & Rosa Activist
2013 Legends of Oz: Dorothy's Return Wiser The Owl (voice)
The Tale of the Princess Kaguya Lord Minister of The Right Abe (voice)
Gods Behaving Badly Apollo
Lucky Them Giles
2014 Chef Ramsey Michel
Kill the Messenger Jerome Ceppos
Cut Bank Joe Barrett
A Merry Friggin' Christmas Hobo Santa
2015 Frank and Cindy Frank Garcia
One More Time Alan Sternberg
2016 The Cleanse Ken Roberts
The Ticket Bob
The 9th Life of Louis Drax Dr. Perez
Shut In Dr. Wilson
Rules Don't Apply Forester
2017 Professor Marston and the Wonder Women Max Gaines
2020 I'm Thinking of Ending Things The Voice (voice)
2024 Babes TBA

Television

Year Title Role Notes
1987 The Equalizer Norm Jameson Episode: "In the Money"
1988 Miami Vice 'Speed' Stiles Episode: "Baseballs of Death"
1990 Wiseguy Unknown Episode: "Changes Houses"
1995 The Infiltrator Yaron Television movie
2000–2001 Deadline Wallace Benton 13 episodes
2001–2005 The West Wing Oliver Babish 8 episodes
2003 Queens Supreme Judge Jack Moran 13 episodes
2004–2006 Huff Russell Tupper 25 episodes
2007–2008 Nip/Tuck Freddy Prune 4 episodes
2007 The Thick of It Malcolm Tucker Unsold TV pilot
Bronx Is Burning, TheThe Bronx Is Burning George Steinbrenner 8 episodes
2009–2011 Bored to Death Richard Antrem 6 episodes
2010–2013 The Big C Paul Jamison 40 episodes
2012–2018 American Experience Narrator (voice) 11 episodes
2014 Fargo Stavros Milos 5 episodes
2014–2017 Sofia the First Everburn (voice) 2 episodes
2015–2016 Chicago P.D. Dr. Daniel Charles 9 episodes
2015–2023 Chicago Fire 8 episodes
2015–present Chicago Med 198 episodes
2015 The Good Wife R.D. 3 episodes
Bessie Carl Van Vechten Television movie
2015–2017 Modern Family Martin 2 episodes
2016 American Dad! Documentary Narrator (voice) Episode: "Next of Pin"
2017 Chicago Justice Dr. Daniel Charles 2 episodes
2022–present The Bear Uncle Jimmy 8 episodes

Theatre

Year Title Role Venue
2006 Shining City John Biltmore Theatre, Broadway
2009 Guys and Dolls Nathan Detroit Nederlander Theatre, Broadway

Video games

Year Title Role
2001 SSX Tricky Luther-Dwayne Grady
2006 Scarface: The World Is Yours

Awards and Nominations

Year Award Category Work Result
2001 Primetime Emmy Award Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series The West Wing Nominated
1998 Blockbuster Entertainment Award Favorite Supporting Actor – Comedy Dr. Dolittle Nominated
2005 Boston Society of Film Critics Best Supporting Actor The Ice Harvest Nominated
New York Film Critics Online Award Best Supporting Actor Casanova Won
Boston Society of Film Critics Best Supporting Actor Nominated
St. Louis Gateway Film Critics Association Best Supporting Actor Nominated
Golden Globe Award Best Supporting Actor - Television Huff Nominated
Primetime Emmy Award Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series Nominated
2006 Nominated
Tony Award Best Actor in a Play Shining City Nominated
2007 Screen Actors Guild Award Outstanding Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie Bronx Is Burning, TheThe Bronx Is Burning Nominated
2008 Primetime Emmy Award Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series Nip/Tuck Nominated
Screen Actors Guild Award Outstanding Cast in a Motion Picture Frost/Nixon Nominated
2010 Gotham Independent Film Award Best Ensemble Cast Please Give Nominated
Independent Spirit Awards Robert Altman Award Won
2023 Primetime Emmy Award Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series The Bear Nominated
2024 Screen Actors Guild Awards Outstanding Ensemble in a Comedy Series Won

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Oliver Platt para niños

kids search engine
Oliver Platt Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.