Michael Peña
Encyclopedia
Michael Anthony Peña is an American film and television actor. He is probably best known for his roles in the films Crash
, World Trade Center
, Observe and Report
, 30 Minutes or Less
and Tower Heist
. He also appeared in the Nickelback
music video for their song Savin' Me
.
, Illinois, where his father worked at a button factory and his mother was an assistant to a social worker. Both of Peña's parents were originally farmers. Peña attended Hubbard High School in Chicago. He has been associated with Scientology
. Peña and his wife Brie Shaffer welcomed their first child in September 2008, a boy named Roman.
Oscar-winning Paul Haggis
penned films, Million Dollar Baby
and Crash
. The latter was also directed by Haggis, while the former was helmed by Clint Eastwood
. Though both films are critically acclaimed, Peña received attention for his particularly emotional performance in Crash. The following year, he appeared on the Golden Globe winning series, The Shield
. In 2006, he starred in Oliver Stone
's film based on the September 11, 2001 attacks
, World Trade Center. He also had a small role in Alejandro González Iñárritu
's Academy Award nominated and Golden Globe-winning film Babel. This gives him the rare distinction of having appeared in three consecutive Oscar nominated films. He also starred alongside Mark Wahlberg
in Shooter as novice FBI agent Nick Memphis.
In 2006, Peña performed in the HBO
film Walkout
playing the part of Sal Castro
, a Mexican-American high school teacher who inspires a group of East L.A.
high school students to fight for Chicano
rights.
In 2009, Peña played a mall security guard alongside Seth Rogen
's character in Jody Hill
's Observe and Report
.
Crash (2004 film)
Crash is a 2004 American drama film co-written, produced, and directed by Paul Haggis. The film is about racial and social tensions in Los Angeles, California. A self-described "passion piece" for Haggis, Crash was inspired by a real life incident in which his Porsche was carjacked outside a video...
, World Trade Center
World Trade Center (film)
World Trade Center is a 2006 American disaster-drama film directed by Oliver Stone and based on the September 11 attacks at the World Trade Center. It stars Nicolas Cage, Maria Bello, Michael Peña, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Michael Shannon. The film was shot from October 19, 2005 - February 10, 2006...
, Observe and Report
Observe and Report
Observe and Report is a 2009 American comedy film written and directed by Jody Hill, starring Seth Rogen, Anna Faris and Ray Liotta.-Plot:...
, 30 Minutes or Less
30 Minutes or Less
30 Minutes or Less is a 2011 American action comedy crime film directed by Ruben Fleischer starring Jesse Eisenberg, Aziz Ansari, Danny McBride and Nick Swardson...
and Tower Heist
Tower Heist
Tower Heist is a 2011 crime comedy film directed by Brett Ratner and written by Ted Griffin and Jeff Nathanson based on a story by Bill Collage, Adam Cooper, and Griffin. It was released on November 2, 2011 in the United Kingdom, with a United States release following two days later...
. He also appeared in the Nickelback
Nickelback
Nickelback is a Canadian rock band from Hanna, Alberta. Since 1995 the band has included guitarist and lead vocalist Chad Kroeger, guitarist and back-up vocalist Ryan Peake and bassist Mike Kroeger.. The band's current drummer and percussionist is Daniel Adair who has been with the band since 2005....
music video for their song Savin' Me
Savin' Me
"Savin' Me" is a rock song written by Canadian band Nickelback. It was released as the third major single from their fifth album All the Right Reasons . The song has reached number two on the Canadian Singles Chart and number nineteen on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart. It is one of the band's few...
.
Personal life
Peña, a Mexican-American, was born in ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois, where his father worked at a button factory and his mother was an assistant to a social worker. Both of Peña's parents were originally farmers. Peña attended Hubbard High School in Chicago. He has been associated with Scientology
Scientology
Scientology is a body of beliefs and related practices created by science fiction and fantasy author L. Ron Hubbard , starting in 1952, as a successor to his earlier self-help system, Dianetics...
. Peña and his wife Brie Shaffer welcomed their first child in September 2008, a boy named Roman.
Career
Though Peña has been a regular in independent productions since 1994, his breakthrough performances came in 2004 in two Best PictureAcademy Award for Best Picture
The Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to artists working in the motion picture industry. The Best Picture category is the only category in which every member of the Academy is eligible not only...
Oscar-winning Paul Haggis
Paul Haggis
Paul Edward Haggis is a Canadian screenwriter, producer, and director. He spent his early career producing and directing various American and Canadian television network series.-Early life and education:...
penned films, Million Dollar Baby
Million Dollar Baby
Million Dollar Baby is a 2004 American sports drama film directed, co-produced, and scored by Clint Eastwood and starring Eastwood, Hilary Swank, and Morgan Freeman...
and Crash
Crash (2004 film)
Crash is a 2004 American drama film co-written, produced, and directed by Paul Haggis. The film is about racial and social tensions in Los Angeles, California. A self-described "passion piece" for Haggis, Crash was inspired by a real life incident in which his Porsche was carjacked outside a video...
. The latter was also directed by Haggis, while the former was helmed by Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood
Clinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide...
. Though both films are critically acclaimed, Peña received attention for his particularly emotional performance in Crash. The following year, he appeared on the Golden Globe winning series, The Shield
The Shield
The Shield is an American television drama series starring Michael Chiklis which premiered on March 12, 2002 on FX in the United States and concluded on November 25, 2008 after seven seasons...
. In 2006, he starred in Oliver Stone
Oliver Stone
William Oliver Stone is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Stone became well known in the late 1980s and the early 1990s for directing a series of films about the Vietnam War, for which he had previously participated as an infantry soldier. His work frequently focuses on...
's film based on the September 11, 2001 attacks
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
, World Trade Center. He also had a small role in Alejandro González Iñárritu
Alejandro González Iñárritu
Alejandro González Iñárritu is a Mexican film director.González Iñárritu is the first Mexican director to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director and by the DGA of America for Best Director. He is also the first and only Mexican born director to have won the Prix de la mise en scene...
's Academy Award nominated and Golden Globe-winning film Babel. This gives him the rare distinction of having appeared in three consecutive Oscar nominated films. He also starred alongside Mark Wahlberg
Mark Wahlberg
Mark Robert Michael Wahlberg is an American actor, film and television producer, and former rapper. He was known as Marky Mark in his earlier years, and became famous for his 1991 debut as a musician with the band Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch. He was named No. 1 on VH1's 40 Hottest Hotties of...
in Shooter as novice FBI agent Nick Memphis.
In 2006, Peña performed in the HBO
Home Box Office
HBO, short for Home Box Office, is an American premium cable television network, owned by Time Warner. , HBO's programming reaches 28.2 million subscribers in the United States, making it the second largest premium network in America . In addition to its U.S...
film Walkout
Walkout (film)
Walkout is a 2006 HBO film based on a true story of the 1968 East L.A. walkouts. It premiered March 18, 2006 on HBO. Starring Alexa Vega, Efren Ramirez and Michael Peña, the film was directed by Edward James Olmos...
playing the part of Sal Castro
Sal Castro
Salvador B. Castro is an Mexican-American educator and activist. He is most well known for his role in the 1968 East Los Angeles high school walkouts, a series of protests against unequal conditions in Los Angeles Unified School District schools...
, a Mexican-American high school teacher who inspires a group of East L.A.
East Los Angeles, California
East Los Angeles is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in Los Angeles County, California, United States...
high school students to fight for Chicano
Chicano
The terms "Chicano" and "Chicana" are used in reference to U.S. citizens of Mexican descent. However, those terms have a wide range of meanings in various parts of the world. The term began to be widely used during the Chicano Movement, mainly among Mexican Americans, especially in the movement's...
rights.
In 2009, Peña played a mall security guard alongside Seth Rogen
Seth Rogen
Seth Rogen is a Canadian stand-up comedian, actor, producer, screenwriter, and voice artist. Rogen began his career doing stand-up comedy during his teen years, winning the Vancouver Amateur Comedy Contest in 1998. While still living in his native Vancouver, he landed a small part in Freaks and...
's character in Jody Hill
Jody Hill
Jody Hill is an American film director and screenwriter from Concord, North Carolina. In 2006 he directed, co-wrote, co-produced, and co-starred in his first film The Foot Fist Way, which he based on his experience as a Taekwondo black belt and instructor. His follow-up film, Observe and Report,...
's Observe and Report
Observe and Report
Observe and Report is a 2009 American comedy film written and directed by Jody Hill, starring Seth Rogen, Anna Faris and Ray Liotta.-Plot:...
.
Films
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Running Free | Bunk | |
| 1996 | My Fellow Americans My Fellow Americans My Fellow Americans is a 1996 American comedy film starring Jack Lemmon, Dan Aykroyd and James Garner as feuding ex-presidents. Lauren Bacall, Esther Rolle, John Heard, Wilford Brimley, Bradley Whitford and Jeff Yagher also appear in supporting performances... |
Ernesto | |
| 1997 | Star Maps Star Maps (film) Star Maps , directed by Miguel Arteta, debuted at the Sundance Film Festival. It was a critical hit, receiving five Independent Spirit Award nominations, including Best First Feature and Best First Screenplay.-Cast:... |
Star Map Boy | |
| 1998 | Boogie Boy Boogie Boy Boogie Boy is a 1998 film featuring Traci Lords as Shonda. It was written and directed by Craig Hamann and produced by Braddon Mendelson. It also stars Mark Dacascos, Emily Lloyd, Jaimz Woolvett, Frederic Forrest, Joan Jett and Linnea Quigley .... |
Drug Dealer | |
| La Cucaracha La Cucaracha (1998 film) La Cucaracha is a 1998 American film directed by Jack Perez and starring Eric Roberts and Joaquim de Almeida. The film follows the story of Walter Pool , a down on his luck wannabe novelist, who receives an offer of $100,000 to kill an alleged child killer... |
Orderly | ||
| 1999 | Bellyfruit Bellyfruit Bellyfruit is a 1999 film about teen pregnancy directed and co-written by Kerri Green.-Overview:Bellyfruit is an adaptation of an original stage play of the same title which premiered at the Los Angeles Theatre Center on March 16, 1996... |
Oscar | |
| Paradise Cove | Dan Running Horse | ||
| 2000 | Gone in 60 Seconds | Ignacio | Credited as Michael A. Pena |
| 2001 | Semper Fi | Douglas Cepeda | Television film |
| Buffalo Soldiers Buffalo Soldiers (2001 film) Buffalo Soldiers is a 2001 film, based on the 1993 novel by Robert O'Connor, which follows the rogue activities of a group of US soldiers based in West Germany during 1989 when the fall of the Berlin Wall is imminent... |
Garcia | ||
| 2003 | The United States of Leland The United States of Leland The United States of Leland is a 2003 American drama film by director Matthew Ryan Hoge and producer Kevin Spacey about a meek teenaged boy named Leland P. Fitzgerald who has inexplicably committed a shocking murder... |
Guillermo | |
| Love Object Love Object Love Object is a 2003 film written and directed by Robert Parigi. Kenneth is an efficient but socially awkward technical writer who develops an obsessive relationship with Nikki, a realistic sex doll he purchases.- Plot :... |
Ramirez | ||
| 2004 | The Calcium Kid The Calcium Kid The Calcium Kid is a British mockumentary comedy film which was released in 2004. This film is presented in the style of a fictional documentary or a "Mockumentary". It stars Orlando Bloom as a milkman and amateur boxer. Billie Piper and Michael Peña are also featured... |
Jose Mendez | |
| Crash Crash (2004 film) Crash is a 2004 American drama film co-written, produced, and directed by Paul Haggis. The film is about racial and social tensions in Los Angeles, California. A self-described "passion piece" for Haggis, Crash was inspired by a real life incident in which his Porsche was carjacked outside a video... |
Daniel | ||
| Million Dollar Baby Million Dollar Baby Million Dollar Baby is a 2004 American sports drama film directed, co-produced, and scored by Clint Eastwood and starring Eastwood, Hilary Swank, and Morgan Freeman... |
Omar | ||
| 2005 | Untitled David Diamond/David Weissman Project | Scott | Television film |
| Little Athens Little Athens Little Athens is a 2005 American independent film directed by Tom Zuber, which stars John Patrick Amedori, Erica Leerhsen, DJ Qualls, Rachel Miner, Eric Szmanda, Michael Pena, and more... |
Carlos | ||
| Sueño Sueño Sueño is a 2005 comedy-drama film directed by Renée Chabria that stars John Leguizamo, Ana Claudia Talancón, and Elizabeth Peña.-Cast:* John Leguizamo - Antonio* Ana Claudia Talancón - Nina* Elizabeth Peña - Mirabela* Nestor Serrano - El Zorro... |
Jimmy | ||
| 2006 | Walkout Walkout In labor disputes, a walkout is a labor strike, the act of employees collectively leaving the workplace as an act of protest.A walkout can also mean the act of leaving a place of work, school, a meeting, a company, or an organization, especially if meant as an expression of protest or disapproval.A... |
Sal Castro Sal Castro Salvador B. Castro is an Mexican-American educator and activist. He is most well known for his role in the 1968 East Los Angeles high school walkouts, a series of protests against unequal conditions in Los Angeles Unified School District schools... |
Television film |
| Fifty Pills Fifty Pills Fifty Pills is the debut feature film of director Theo Avgerinos, which premiered at the 2006 Tribeca Film Festival.-Plot:... |
Eduardo | ||
| Babel | John | ||
| World Trade Center World Trade Center (film) World Trade Center is a 2006 American disaster-drama film directed by Oliver Stone and based on the September 11 attacks at the World Trade Center. It stars Nicolas Cage, Maria Bello, Michael Peña, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Michael Shannon. The film was shot from October 19, 2005 - February 10, 2006... |
Will Jimeno Will Jimeno William J. Jimeno is a Port Authority Police officer who survived the September 11 attacks. He was buried under the rubble for a total of 13 hours, but survived, along with fellow Port Authority officer John McLoughlin.... |
||
| 2007 | Shooter | Nick Memphis | |
| Lions for Lambs Lions for Lambs Lions for Lambs is a 2007 American drama film about the connection between a platoon of United States soldiers in Afghanistan, a U.S. senator, a reporter, and a California college professor. It stars Tom Cruise, Robert Redford and Meryl Streep... |
Ernest | ||
| 2008 | The Lucky Ones The Lucky Ones (film) The Lucky Ones is a 2008 American dramedy film with a road movie plot directed by Neil Burger. The screenplay by Burger and Dirk Wittenborn focuses on three United States Army soldiers who find themselves drawn together by unforeseen circumstances.-Plot:... |
T.K. Poole | |
| 2009 | Observe and Report Observe and Report Observe and Report is a 2009 American comedy film written and directed by Jody Hill, starring Seth Rogen, Anna Faris and Ray Liotta.-Plot:... |
Dennis | |
| My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done? | Detective Vargas | ||
| 2010 | Everything Must Go Everything Must Go (film) Everything Must Go is a 2011 American comedy-drama film directed by Dan Rush and starring Will Ferrell. The film was based on Raymond Carver's short story Why Don't You Dance? and was released in theaters on May 13, 2011.-Plot:... |
Frank Garcia | |
| 2011 | The Good Doctor The Good Doctor (2011 film) The Good Doctor is a 2011 American thriller film written and directed by Lance Daly, and starring Orlando Bloom as the eponymous "good doctor".-Plot:... |
Jimmy | |
| Battle: Los Angeles Battle: Los Angeles Battle: Los Angeles is a 2011 American military science fiction war film directed by Jonathan Liebesman, and starring Aaron Eckhart, Michelle Rodriguez, Ramon Rodriguez, Bridget Moynahan, Ne-Yo and Michael Peña... |
Joe Rincon | ||
| The Lincoln Lawyer The Lincoln Lawyer (film) The Lincoln Lawyer is a 2011 American thriller film adapted from the novel of the same name by Michael Connelly, starring Matthew McConaughey, Ryan Phillippe, William H. Macy and Marisa Tomei... |
Jesus Martinez | ||
| 30 Minutes or Less 30 Minutes or Less 30 Minutes or Less is a 2011 American action comedy crime film directed by Ruben Fleischer starring Jesse Eisenberg, Aziz Ansari, Danny McBride and Nick Swardson... |
Chongo | ||
| Tower Heist Tower Heist Tower Heist is a 2011 crime comedy film directed by Brett Ratner and written by Ted Griffin and Jeff Nathanson based on a story by Bill Collage, Adam Cooper, and Griffin. It was released on November 2, 2011 in the United Kingdom, with a United States release following two days later... |
Enrique Dev'reaux | ||
| 2013 | The Gangster Squad | Navidad Ramirez | Filming |
TV series
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Pacific Blue Pacific Blue (TV series) Pacific Blue is an American crime drama series about a team of police officers with the Santa Monica Police Department who patrolled its beaches on bicycles. The show ran for five seasons on the USA Network, from March 2, 1996 to April 9, 2000, with a total of one hundred and one episodes... |
Rabbit | Season 2: Episode 4: "Bangers" |
| 1997 | Touched by an Angel Touched by an Angel Touched by an Angel is an American drama series that premiered on CBS on September 21, 1994 and ran for 211 episodes and nine seasons until its conclusion on April 27, 2003. Created by John Masius and produced by Martha Williamson, the series stars Roma Downey, as an angel named Monica, and Della... |
Reynaldo Estes | Season 3: Episode 26: "At Risk" |
| 1998 | Homicide: Life on the Street Homicide: Life on the Street Homicide: Life on the Street is an American police procedural television series chronicling the work of a fictional version of the Baltimore Homicide Unit. It ran for seven seasons on NBC from 1993 to 1999, and was succeeded by a TV movie, which also acted as the de-facto series finale... |
Luis Carrenza | Season 6: Episode 12: "Something Sacred: Part 1" Season 6: Episode 13: "Something Sacred: Part 2" Credited as Michael Anthony Pena |
| The Sentinel The Sentinel (TV series) The Sentinel is a Canadian-produced television series that aired on UPN in the United States from 1996 to 1999. It premiered on March 20, 1996, and ran for 65 episodes . The series later reaired on Syfy.-Plot and characters:... |
Johnny | Season 3: Episode 22: "Night Shift" Credited as Michael A. Pena |
|
| 7th Heaven 7th Heaven 7th Heaven is an American family drama television series, created and produced by Brenda Hampton. The series premiered on August 26, 1996, on the WB, the first time that the network aired Monday night programming, and was originally broadcast from August 26, 1996 to May 13, 2007... |
Roger | Season 3: Episode 9: "Let's Talk About Sex" Credited as Michael A. Pena |
|
| 1999 | Moesha Moesha Moesha is an American sitcom series that aired on the UPN network from January 23, 1996 to May 14, 2001. The series stars R&B singer Brandy Norwood as Moesha Mitchell, a high school student living with her family in the Leimert Park neighborhood of South Central Los Angeles.-Overview:The show... |
Alejandro | Season 4: Episode 12: "Life Imitating Art" |
| Profiler Profiler (TV series) Profiler was an American crime drama that aired on NBC from 1996 to 2000. The series follows the exploits of a criminal profiler working with the fictional FBI's Violent Crimes Task Force based in Atlanta, Georgia.... |
Alex Lopez | Season 3: Episode 15: "Spree of Love" Credited as Michael Anthony Peña |
|
| 1999–2000 | Felicity | Brian Burke | Season 2: Episode 1–3 Season 2: Episode 8: "Family Affairs" Season 2: Episode 16: "Revolutions" |
| 2001 | Roswell Roswell (TV series) Roswell is an American science fiction television series developed, produced, and co-written by Jason Katims. The series debuted on October 6, 1999 on The WB and moved to UPN for the third season. The last episode aired May 14, 2002... |
Fly | Season 3: Episode 2: "Michael, the Guys, and the Great Snapple Caper" Season 3: Episode 3: "Significant Others" |
| Men, Women & Dogs Men, Women & Dogs Men, Women & Dogs is an American comedy television series starring Bill Bellamy. The series premiered October 14, 2001 on The WB Television Network.-Plot:The series centered around four guys who meet everyday with their dogs in a Los Angeles dog park... |
Miguel | Season 1: Episode 1: "Pilot" Season 1: Episode 6: "Kibbles & Grits" |
|
| 2002 | American Family | Season 1: Episode 7: "Crash Boom Love: Part 1" Season 1: Episode 8: "Crash Boom Love: Part 2" |
|
| Andy Richter Controls the Universe Andy Richter Controls the Universe Andy Richter Controls the Universe is a sitcom which aired from 2002–2003 on the Fox network. The series was Andy Richter's first starring role after leaving Late Night with Conan O'Brien in 2000.... |
Patrick | Season 1: Episode 6: "Wedding" | |
| 2003 | The Twilight Zone The Twilight Zone (2002 TV series) The Twilight Zone is a 2002 revival of Rod Serling's acclaimed 1950/60s television series, The Twilight Zone. It aired for one season on the UPN network, with actor Forest Whitaker assuming Serling's role as narrator and on-screen host.... |
Noah | Season 1: Episode 43: "Sunrise Sunrise (The Twilight Zone) "Sunrise" is the forty-third episode of the science fiction television series 2002 revival of The Twilight Zone. The episode aired May 21, 2003 on UPN.- Opening Narration :- Summary :... " Credited as Michael A. Peña |
| ER ER (TV series) ER is an American medical drama television series created by novelist Michael Crichton that aired on NBC from September 19, 1994 to April 2, 2009. It was produced by Constant c Productions and Amblin Entertainment, in association with Warner Bros. Television... |
Season 9: Episode 16: "A Thousand Cranes" Season 9: Episode 21: "When Night Meets Day" Season 10: Episode 9: "Missing" |
||
| 1997–2004 | NYPD Blue NYPD Blue NYPD Blue is an American television police drama set in New York City, exploring the internal and external struggles of the fictional 15th precinct of Manhattan... |
Ferd/Wilmer Lopez | Season 4: Episode 16: "What a Dump!" Season 11: Episode 14: "Colonel Knowledge" |
| 2005 | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation CSI: Crime Scene Investigation CSI: Crime Scene Investigation is an American crime drama television series, which premiered on CBS on October 6, 2000. The show was created by Anthony E. Zuiker and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer... |
Juanito Concha | Season 5: Episode 12: "Snakes" |
| The Shield The Shield The Shield is an American television drama series starring Michael Chiklis which premiered on March 12, 2002 on FX in the United States and concluded on November 25, 2008 after seven seasons... |
Detective Armando Renta | Season 4: Episode 2–11 | |
| 2008 | My Name is Earl My Name Is Earl My Name Is Earl is an American television comedy series created by Greg Garcia that was originally broadcast on the NBC television network from September 20, 2005, to May 14, 2009, in the United States... |
Circus | Season 3: Episode 17: "No Heads and a Duffle Bag" |
| 2010 | Eastbound & Down Eastbound & Down Eastbound & Down is an American comedy television series broadcast on HBO, starring Danny McBride as Kenny Powers, a former professional baseball pitcher, who after an up and down career in the major leagues is forced to return to his hometown middle-school in Shelby, North Carolina, as a... |
Mr. Cisneros | Season 2: Episode 2–4 Season 2: Episode 6: "Chapter 12" Season 2: Episode 7: "Chapter 13" |
| 2011 | American Dad | Maguerite | Season 7: Episode 1: "Little Shop of Hot Tubs" |