Giancarlo Giuseppe Alessandro Esposito was born in Copenhagen, Denmark, the son of Giovanni "John" C. Esposito, an Italian stagehand and carpenter from Naples, and Elizabeth "Leesa" Foster, an African American opera and nightclub singer from Alabama.[1][2][3][4]
When Esposito was six, his family moved to Manhattan.[5][6] He attended Elizabeth Seton College in New York and earned a two-year degree in radio and television communications.[6]
Esposito played FBI agent Mike Giardello on the TV crime drama Homicide: Life on the Street. That role drew from both his African American and Italian ancestry. He played this character during the show's seventh and final season, and reprised the role for its 2000 made-for-TV movie. He had another multiracial role as Sergeant Paul Gigante in the television comedy, Bakersfield P.D.
In 2002, Esposito was cast as a legal eagle in the David E. Kelley television drama Girls Club. Although the series only lasted one season, and did not garner generally positive reviews, it represented a personal turning point for Esposito, who relayed to The Washington Post: "I started to play bosses. And I realized, 'Oh, okay, this is an opportunity.' It was really a great opening for me to show who I really was. And it's kept going like that."[5]
In 2005, Esposito played an unsympathetic detective named Esposito in the film Hate Crime, which centers upon homophobia as a theme.
In 2006, Esposito starred in Last Holiday as Senator Dillings, alongside Queen Latifah and Timothy Hutton. Esposito played Robert Fuentes, a Miami businessman with shady connections, on the UPN television series South Beach. He appeared in New Amsterdam and CSI: Miami. In Feel the Noise (2007), he played ex-musician Roberto, the Puerto Rican father of Omarion Grandberry's character, aspiring rap star "Rob". In 2008, he made his directorial debut with Gospel Hill, serving also as producer and star of the film.
Esposito appeared in the film Rabbit Hole (2010). He also appeared in the first season of the ABC program Once Upon a Time, which debuted in October 2011. He portrayed the split role of Sidney Glass, a reporter for The Daily Mirror in the town of Storybrooke, Maine, who is really a genie trapped in the Magic Mirror, possessed by The Evil Queen in a parallel fairy tale world. Esposito would periodically reprise the role in later seasons as a guest star.[10] Esposito appeared in Revolution as Major Tom Neville, a central character who kills Ben Matheson in the pilot. He escorts a captured Danny to the capital Philadelphia of the Monroe Republic.[11]
Esposito also appeared in Community as a guest star for the episode titled "Digital Estate Planning". He performed again in the fourth season, in the episode titled "Paranormal Parentage".[12] Esposito has additionally appeared in a video of the action role-playing sci-fi first-person shooter game Destiny. Esposito voices antagonist Faraday in the Netflix anime series Cyberpunk: Edgerunners (2022). Esposito also voices Antón Castillo, the main antagonist of the video game Far Cry 6, who was modeled after Esposito's appearance. He was also included in the videogame Payday 2, as the supporting character, then antagonist "The Dentist".
In 2016, Esposito voiced Akela in the film The Jungle Book, which was directed by Jon Favreau.[14] Esposito and Favreau would work together once again in the Disney+ series The Mandalorian in which Esposito appears in a starring role, while Favreau acts as an executive producer for the series and as its writer.[15] He plays the role of New York congressman Adam Clayton Powell Jr. in the 2019 Epix series Godfather of Harlem.
Esposito at Galaxy Con Raleigh 2023
In July 2020, Esposito began teasing his role in "a huge video game".[16] His role was later revealed as the main antagonist of Ubisoft's Far Cry 6, in which he would portray and voice Antón Castillo, the dictatorial ruler of Yara.[17]
In 2022, Esposito played Taxi Driver in Euphoria, a film installation by Julian Rosefeldt.[18]
In 2024, he launched his first graphic novel, The Venetian.[19]
In May 2024, Esposito was cast in an undisclosed role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) film Captain America: Brave New World, scheduled to be released on February 14, 2025. Esposito, whose role was described as that of a mysterious villain, was added to the film's reshoots.[20]
Personal life
Esposito was married to Joy McManigal.[21] They have four daughters. They later divorced.[22] After his divorce, Esposito had to declare bankruptcy, and he considered suicide by contract killing to provide insurance money for his children prior to being cast in Breaking Bad.[23][24]
He was raised Catholic and considered becoming a priest.[25]
Jonathan Kolia Favreau is an American filmmaker and actor. As an actor, Favreau has appeared in films such as Rudy (1993), PCU (1994), Swingers (1996), Very Bad Things (1998), Deep Impact (1998), The Replacements (2000), Daredevil (2003), The Break-Up (2006), Four Christmases (2008), Couples Retreat (2009), I Love You, Man (2009), People Like Us (2012), The Wolf of Wall Street (2013), Chef (2014), and several films created by Marvel Studios.
The fourth season of the American television drama series Breaking Bad premiered on July 17, 2011 and concluded on October 9, 2011. It consists of 13 episodes, each running approximately 47 minutes in length. AMC broadcast the fourth season on Sundays at 10:00 pm ET in the United States. The complete fourth season was released on Region 1 DVD and Region A Blu-ray on June 5, 2012.
Better Call Saul is an American legal crime drama television series created by Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould for AMC. Part of the Breaking Bad franchise, it is a spin-off from Gilligan's previous series, Breaking Bad (2008–2013), to which it serves primarily as a prequel, with some scenes taking place during and after the events of Breaking Bad. Better Call Saul premiered on AMC on February 8, 2015, and ended on August 15, 2022, after six seasons consisting of 63 episodes.
"Face Off" is the thirteenth episode and season finale of the fourth season of the American television drama Breaking Bad, and the 46th overall episode of the series. It originally aired on AMC in the United States on October 9, 2011. It was directed and written by series creator and executive producer Vince Gilligan.
Gustavo Fring is a fictional character portrayed by Giancarlo Esposito in the Breaking Bad franchise, serving as one of the main antagonists in the crime drama series Breaking Bad and a major character in its prequel Better Call Saul. He is a Chilean-American businessman and major narcotics distributor in the Southwestern United States who uses several legitimate businesses, including a chain of successful fast food restaurants called Los Pollos Hermanos and an industrial laundry facility called Lavandería Brillante, as fronts used to launder money for a vast drug operation.
"Witness" is the second episode of the third season of the AMC television series Better Call Saul, the spinoff series of Breaking Bad. The episode aired on April 17, 2017 on AMC in the United States. Outside of the United States, the episode premiered on streaming service Netflix in several countries.
The Mandalorian is an American space Western television series created by Jon Favreau for the streaming service Disney+. It is the first live-action series in the Star Wars franchise and begins five years after the events of the film Return of the Jedi (1983). It follows a lone bounty hunter who protects a Force-sensitive child, Grogu, from remnant Imperial forces.
"Chapter 1: The Mandalorian" is the first episode of the first season and series premiere of the American streaming television series The Mandalorian. It was written by the series' showrunner Jon Favreau and directed by Dave Filoni. The episode takes place in the Star Wars universe five years after the events of Return of the Jedi (1983). In the episode, it follows a lone bounty hunter only known as the Mandalorian, who accepts a mission given by a mysterious Client who tasks him to bring alive a fifty-year-old target. He is helped by vapor farmer Kuiil in exchange of ending the constant bounty hunting activity in his area.
Moff Gideon is a fictional character in the Star Wars franchise who first appeared in the Disney+ television series The Mandalorian, where he is the main antagonist of its first three seasons. Gideon is the leader of a remnant of the fallen Galactic Empire and wielder of the Darksaber responsible for the Purge of Mandalore, who attempts to capture the young Force sensitive child Grogu, who is being protected by the title character of the series, planning on using Grogu's blood to imbue numerous clones of himself with Force sensitivity.
"Chapter 7: The Reckoning" is the seventh episode of the first season of the American streaming television series The Mandalorian. It was written by the series' showrunner Jon Favreau and directed by Deborah Chow. The episode takes place in the Star Wars universe five years after the events of Return of the Jedi (1983). In the episode, the guild leader Greef Karga offers the Mandalorian to kill the Client in exchange for his and the Child's freedom. Believing to be a trap but having no choice, the Mandalorian recruits Cara Dune and Kuiil to assist him, with the latter bringing a reprogrammed IG-11 unit. Arriving at Nevarro, they are soon surrounded by the imperial troops where the team will be forced to confront their leader Moff Gideon.
"Chapter 8: Redemption" is the eighth and final episode of the first season of the American streaming television series The Mandalorian. It was written by the series' showrunner Jon Favreau and directed by Taika Waititi. The episode takes place in the Star Wars universe five years after the events of Return of the Jedi (1983). In the episode, the Mandalorian, Greef Karga, Cara Dune, and IG-11 are forced to make their way out, fighting the imperial troopers and their leader Moff Gideon, in order to ensure the Child's safety once and for all. The Mandalorian, whose real name is revealed to be Din Djarin, is instructed by his leader, the Armorer, to deliver the Child to the Jedi.
The sixth and final season of the AMC television series Better Call Saul premiered on April 18, 2022, in the United States, and concluded on August 15, 2022. The thirteen-episode season was broadcast on Mondays at 9:00pm (Eastern) in the United States on AMC and its streaming service AMC+. Each episode was released on Netflix the day after in certain international markets. The season was split into two parts; the first consisting of the first seven episodes concluded on May 23, before resuming with the second half consisting of the final six episodes on July 11. Bob Odenkirk, Jonathan Banks, Rhea Seehorn, Patrick Fabian, Michael Mando, Tony Dalton, and Giancarlo Esposito reprise their roles from previous seasons. Better Call Saul is a spin-off, prequel and sequel of Breaking Bad created by Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould.
The first season of the American television series The Mandalorian is part of the Star Wars franchise, set after the events of the film Return of the Jedi (1983). It follows a lone bounty hunter who goes on the run to protect "The Child". The season was produced by Lucasfilm, Fairview Entertainment, and Golem Creations, with Jon Favreau serving as showrunner.
The second season of the American television series The Mandalorian is part of the Star Wars franchise, set after the events of the film Return of the Jedi (1983). It follows a bounty hunter trying to return "The Child" to the Jedi. The season was produced by Lucasfilm, Fairview Entertainment, and Golem Creations, with Jon Favreau serving as showrunner.
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↑ "Giancarlo Esposito Biography (1958–)". Film Reference. NetIndustries, LLC. Retrieved April 10, 2009. Giancarlo Giuseppi Alessandro Esposito; born April 26, 1958, in Copenhagen, Denmark; raised in New York City, father, a stagehand and carpenter; mother, an opera and nightclub singer; married Joy McManigal (a producer), June 1995; children: Shayne Lyra, Kale Lyn
↑ Romano, Nick (July 30, 2019). "The Boys showrunner unpacks the finale cliffhanger, cameos, and season 2 plans". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved June 2, 2020. Esposito will have a larger role to play in season 2. "Sure enough, in season 2, that becomes a really important character," Kripke confirms. "So I had to call him and go, 'Hey, remember that cameo you did for me as a favor in season 1?… Now I need you for four to five more episodes.' To his credit, thank God, he's available and enthusiastic."
↑ Heisler, Steve (October 7, 2011). "Giancarlo Esposito". AV Club. Retrieved October 8, 2011. Well, I'm divorced from my wife, although we are very dear friends.
↑ Seitz, Matt Zoller (April 15, 2024). "Giancarlo Esposito Finds Elegance in Every Bad Guy". Vulture. Retrieved April 18, 2024. I was thinking about suicide because I was well insured. But I would have had to have somebody kill me in order to be able to have my family get the insurance money.
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