Matt Whelan | |
---|---|
Born | Matthew Whelan 1985 (age 38–39) [1] Christchurch, New Zealand |
Nationality | New Zealand |
Occupation(s) | Actor, comedian |
Years active | 2007–present |
Awards | 2010 – Best Performance by a Supporting Actor |
Matt Whelan (born 1985) is a New Zealand actor and comedian. Whelan is known for his roles as Brad Caulfield in the New Zealand television comedy-drama programme Go Girls . He has also played Playboy founder Hugh Hefner in the Amazon Original series American Playboy: The Hugh Hefner Story . Whelan plays DEA agent Van Ness in the Netflix original series Narcos .
Whelan was born in Christchurch, Canterbury on the South Island of New Zealand. [2] Whelan graduated from Toi Whakaari: New Zealand Drama School, one of New Zealand's most prestigious drama schools located in Wellington. [3] Completing a Bachelor of Performing Arts in acting in 2007, [4] immediately upon graduating he joined the cast of Show of Hands, performing alongside Melanie Lynskey. [5]
In April 2017, it was revealed Whelan would be playing the prestigious role as Playboy founder, Hugh Hefner, in the 2017 Amazon original docu-series, American Playboy: The Hugh Hefner Story. [6] [7] The ten-episode series, chronicles the Playboy founder's life, the rise of the magazine and unveils never-before-seen footage from his private archives. [8] Whelan met with Hefner during the filming of the show. [8] It was released just before Hefner's 91st birthday and was partly filmed in Auckland. [8] [9] [10]
After featuring in larger acting roles and gaining popularity playing Hugh Hefner in 2017, Whelan landed a role in the third season of Netflix original series, Narcos. [11] [12] [13] Whelan played Daniel van Ness, a young DEA agent partnered with Chris Feistl (played by Michael Stahl-David), who go to Cali, Colombia after the death of Pablo Escobar under the order of Javier Peña (played by Pedro Pascal) in hopes of taking down the Cali Cartel.
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2007 | Eagle vs Shark | Kissing Boy | |
2008 | Show of Hands | Matt | |
2011 | My Wedding and Other Secrets | James | |
2012 | The Most Fun You Can Have Dying | Michael | |
2014 | 3 Mile Limit | Richard | |
2014 | Dancers | David | Short film |
2015 | 25 April | John Persson | Narrated documentary |
2017 | Pork Pie | Noah | |
2017 | Gary of the Pacific | Nelson | |
2023 | The Tank | Ben | |
TBA | We Bury the Dead | Mitch |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2007 | My Story | Regan | |
2009–2012 | Go Girls | Brad Caulfield | 49 episodes |
2013 | Top of the Lake | Little Shane | Episode: "No Goodbyes Thanks" |
2014 | Coverband | Alex | 6 episodes |
2016 | Of Kings and Prophets | Mattiyahu | Episode: "Offerings of Blood" |
2016 | Stake Out | Salesman | Episode: "Salesmans" |
2017 | American Playboy: The Hugh Hefner Story | Hugh Hefner | 10 episodes |
2017–present | Narcos | Daniel van Ness | 9 episodes |
2019 | The Brokenwood Mysteries | Jack Rudd | Episode: "A Real Page Turner" |
2020 | The Luminaries | Cowell Devlin | 6 episodes |
The Sounds | Tom Cabbott | Main role |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2014 | Belleville |
Hugh Marston Hefner was an American magazine publisher. He was the founder and editor-in-chief of Playboy magazine, a publication with revealing photographs and articles.
Martin Henderson is a New Zealand actor. He is known for his roles on the American medical drama series Off the Map as Dr. Ben Keeton (2011), the medical drama series Grey's Anatomy as Dr. Nathan Riggs (2015–2017), the Netflix romantic drama Virgin River as Jack Sheridan (2019–present), and for his performance as Noah Clay in the 2002 horror film The Ring, while remaining known in his home country for his teenage role as Stuart Neilson in the soap opera Shortland Street (1992–1995).
Dwayne Cameron is a New Zealand actor, writer, director and producer. Cameron played the lead role of Bray on the teen drama series The Tribe and Tyzonn in Power Rangers Operation Overdrive.
Madeleine Nalini Sami is a New Zealand actor, director, comedian and musician. She started her acting career in theatre before moving to television, where she created, co-wrote, and starred in Super City. She co-wrote, co-directed, and starred in the 2018 film The Breaker Upperers, along with Jackie van Beek, which was a New Zealand box office success. Sami co-hosted The Great Kiwi Bake Off.
Rick López is a television director and executive producer.
Frances Rose McIver is a New Zealand actress. She portrayed Olivia "Liv" Moore in The CW supernatural comedy-drama series iZombie (2015–2019), Summer Landsdown the Yellow Ranger in Power Rangers RPM (2009), and Amber Moore in the romantic comedy film A Christmas Prince (2017) and its two sequels, The Royal Wedding (2018) and The Royal Baby (2019).
Antony Starr is a New Zealand actor. He is best known for his television roles. He played the dual roles of Jethro and Van West in the series Outrageous Fortune (2005–10), Lucas Hood in the Cinemax series Banshee (2013–16), and John Gilman/Homelander in the Prime Video series The Boys and its spin-offs (2019–present).
Emmett Skilton is a New Zealand actor and director.
Scarlett Hannah Hefner is an English actress. She is best known for her roles as Slytherin student Pansy Parkinson in the Harry Potter series, and as Nora Hildegard in The Vampire Diaries.
Narcos is an American crime drama television series created and produced by Chris Brancato, Carlo Bernard, and Doug Miro. Set and filmed in Colombia, seasons 1 and 2 are based on the story of Colombian narcoterrorist and drug lord Pablo Escobar, leader of the Medellín Cartel and billionaire through the production and distribution of cocaine. The series also focuses on Escobar's interactions with drug lords, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agents, and various opposition entities. Season 3 picks up after the fall of Escobar and continues to follow the DEA as they try to shut down the rise of the infamous Cali Cartel.
The second season of Narcos, an American crime thriller drama web television series produced and created by Chris Brancato, Carlo Bernard, and Doug Miro, follows the story of notorious drug kingpin Pablo Escobar, who became a billionaire through the production and distribution of cocaine, while also focusing on Escobar's interactions with drug lords, DEA agents, and various opposition entities.
American Playboy: The Hugh Hefner Story is a 2017 television series by Amazon Prime Video. It stars Matt Whelan in the title role, along with Emmett Skilton and Chelsie Preston Crayford. Several African American and African British actors were linked to the program including Kelvin Taylor. The first season was released on 7 April 2017 and comprised ten episodes.
The third and final season of Narcos, an American crime thriller drama streaming television series produced and created by Chris Brancato, Carlo Bernard, and Doug Miro, follows the story of the Cali Cartel. Pedro Pascal reprises his role from the previous two seasons.
Jarrett Maier is an American actor known for playing Hugh Hefner as a teenager in the Amazon Studios series American Playboy: The Hugh Hefner Story.
Narcos: Mexico is an American crime drama television series created and produced by Chris Brancato, Carlo Bernard, and Doug Miro that premiered on Netflix on November 16, 2018. It was originally intended to be the fourth season of the Netflix series Narcos, but it was ultimately developed as a companion series. It focuses on the development of Mexico's illegal drug trade, whereas the parent series centered on the establishment of Colombia's illegal drug trade. The series' second season premiered on February 13, 2020. On October 28, 2020, Netflix renewed the series for a third and final season but announced that actor Diego Luna would not be returning to reprise his role as Félix Gallardo. The third and final season premiered on November 5, 2021.
The Sounds is a Canadian-New Zealand coproduced television mystery drama series, premiering on Acorn TV and CBC Television in 2020. The series stars Matt Whelan and Rachelle Lefevre as Tom and Maggie Cabbott, a Canadian couple who move to the Pelorus Sound / Te Hoiere region of New Zealand to escape family drama, only for Tom to go missing. The series was created by New Zealand writer Sarah-Kate Lynch, and directed by Peter Stebbings. It is a coproduction of South Pacific Pictures and Shaftesbury Films.
Alexander Tarrant-Keepa, known professionally as Alex Tarrant, is a New Zealand actor. With multiple TV and film credits, he currently portrays Kai Holman in the CBS action crime drama NCIS: Hawaiʻi and Valandil on Amazon Prime's The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power fantasy drama.
Holly Melissa Shervey, is a television and film actress and writer. She is an Australian-born New Zealander.
Leon Wadham is a New Zealand actor, writer and director. He is best known for his roles in the film Under the Mountain (2009), comedy series Go Girls (2013) and the Amazon Prime fantasy show The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power (2022).