Michael Kostroff | |
---|---|
Born | New York City, New York, U.S. | May 22, 1961
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 1980–present |
Michael Kostroff (born May 22, 1961) is an American actor. He appeared on the HBO program The Wire as defense attorney Maurice Levy. [1] [2] Kostroff starred in the fifth season of the series and appeared in all four earlier seasons as a guest star.
Kostroff is best known for his five seasons playing drug lawyer Maury Levy on the HBO series The Wire , and from his recurring appearances on shows including The Blacklist , Billions , The Good Wife , and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, as well as his role as Marshall Pike on the Disney Channel series Sonny with a Chance . He was the executive producer and creator of So Random! . He played Peter Madoff, brother of Bernie Madoff (Robert De Niro), in HBO's The Wizard of Lies , and Shepsie Tirschwell in David Simon's 2020 miniseries The Plot Against America .
From 2002 to 2003, Kostroff performed in the first national tour of Mel Brooks' Broadway hit The Producers , and from 2003 to 2004, he played the comic villain Thénardier in the touring company of Les Misérables, a role he reprised for its 25th anniversary tour in 2010.
Kostroff is the author of four books: Letters from Backstage (a chronicle of his time on the road with two Broadway tours); [3] The Stage Actor's Handbook: Traditions, Protocols, and Etiquette for the Working and Aspiring Professional; Audition Psych 101 (based on his workshop of the same name); and Advice from 'The Working Actor' (a textbook based on the “Working Actor” advice column in the weekly publication Backstage; Kostroff was also one of the writers of that column).
He also volunteered on the Barack Obama campaign. [4]
Kostroff is the brother of Nina Kostroff Noble, a television producer who was an executive producer of The Wire.
In September 2024, he was cast in a recurring role on the upcoming superhero series Spider-Noir . [5]
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1989 | Return from the River Kwai | Radio Man | Unreleased in the US [6] |
1997 | Liar Liar | Tom the Attorney | |
1998 | Blunt | Det. Prang | |
2008 | Eagle Eye | Jeweler | |
2011 | Hit List | Mr. Weller | |
2014 | Best Man in the Dark | Ricky Feruci | |
2016 | Norman | Steve Goldfarb | |
Hard Sell | Mr. Harrison | ||
2017 | Molly's Game | Louis Butterman | |
2018 | Most Likely to Murder | Uncle Fred | |
2019 | The Sunlit Night | Critic #3 | |
Standing Up, Falling Down | Rabbi | ||
2022 | Pinball: The Man Who Saved the Game | Chairman Warner | |
2023 | Maybe I Do | Manny | |
Chupa | Taylor |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1980 | The Dream Merchants | Brooklyn A.D. | Mini-series; 2 episodes |
1992 | Knots Landing | Orderly #1 | Episode: "Dedicated to the One I Love" |
1994 | The Steven Banks Show | Pepper | Episode: "Miss Janie Regrets" |
1995 | Partners | Harried Man | Episode: "City Hall" |
General Hospital | Francis | Unknown episodes | |
1997–1998 | NewsRadio | Carl | Episode: "Planbee" Episode: "Who's the Boss: Part 2" |
1998 | Dharma & Greg | Lou | Episode: "Much Ado During Nothing" |
1999 | Ladies Man | Alan | Episode: "No Cinco, Seis!" |
Port Charles | Johnny LaLa | Unknown episodes | |
2000–2001 | The Geena Davis Show | Mr. Kern | Episode: "Motherly Advice" Episode: "Momma Bear" Episode: "White Moms Can't Jump" |
2001 | Providence | Floral Designer | Episode: "You Can Count on Me" |
Men, Women & Dogs | Steve | Episode: "Sick as a Dog" | |
Felicity | Bill | Episode: "A Perfect Match" | |
2001–2003 | The King of Queens | Mr. Thompson | Episode: "No Retreat" Episode: "Food Fight" Episode: "Affidavit Justice" |
2002 | Malcolm in the Middle | Toadie | Episode: "Company Picnic: Part 1" Episode: "Company Picnic: Part 2" |
2002–2008 | The Wire | Maurice Levy | Recurring (seasons 1-4)/main cast (season 5); 21 episodes |
2004 | The West Wing | Richard Squire | Episode: "A Change Is Gonna Come" |
8 Simple Rules | Photographer | Episode: "A Very C.J. Christmas" | |
2005 | ER | Community Theater Director | Episode: "The Show Must Go On" |
The Inside | Rick Byers | Episode: "The Perfect Couple" | |
2005–2006 | Boston Legal | N/A Dr. David Cannon | Episode: "The Ass Fat Jungle"; uncredited Episode: "Helping Hands" |
Veronica Mars | Mr. Pope | Episode: "Cheatty Cheatty Bang Bang" Episode: "Nobody Puts Baby in a Corner" Episode: "The Quick and the Wed" | |
2006 | Charmed | Mr. Metcalf | Episode: "Payback's a Witch"; uncredited |
Commander in Chief | Reporter Cy | Episode: "State of the Unions" | |
The Closer | Dr. Aaron Sands | Episode: "Heroic Measures" | |
Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip | David Langenfeld | Episode: "Nevada Day: Part 1" Episode: "Nevada Day: Part 2" | |
2007 | In Case of Emergency | Mr. Hunt | Episode: "Stuck in Amber" |
The Wedding Bells | Milton Crest | Episode: "Partly Cloudy, with a Chance of Disaster" | |
Life | McAllister | Episode: "A Civil War" | |
2008 | Without a Trace | Dr. Cappell | Episode: "Hard Reset" |
Eli Stone | Judge Timothy Nelson | Episode: "Help!" | |
Dan's Detour of Life | Dan Ford | Lead role; unsold pilot | |
2009–2010 | Sonny with a Chance | Marshall Pike | Recurring role; 15 episodes |
2009 | Brothers & Sisters | Realtor | Episode: "From France with Love" |
2010 | Cold Case | Wilson Katz (1974) | Episode: "The Runaway Bunny" |
The Middle | Steve | Episode: "TV or Not TV" | |
Party Down | Jeff Gold | Episode: "Jackal Onassis Backstage Party" | |
Sons of Tucson | Mr. Shuldiner | Episode: "Chicken Pox" | |
Weeds | Stroller Salesman | Episode: "A Yippity Sippity" | |
2011–2021 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Evan Braun | Recurring role; 8 episodes |
2012 | NYC 22 | Brandon Ken | Episode: "Self Cleaning Oven" |
Damages | Judge Richard Gearheart | Recurring role; 5 episodes | |
Made in Jersey | Hank | Episode: "Ridgewell" | |
2013 | Blue Bloods | Mr. Wojcik | Episode: "Framed" |
Banshee | Wicks Vanderwick | Episode: "Wicks" | |
2013–2016 | The Good Wife | Charles Froines | Episode: "The Bit Bucket" Episode: "Parallel Construction, Bitches" Episode: "All Tapped Out" Episode: "Landing" |
2014 | The Actress | Dr. Hersham | Episode: "The Dermatologist" |
Black Box | Jacob Myers | Episode: "Jerusalem" | |
F to 7th | Mike | Episode: "Deny, Deny, Deny" Episode: "Down to Zero" | |
Louie | Subway Man | Episode: "Pamela: Part 1" | |
Gotham | Officer Tannenbaum | Episode: "Pilot" | |
2015 | The Blacklist | Det. Martin Wilcox | Episode: "Ruslan Denisov" Episode: "The Deer Hunter" Episode: "The Major" Episode: "Tom Keen" |
Deadbeat | Barrold Weinbergerstein | Episode: "Last Dance with Edith Jane" Episode: "The Blowfish Job" Episode: "The Polaroid Flasher" | |
Elementary | Perry Franklin | Episode: "The Best Way Out Is Always Through" | |
2016 | Bosch | Hank Myers | Episode: "Victim of the Night" |
Vinyl | Allen Charnitski | Episode: "E.A.B." | |
Luke Cage | Dr. Noah Burstein | Recurring role; 4 episodes | |
Madam Secretary | Ambassador Chuck Willis | Episode: "Tectonic Shift" | |
2017 | The Wizard of Lies | Peter Madoff | TV movie |
2017–2018 | The Deuce | Rizzi | Recurring role; 8 episodes |
2018 | Instinct | John Raymond | Episode: "Blast from the Past" |
NCIS: Los Angeles | Robert Fenton | Episode: "A Diamond in the Rough" | |
Indoor Boys | Richard | Recurring role; 3 episodes | |
2018–2021 | Billions | Mick Nussfaur | Episode: "Hell of a Ride" Episode: "Maximum Recreational Depth" Episode: "Victory Smoke" |
2020 | Lincoln Rhyme: Hunt for the Bone Collector | Dr. Allen Trask | Episode: "Game On" |
The Plot Against America | Shepsie Tirchwell | Main cast; 6 episodes | |
The Baker and the Beauty | Eli Weiss | Episode: "Get Carried Away" | |
The George Lucas Talk Show | Himself | Episode: "Stu-D2 1138 on the Binary Sunset Sith" | |
2021 | Prodigal Son | Dr. Raymond Stengel | Episode: "Sun and Fun" |
2022 | 9-1-1: Lone Star | Dr. Patt | Episode: "Down to Clown" |
Animal Kingdom | David | 2 episodes | |
Law & Order | Evan Braun | Episode: "Gimme Shelter - Part Three" | |
NCIS | Felix Lassiter | Episode: "Love Lost" | |
2023 | Platonic | Frank Schaeffer | 2 episodes |
Carol & the End of the World | (voice) | Episode: "The Distraction" | |
2024 | The Rookie | Rafael | Episode: "Trouble in Paradise" |
2025 | Spider-Noir | Recurring role [5] |
Year | Artist | Title |
---|---|---|
2008 | Demi Lovato | "La La Land" |
Michael Imperioli is an American actor, novelist, screenwriter and musician. He is best known for his role as Christopher Moltisanti in the HBO crime drama series The Sopranos (1999–2007), which earned him the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series in 2004.
The Wire is an American crime drama television series created and primarily written by American author and former police reporter David Simon for the cable network HBO. The series premiered on June 2, 2002, and ended on March 9, 2008, comprising 60 episodes over five seasons. The idea for the show started out as a police drama loosely based on the experiences of Simon's writing partner Ed Burns, a former homicide detective and public school teacher.
Martin James Pflieger Schienle, known professionally as Martin Starr, is an American actor. He is known for the television roles of Bill Haverchuck on the comedy drama Freaks and Geeks (1999–2000), Roman DeBeers on the comedy series Party Down, Bertram Gilfoyle on the HBO series Silicon Valley (2014–2019), for his film roles in Knocked Up (2007) and Adventureland (2009), and as Roger Harrington in the Marvel Cinematic Universe films The Incredible Hulk (2008), Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019), and Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021).
Maury Alan Chaykin was an American-Canadian actor. Described as "one of the most recognizable faces in Canadian cinema," he was best known for his portrayal of Rex Stout's detective Nero Wolfe on the television series A Nero Wolfe Mystery (2001-02), as well as for his work as a character actor in many films and television programs.
Dylan Baker is an American actor. He gained recognition for his roles in films such as Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1987), Happiness (1998), Thirteen Days (2000), Road to Perdition (2002), Spider-Man 2 (2004), Spider-Man 3 (2007), Trick 'r Treat (2007), Revolutionary Road (2008), Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (2013), and Selma (2014). On television he has had prominent roles in series such as Murder One (1995–1996), The Good Wife (2010–2015), Damages (2011), The Americans (2016), and Homeland (2018). For The Good Wife he earned three Primetime Emmy Award nominations.
Glynn Turman is an American actor, director, writer, and producer. First coming to attention as a child actor in the original 1959 Broadway production of A Raisin in the Sun, Turman is known for his roles as Lew Miles on the prime-time soap opera Peyton Place (1968–1969), high school student Leroy "Preach" Jackson in the 1975 coming-of-age film Cooley High, math professor and retired Army colonel Bradford Taylor on the NBC sitcom A Different World (1988–1993), and Baltimore mayor Clarence Royce on the HBO drama series The Wire. He received the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series for his role on the HBO drama series In Treatment.
Frank William Chase is an American actor, director, and singer, best known for his work on Broadway and for his role as country superstar Luke Wheeler on ABC's Nashville.
Charlie Thomas Cox is an English actor. He is best known for portraying Matt Murdock / Daredevil in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, beginning with the television series Daredevil (2015–2018). He is set to reprise the role in his seventh project as the character, Daredevil: Born Again (2025)
Michael Kenneth Williams was an American actor. He rose to fame for his acclaimed portrayals of Omar Little on the HBO drama series The Wire (2002–2008) and Albert "Chalky" White on the HBO series Boardwalk Empire (2010–2014).
Andre Royo is an American actor, producer, and writer. He is best known for his role as Reginald "Bubbles" Cousins on the HBO crime drama series The Wire, and his appearances on Fringe, Party Down, How to Make It in America, and the 2013 film The Spectacular Now. Royo also appeared as Lucious Lyon's defense attorney Thirsty Rawlings on the FOX drama series Empire.
MauriceJ. "Maury" Levy is a fictional character in the HBO drama The Wire, played by Michael Kostroff. He is a skilled defense attorney and was kept on retainer by the Barksdale Organization, later by Proposition Joe and ultimately by the Stanfield Organization. He represented members of his clients' organizations at various criminal trials, advising them on defense strategy on charges ranging from drug trafficking, murder, and criminal possession of a weapon to parole negotiation. He also acted and advised for Barksdale Organization's front organizations and Stringer Bell's real estate business. Levy is corrupt and unscrupulous, willing to aid his clients in furtherance of their criminal activity.
Kevin Thomas Shinick is an American writer, producer, director and actor, as well as a comic book creator. Shinick received an Emmy award for his work on the stop-motion animated series Robot Chicken, and an Emmy nomination for his work on Mad, the animated series based on the iconic humor magazine, before serving as showrunner and supervising producer for the Disney XD series Spider-Man. He also portrayed the ACME Time Net Squadron Leader in the PBS series Where in Time Is Carmen Sandiego?.
The fifth and final season of the television series The Wire commenced airing in the United States on January 6, 2008, and concluded on March 9, 2008; it was the show's shortest season with 10 episodes. The series introduced a fictionalized version of the Baltimore Sun newsroom, while continuing to follow the Baltimore police department and city hall, and the Stanfield crime syndicate.
Nina Kostroff Noble is an American television producer.
The third season of the television series The Wire of 12 episodes first aired in the United States on HBO in 2004, from September 19 to December 19. It introduces Baltimore's local politicians and the upstart drug dealing Stanfield organization while continuing to examine the Barksdale Organization and the Baltimore Police Department.
The fourth season of the television series The Wire commenced airing in the United States on September 10, 2006, concluded on December 10, 2006, and contained 13 episodes. It introduces Baltimore's school system and several middle school students while continuing to examine the remnants of the Barksdale Organization, the ascendant Stanfield Organization, the Baltimore Police Department and politicians.
Matthew James Elwyn Thomas, also occasionally credited as Matthew Thomas, is a British actor who has made appearances in television, film, and theater. He is known for his television roles including The Lost Prince, and the ITV drama-musical show, Britannia High. In the U.S., Thomas is best known for having played the title role in the 2013 Broadway revival of Pippin, which received a Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical. He was also a late addition to the U.S. national tour of Pippin in 2014. He had his Broadway debut in 2010 playing Peter Parker in Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark directed by Julie Taymor, with music by U2's Bono and The Edge.
Nathan Darrow is an American actor known for his role as Secret Service agent Edward Meechum in House of Cards, John Custer in Preacher, Mick Danzig in Billions, Andrew Madoff in The Wizard of Lies, and as Victor Fries/Mr. Freeze in Gotham.
Brian Tyree Henry is an American actor. He rose to prominence for his role as rapper Alfred "Paper Boi" Miles in the FX comedy-drama series Atlanta (2016–2022), for which he received a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.
Spider-Noir is an upcoming American television series developed by showrunners Oren Uziel and Steve Lightfoot for MGM+, based on the Marvel Comics character Spider-Man Noir. The series is intended to be part of Sony's Spider-Man Universe (SSU) and follows an aging private investigator and superhero in an alternate version of 1930s New York City grappling with his past life. The series is produced by Sony Pictures Television in association with Lord Miller Productions, Pascal Pictures, and Amazon MGM Studios.