Christopher Peter Meloni (; born April 2, 1961) is an American actor. He is known for portraying NYPD Detective Elliot Stabler on the NBC legal drama series Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999–2011, 2021–present) and its spin-off Organized Crime (2021–2025), for which he was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award. He also played Chris Keller on the HBO prison drama Oz (1998–2003), and starred in and executive produced the Syfy series Happy! (2017–2019).
Meloni's film credits include 12 Monkeys (1995), Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998), Runaway Bride (1999), Wet Hot American Summer (2001), Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (2004), Green Lantern: First Flight (2009), 42 (2013) and Man of Steel (2013).
Early life and education Christopher Peter Meloni was born on April 2, 1961, in Washington, D.C., the youngest of three children of Cecile (née Chagnon; 1926–2016), a homemaker, and Charles Robert Meloni (1927–2012), an endocrinologist. He has an older brother and sister. His paternal ancestry is Italian; one great-grandfather was born in Sardinia and another was born in Velva, near Genoa.Stated on Finding Your Roots, February 9, 2021 His maternal ancestry is French Canadian, and he is a descendant of Matthias Farnsworth and Edmund Rice.
Meloni attended St. Stephen's School, now St. Stephen's & St. Agnes School, in Alexandria, Virginia, where he was a quarterback on the football team. After graduating he attended the University of Colorado Boulder where he took acting classes for electives. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in history in 1983. After college, he went to New York continuing to study acting. He took classes with Sanford Meisner at the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre as well as at the Center for the Media Arts.
Career
Meloni acted in commercials, short-lived TV series, and bit parts in a number of films. His first noticeable role was the hotheaded son of a Mafia don in the 1996 thriller Bound. He appeared as Robbie Sinclair's friend Spike in Dinosaurs in the early 1990s. He played criminal Jimmy Liery in eight episodes of NYPD Blue during 1996–1997, and Bob Kelly, the fiancé of Julia Roberts's character Maggie Carpenter in the 1999 romantic comedy Runaway Bride.
From 1998 to 2003, Meloni portrayed the bisexual criminal Chris Keller on the HBO series Oz. Law & Order producer Dick Wolf signed Meloni to portray Elliot Stabler on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit in 1999. Meloni appeared on both Oz and Law & Order: SVU simultaneously until Oz was cancelled in 2003. Meloni was nominated for the 2006 Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for his role as Elliot Stabler. In May 2011, Meloni announced that he had been unable to agree on a contract and would not be returning for season 13 of SVU. His character was written out as having put in his retirement papers. After nearly a decade, Meloni announced in March 2020 that he would be reprising his role of Stabler in the Law & Order franchise on a spin-off show titled Law & Order: Organized Crime. Meloni appeared in a crossover event during season 22 of SVU.
In 2012, Meloni joined the cast of True Blood during the series' fifth season as Roman, a "powerful, 500-year-old vampire who sits at the head of the table of the Vampire Authority."
Meloni played Colonel Hardy, a supporting role, in the Superman reboot film Man of Steel, which was released in 2013. That year, he played Brooklyn Dodgers manager Leo Durocher in the historical baseball feature 42. Meloni starred in the 2014 comedy They Came Together. He stars as John Taylor in the video game Call of Duty: Black Ops III. In 2016, Meloni shot the heist film Marauders.
Meloni starred in and executive produced the Syfy series Happy!, based on the comic book series created by writer Grant Morrison and artist Darick Robertson, which premiered in 2017. The series was canceled on June 4, 2019.
In 2018, Meloni guest starred in two episodes of the FX drama series Pose, opposite Dominique Jackson. He appeared on the third season of The Handmaid's Tale as Commander Winslow in 2019.
Philanthropy In 2004 and 2006, respectively, Meloni competed in the fourth and the eighth series of Bravo's Celebrity Poker Showdown; in the eighth series, he finished in second place, behind Robin Tunney, and ahead of Macy Gray, Joy Behar, and Andy Dick. He played for Feed the Children.
He appeared on Celebrity Jeopardy! on November 10, 2006, defeating fellow Law & Order stars Sam Waterston and Kathryn Erbe. Meloni split his $50,000 charity prize between the Big Apple Circus Clown Care Program and the Montefiore Advocacy Center. He also appeared on the program's Million Dollar Celebrity Invitational that aired on December 17, 2009. Although defeated by Joshua Malina and Harry Shearer, he won a $25,000 charity prize in the name of Smile Train.
Public image Meloni has appeared in many public service announcements in support of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender issues. In 1999, Meloni jokingly kissed Lee Tergesen (who played Tobias Beecher, Meloni's on-screen boyfriend on Oz) at an awards dinner for GLAAD. In 2006, Meloni was given the Human Rights Campaign's Equality Award, along with actor Jake Gyllenhaal and director Ang Lee, for his work on behalf of LGBTQ issues. In addition, in 2011, Meloni appeared in the Human Rights Campaign's "New Yorkers for Marriage Equality" video.
Meloni was included in the 2006 edition of People magazine's Sexiest Men Alive.
Personal life Meloni married Doris Sherman Meloni (née Williams), a production designer, on July 1, 1995. They have two children through surrogacy, a daughter born in March 2001 and a son born in January 2004. Mariska Hargitay, who co-starred with Meloni on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and remains close friends with him, is the godmother to his daughter.
Meloni has three tattoos: a Cubist-inspired representation of the crucifixion of Christ on his upper left arm, a butterfly on his left upper thigh, and a Chinese astrological chart of his family on his right lower leg. In 2007, Meloni was inducted into his high school's athletic Hall of Fame as a member of the undefeated 1978 football team, for which he was quarterback.
In 2014, Meloni bought the house used in the television show The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet.
In 2021, on an episode of PBS' Finding Your Roots, it was revealed that Meloni is a distant relative of Nancy Pelosi.
Although raised Catholic, Meloni has stated that when he was around nine to eleven years old he asked a nun for clarification on "Jesus and God and she couldn't give an answer. I was about nine, maybe 11. I was like, 'You know, I feel like I'm done.'"
Filmography
Film YearTitleRoleNotes1990When Will I Be Loved?Thomas the Tank EngineTV film1991In a Child's NameJerry Cimarelli1992Something to Live for: The Alison Gertz StoryDavid1993Without a Kiss GoodbyeRay SamuelsTV film; aka Falsely Accused1994Clean SlateBodyguardJuniorMr. Lanzarotta199512 MonkeysLt. HalperinA Dangerous AffairTommy MorettiTV film1996BoundJohnnie Marzzone1997Every 9 SecondsRichard SutherlandTV film1998Brown's RequiemSgt. CavanahUncreditedFear and Loathing in Las VegasSven, Clerk at Flamingo HotelThe Souler OppositeBarry SingerTarget EarthDetective Samuel "Sam" AdamsTV film1999Carlo's WakeBennetto TorelloRunaway BrideBob KellyShiftLouisTV film2001Wet Hot American SummerGene Jenkinson2002Murder in GreenwichMark FuhrmanTV filmThat Brief MomentKenShort film2004Harold & Kumar Go to White CastleFreakshow2008Gym Teacher: The MovieDave StewieTV filmHarold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo BayGrand WizardCredited as "Reverend Clyde Stanky"Nights in RodantheJack Willis2009Brief Interviews with Hideous MenR / Subject #3CarriersFrank2010Green Lantern: First FlightHal Jordan / Green LanternVoice role2011National Lampoon's Dirty MovieProducer Charlie LaRue2013Awful NiceJon CharbineauMan of SteelColonel Nathan Hardy42Leo Durocher2014BeefLouWhite Bird in a BlizzardBrock ConnorsSmall TimeAl KleinThey Came TogetherRolandSin City: A Dame to Kill ForMort2015The Diary of a Teenage GirlPascal MacCorkill2016I Am WrathDennisMaraudersAgent Jonathan MontgomeryAlmost FriendsHoward2017SnatchedRoger Simmons2024IFCosmo (voice)2026Little BrotherJosh
Television YearTitleRoleNotes1989–19901st & TenVito Del Greco / Johnny Gunn11 episodes1990–1991The Fanelli BoysFrankie Fanelli17 episodes1991–1994DinosaursSpikeVoice; recurring role1993The BoysDoug Kirkfield6 episodesGolden GateDouglas "BW" CarlinoUnsold pilot1995Hope and GloriaBillyEpisode: "Love with an Improper Stranger"Misery Loves CompanyMitch8 episodes1996–1997NYPD BlueJimmy Liery5 episodes1997The Last DonBoz SkannetMiniseriesLeaving L.A.Reed Sims6 episodesBrooklyn SouthJoe3 episodes1998Homicide: Life on the StreetBounty Hunter Dennis Knoll2 episodes1998–2003OzChris KellerRecurring (season 2); starring (seasons 3–6)1999–2011, 2021–2023 & 2025Law & Order: Special Victims UnitDetective Elliot StablerMain (seasons 1–12); recurring (seasons 22-)2000–2022Law & OrderGuest role (seasons 10 & 22)2003ScrubsDr. Dave NorrisEpisode: "My White Whale"2004Sesame StreetHimselfEpisode: 40652005Wonder ShowzenCooties SpokesmanEpisode: "Health"Law & Order: Trial by JuryDetective Elliot StablerEpisode: "Day"2009Michael & Michael Have IssuesHimselfEpisode: "Greg the Intern"2010Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-ListEpisode: "Kathy With a Z"2011The Daily Show with Jon StewartTony BolognaCameoIce Loves CocoHimself2012True BloodRoman Zimojic5 episodes2013Comedy Bang! Bang!Dr. Phillip BanhauserEpisode: "Aziz Ansari Wears a Charcoal Blazer"2014VeepRay Whelans2 episodesSurviving JackJack Dunlevy8 episodes (including one unaired episode in the United States)2015Drunk HistoryOthniel MarshEpisode: "New Jersey"The Jack and Triumph ShowAgent RykerEpisode: "Siri"Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of CampGene Jenkinson / Jonas Jurgenson6 episodes2016–2017UndergroundAugust PullmanRecurring role; directed episode: "Auld Acquaintance"2017Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years LaterGene Jenkinson4 episodesAt Home with Amy SedarisRanger RussellEpisode: "Nature"2017–2019Happy!Nick SaxRecurring role2018PoseDick Ford2 episodes2019The Handmaid's TaleCommander Winslow4 episodes2019–2022American Dad!Multiple voices3 episodes2019–presentHarley QuinnJim Gordon, Two-Face, other voicesRecurring role2020Family GuyGeorge Townshend (voice)Episode: "Short Cuts"MaxxxDon Wild6 episodesThe Twilight ZoneRobertEpisode: "A Human Face"HelpstersDetective DudleyEpisode: "Camper Cortez/Artist Andrew & Detective Dudley"2020–2022Rick and MortyJesus Christ2 episodes2021Bless the HartsDetective Voccola (voice)Episode: "Betty's Birthday"2021–2025Law & Order: Organized CrimeDetective Elliot StablerMain role; also executive producer2022Solar OppositesLonesun (voice)Episode: "Terry and Korvo Get in a Big Screaming Fight in the Taco Bell Parking Lot"2023Captain FallAgent Steel (voice)Recurring roleCelebrity Jeopardy!HimselfContestantTBAThe LandDannyMain role
Video games YearTitleRoleNotes2015Call of Duty: Black Ops IIIBarry ScottVoice
Awards and nominations YearAwardCategoryWorkResult1999OFTA Television AwardsBest Guest Actor in a Cable SeriesOz2004Prism AwardsBest Performance in a TV Drama Series EpisodeLaw & Order: Special Victims Unit rowspan="9" 2006OFTA Television AwardsBest Actor in a Drama SeriesPrimetime Emmy AwardsOutstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series2008Prism AwardsBest Performance in a TV Drama Series Episode20092014Gold Derby AwardsBest Comedy Guest ActorVeep2019Best Drama Guest ActorPoseInternational Online Cinema AwardsBest Guest Actor in a Drama Series2021Hollywood Critics Association Television AwardsBest Actor in a Broadcast Network or Cable Series, DramaLaw & Order: Organized Crime2022ACCEC AwardsFavorite Television Actor
References
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