Ethan Suplee (/suːˈpliː/;[1] born May 25, 1976) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles in the films American History X, Blow, Remember the Titans, John Q, The Wolf of Wall Street, Cold Mountain, Without a Paddle, Unstoppable, and several of Kevin Smith's films as well as Frankie in Boy Meets World and Randy Hickey in My Name Is Earl.
Ethan Suplee | |
|---|---|
 Suplee in 2011 | |
| Born | May 25, 1976 New York City, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1994–present |
| Spouse |
Brandy Lewis (m. 2006) |
| Children | 4 |
Early life
editSuplee was born in Manhattan, New York City, the son of Debbie and Bill Suplee (who later played Willie the One Eyed Mailman in My Name Is Earl). His parents were actors who met while performing summer stock theater and appeared on Broadway.[2] On the Your Welcome show, Ethan stated that he dropped out of school at age 14.
Career
editThe first major role Suplee landed was as Willam in Mallrats, directed by Kevin Smith, alongside future My Name is Earl costar Jason Lee. He also appeared briefly in the independent View Askew-produced Drawing Flies. Smith cast both Suplee and Lee again in later films Chasing Amy and Dogma. They both make cameos in Clerks II. At the same time as the filming of Mallrats, Suplee also had a recurring role as Frankie "The Enforcer" Stechino in Boy Meets World, from 1994 to 1998. Suplee's dramatic performances include the roles of the ruthless white power skinhead Seth in American History X, one of three men who rape a clown in Vulgar, Ashton Kutcher's goth college roommate "Thumper" in The Butterfly Effect, American football player Louie Lastik in Remember the Titans, Johnny Depp's buddy and initial drug-dealing partner Tuna in Blow, and the simpleminded Pangle in Cold Mountain. Suplee also had a cameo in the HBO TV series Entourage[3] in the fictional movie Queens Boulevard. In 2014, he was cast in the TV Land original sitcom Jennifer Falls, which reunited him with My Name Is Earl co-star, Jaime Pressly.[4]
In 2016, Suplee started playing D in Hulu's series Chance, as well as police officer Billy "Beer Pong" Tompkins on the Netflix sitcom The Ranch.
In 2020, Suplee launched his own podcast entitled American Glutton.
Personal life
editSince 2006, Suplee has been married to Brandy Lewis, the younger sister of actress and singer Juliette Lewis. He is a Scientologist.[5]
In March 2011, Suplee was featured on TMZ on TV, having lost over 200 lb (91 kg) in body weight. He mentioned on his podcast American Glutton that his heaviest weight was 530 lb (240 kg) and his lightest weight was 220 lb (100 kg).[6] He has credited cycling for helping keep fit, explaining "I ride road bikes, I ride bicycles". He once reached an all-time low of 9% body fat, but put some of the weight back on upon realizing that his weight had been a past source of acting opportunities.[7]
Filmography
editFilm
edit| † | Denotes works that have not yet been released |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Mallrats | Willam Black | |
| 1996 | One Down | Prison inmate | |
| 1997 | Chasing Amy | Comic Fan | |
| A Better Place | Large Rude Student | ||
| 35 Miles from Normal | Mike | ||
| 11th Hour | Mike | ||
| 1998 | Desert Blue | Cale | |
| American History X | Seth Ryan | ||
| Bad Trip | Josh | ||
| 1999 | Dogma | Noman the Golgothan | Voice role |
| Tyrone | Joshua Schatzberg | ||
| 2000 | Takedown | Dan Brodley | |
| Road Trip | Ed Bradford | ||
| Vulgar | Frankie Fanelli | ||
| Remember the Titans | Louie Lastik | ||
| 2001 | Don's Plum | Big Bum | |
| Blow | Tuna | ||
| Evolution | Deke Donald | ||
| 2002 | John Q. | Max Conlin | |
| The First $20 Million Is Always the Hardest | Tiny | ||
| 2003 | Cold Mountain | Pangle | |
| 2004 | The Butterfly Effect | Thumper | |
| Without a Paddle | Elwood | ||
| 2005 | Neo Ned | Johnny-Orderly | |
| 2006 | Art School Confidential | Vince | |
| Clerks II | Teen #2 | ||
| The Fountain | Manny | ||
| 2007 | Mr. Woodcock | Nedderman | |
| Cutlass | Bruce | Short film | |
| 2008 | Struck | Cupid | |
| 2009 | Fanboys | Harry Knowles | |
| Brothers | Sweeney | ||
| 2010 | The Dry Land | Jack | |
| Unstoppable | Dewey | ||
| 2011 | I'm Having a Difficult Time Killing My Parents | Andrew | Short film |
| Grow Up Already | Bunky | ||
| 2012 | Ten Feet Apart | Homer | |
| Paper Cuts | Steven | ||
| Delivery | Jake | Short film | |
| 2013 | Breakout | Kenny Baxter | |
| The Wolf of Wall Street | Toby Welch | ||
| 2014 | Walk of Shame | Officer Dave | |
| 2015 | True Story | Pat Frato | |
| Tooken | Paul Miller | ||
| 2016 | The Trust | Russian Roulette Detective | |
| Deepwater Horizon | Jason Anderson | ||
| 2019 | Motherless Brooklyn | Gilbert Coney | |
| 2020 | The Hunt | Gary | |
| 2022 | Dog | Noah | |
| Clerks III | Willam Black | Role shared with Scott Mosier | |
| Babylon | Wilson | ||
| 2023 | Manodrome | Dad Leo | |
| God Is a Bullet | Gutter | ||
| Blood for Dust | Slim |
Television
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Tales from the Crypt | Jaimie | Episode: "Operation Friendship" |
| 1994–1998 | Boy Meets World | Frankie Stechino | 19 episodes |
| 1995 | Sister, Sister | Lionel | Episode: "Put to the Test" |
| 1996 | Don't Look Back | Gary | Television film |
| 2004 | Third Watch | Aaron Gordon | Episode: "Obsession" |
| 2005–2009 | My Name Is Earl | Randy Hickey | 96 episodes Main cast |
| 2005–2010 | Entourage | Himself | 2 episodes |
| 2006 | The Year Without a Santa Claus | Jingle Bells | Television film |
| 2010 | The Good Guys | Andy Davis | Episode: "Dan on the Run" |
| Playing with Guns | Siff | Television film | |
| Nevermind Nirvana | Perry | ||
| 2011 | No Ordinary Family | Tom Seeley | Episode: "No Ordinary Double Standard" |
| 2011–2013 | Raising Hope | Andrew | 5 episodes |
| 2011 | Wilfred | Spencer | 2 episodes |
| 2012 | Men at Work | Dan | Episode: "Milo Full of Grace" |
| Rise of the Zombies | Marshall | Television film | |
| 2014 | Jennifer Falls | Wayne Doyle | 10 episodes Main cast |
| 2016–2020 | The Ranch | Officer Billy "Beer Pong" Tompkins | 13 episodes |
| 2016–2017 | Chance | Darius "D" Pringle | 20 episodes Main cast |
| 2017 | Twin Peaks | Bill Shaker | Episode: "The Return, Part 4" |
| 2018–2020 | Vampirina | Uncle Bob Bigfoot | 3 episodes Voice |
| 2019 | Santa Clarita Diet | Tommy | 6 episodes |
| 2020 | Good Girls | Gil | 3 episodes |
| 2024 | The Pradeeps of Pittsburgh | Jimbo Mills | 8 episodes |
Music video
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | "Lonesome Tears" | Friend | Beck |
| 2008 | "Wasting Time" | Guy at the door | The Briggs |
| 2010 | "3000 Miles Away" | Interrogator | Star Fucking Hipsters |
Video games
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | The Quarry | Robert N. "Bobby" Hackett | Likeness Motion capture Voice |
Awards and nominations
edit| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | OFTA Television Award | Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series | My Name is Earl | Nominated |
| Screen Actors Guild Award | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series Shared with Jason Lee, Jaime Pressly, Eddie Steeples, and Nadine Velazquez | Nominated | ||
| 2007 | Golden Nymph | Outstanding Actor – Comedy Series | Nominated | |
| OFTA Television Award | Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series | Nominated | ||
| 2014 | Gold Derby Film Award | Ensemble Cast Shared with Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill, Matthew McConaughey, Jon Bernthal, Jean Dujardin, Jon Favreau, Joanna Lumley, Cristin Milioti, Rob Reiner and Margot Robbie | The Wolf of Wall Street | Nominated |
| Seattle Film Critics Award | Best Ensemble Cast Shared with Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill, Matthew McConaughey, Jon Bernthal, Jean Dujardin, Jon Favreau, Joanna Lumley, Cristin Milioti, Rob Reiner and Margot Robbie | Nominated |
References
edit- ^ "American Glutton Trailer". American Glutton. December 9, 2019. Retrieved January 18, 2020.
- ^ Stax (May 2, 2006). "IGN: Interview: Ethan Suplee". IGN. Retrieved June 29, 2021.
- ^ "Ethan Suplee". Retrieved July 9, 2014.
- ^ Mitovich, Matt Webb (February 28, 2014). "Scoop: Ethan Suplee Joins Earl Costar Jaime Pressly's TV Land Comedy Jennifer Falls". TV Line. Archived from the original on August 1, 2018. Retrieved February 28, 2014.
- ^ Oppenheimer, Mark (July 15, 2007). "The Actualizer". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 4, 2022. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
- ^ Blechman, Phil (January 14, 2020). "How Ethan Suplee from 'Remember the Titans' Got Jacked". BarBend.com. Retrieved December 17, 2023.
- ^ Rahman, Ray (March 14, 2017). "'Chance' actor Ethan Suplee on how losing weight lost him roles". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved November 28, 2022.
External links
edit- Media related to Ethan Suplee at Wikimedia Commons
- Ethan Suplee at IMDb
