Portrait of Giancarlo Esposito

Giancarlo Esposito

Acting

Biography

Giancarlo Giuseppe Alessandro Esposito (born April 26, 1958) is an American actor. He is known for portraying Gus Fring in the AMC crime drama series Breaking Bad from 2009 to 2011 and its prequel series Better Call Saul from 2017 to 2022. He won the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series twice for this role. He earned three nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series. His other television roles include federal agent Mike Giardello in the NBC series Homicide: Life on the Street (1998–1999), Sidney Glass / Magic Mirror in the ABC fantasy series Once Upon a Time (2011–2017), Tom Neville in the NBC series Revolution (2012–2014), Dr. Edward Ruskins in the Netflix series Dear White People (2017–2021), Stan Edgar in the Amazon series The Boys (2019–present) and The Boys Presents: Diabolical (2022), and Moff Gideon in the Disney+ series The Mandalorian (2019–2023), the lattermost of which earned him two Primetime Emmy Award nominations. He also portrayed Adam Clayton Powell Jr. in the MGM+ series Godfather of Harlem (2019–present), acted in the HBO drama series Westworld (2016), and starred in the Netflix television series Kaleidoscope (2023), The Gentlemen (2024), and The Residence (2025). He is also known for his collaboration with Spike Lee, acting in several of his films, such as School Daze (1988), Do the Right Thing (1989), Mo' Better Blues (1990), and Malcolm X (1992). His other major films include Taps (1981), King of New York (1990), Bob Roberts (1992), Fresh (1994), The Usual Suspects (1995), Ali (2001), Monkeybone (2001), Last Holiday (2006), Rabbit Hole (2010), Okja (2017), Megalopolis (2024), MaXXXine (2024), and Captain America: Brave New World (2025). He voiced Akela in the live-action remake of The Jungle Book (2016). Description above from the Wikipedia article Giancarlo Esposito, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Born: April 26, 1958

Place of Birth: Copenhagen, Denmark

Filmography

2026
The Cat in the Hat

as Mr. Hoogeboom (voice)

2025
Megadoc

as Self

2025
The Residence

as A.B. Wynter

2025
The Electric State

as Colonel Bradbury / The Marshall

2024
Megalopolis

as Mayor Cicero

2024
MaXXXine

as Teddy Knight, Esq.

2024
Abigail

as Lambert

2024
Parish

as Gracián 'Gray' Parish

2024
The Gentlemen

as Stanley Johnston (Uncle Stan)

2023
Gen V

as Stan Edgar

2023
2023
Poker Face

as Fred Finch

2023
Kaleidoscope

as Leo Pap

2022
Euphoria

as Taxi Driver

2022
Bonnie

as Self

2022
Beauty

as Beauty's Father

2022
The Boys Presents: Diabolical

as Stan Edgar (voice)

2021
Show Me More

as Self - "Gus Fring"

2021
2021
The Eisen Hour

as Self - Guest

2020
2020
2020
Stargirl

as Archie Brubaker

2020
Coda

as Paul

2019
Line of Duty

as Tom Volk

2019
Harley Quinn

as Lex Luthor (voice)

2019
The Mandalorian

as Moff Gideon

2019
Godfather of Harlem

as Adam Clayton Powell Jr.

2019
Creepshow

as Doc

2019
Game Changer

as Self - Guest

2019
The Boys

as Meerkat Stan Edgar (voice)

2019
The Boys

as Stanford 'Stan' Edgar

2019
Jett

as Charlie Baudelaire

2019
Stuck

as Lloyd

2018
Dallas & Robo

as Victor Goldsmith

2018
The Nagano Tapes

as Narrator

2017
The Show

as Mason Washington

2017
DuckTales

as Phantom Blot (voice)

2017
Okja

as Frank Dawson

2017
Unacknowledged

as Narrator

2017
2017
Rebel

as Charles

2016
Westworld

as El Lazo

2016
Brother Nature

as Congressman Frank McClaren

2016
The Get Down

as Pastor Ramon Cruz

2016
2016
Money Monster

as Captain Powell

2016
The Jungle Book

as Akela (voice)

2015
Enzian: When the Lights Go Up

as Self (archive footage)

2015
Better Call Saul

as Gus Fring

2015
Allegiance

as Oscar Christoph

2015
2014
Poker Night

as Bernard

2014
2014
Batman: Assault on Arkham

as Black Spider / Eric Needham (voice)

2014
Son of Batman

as Ra's al Ghul (voice)

2013
Timms Valley

as Pruit Normings

2013
They Die by Dawn

as Rufus Buck

2013
2013
Drunk History

as Andrés Pico

2013
2013
Over/Under

as Oliver Ohrt

2012
Alex Cross

as Daramus Holiday

2012
Revolution

as Tom Neville

2012
NYC 22

as Harvey Williams

2011
Once Upon a Time

as Sidney Glass / Magic Mirror

2011
Certainty

as Father Heery

2011
S.W.A.T.: Firefight

as Inspector Hollander

2010
Rabbit Hole

as Auggie

2010
Conan

as Self

2009
Community

as Gilbert Lawson

2009
PoliWood

as Self

2008
Leverage

as Alexander Moto

2008
New Amsterdam

as James Lawson

2008
Gospel Hill

as Dr. Palmer

2008
Breaking Bad

as Gus Fring

2007
Mano

as Nino

2007
Feel The Noise

as Roberto Vega

2007
2007
The Box

as Dwayne Burkhalter

2006
Sherrybaby

as Parole Officer Hernandez

2006
Rain

as Ken Arnold

2006
Last Holiday

as Senator Dillings

2006
South Beach

as Robert Fuentes

2005
Derailed

as Detective Church

2005
Ghost Whisperer

as Ely Fisher

2005
Bones

as Richard Benoit

2005
Back in the Day

as Benson Cooper

2005
Law & Order: Trial by Jury

as Orlando Ramirez

2005
Chupacabra Terror

as Dr. Peña

2005
Hate Crime

as Detective Esposito

2004
Doing Hard Time

as Captain Pierce

2004
2004
5ive Days to Midnight

as Tim Sanders

2004
Noise

as Hank

2003
Blind Horizon

as J.C. Reynolds

2003
Las Vegas

as Reggie Archibald

2003
2002
Half & Half

as Darrell Washington

2002
CSI: Miami

as Chief Braga

2002
Street Time

as Jesse Haslim

2001
Ali

as Cassius Clay, Sr.

2001
Piñero

as Miguel Algarin

2001
Monkeybone

as Hypnos

2001
100 Centre Street

as Jacob Lenz

2001
The Division

as Dr. Pembroke

2000
The $treet

as Tom Divack

2000
Strong Medicine

as James 'Junior' Bell

2000
Soul Food

as Jules

2000
Click

as Self

2000
Homicide: The Movie

as Mike Giardello

2000
Josephine

as Spike

1999
Third Watch

as Father Romero

1998
Thirst

as Dr. Lawrence Carver

1998
1998
Where's Marlowe?

as Blind Man (uncredited)

1998
Phoenix

as Louie

1998
Creature

as Lt. Thomas Peniston / Werewolf

1998
Twilight

as Reuben Escobar

1998
Stardust

as Mr. Peavey

1997
Five Desperate Hours

as Joseph Grange

1997
Big City Blues

as Georgie

1997
The Hunger

as Vampire

1997
Nothing to Lose

as Charlie Dunt

1997
The Practice

as Ray McMurphy

1997
The Maze

as Henry Kunitz

1996
The Tomorrow Man

as Jonathan Driscoll

1996
Nash Bridges

as Whip Tyrell

1996
Nash Bridges

as Arnold / Gordon Keller

1996
1995
Waiting to Exhale

as David Matthews (uncredited)

1995
Reckless

as Host Tim Timko

1995
Blue in the Face

as Tommy Finelli

1995
The Keeper

as Paul Lamont

1995
The Usual Suspects

as Jack Baer

1995
Smoke

as 1st OTB Man / Tommy

1995
Kla$h

as Stoney

1994
Touched by an Angel

as Antonio Gaudi

1994
Chicago Hope

as Cherchez LaFemme

1994
New York Undercover

as Adolfo Guzman

1994
Fresh

as Esteban

1993
Seven Songs for Malcolm X

as Autobiography Reading (voice)

1993
Bakersfield P.D.

as Detective Paul Gigante

1993
Fallen Angels

as Paris Minton

1993
Amos & Andrew

as The Reverend Fenton Brunch

1993
Homicide: Life on the Street

as Michael Giardello

1993
Mood Indigo

as Arthur Sistrunk

1992
Malcolm X

as Thomas Hayer

1992
Bob Roberts

as Bugs Raplin

1991
1991
Jungle Fever

as Homeless Man

1990
Law & Order

as Defense Attorney Rodney Fallon

1990
Law & Order

as Attorney Baylor

1990
Mo' Better Blues

as Left Hand Lacey (Piano)

1990
1989
Do the Right Thing

as Buggin Out

1988
School Daze

as Julian 'Dean Big Brother Almighty' Eaves

1987
Leg Work

as Tyson

1987
Heartbeat

as Gang Member #1

1987
1986
Maximum Overdrive

as Videoplayer

1986
Roanoak

as Simon Fernandes

1986
Rockabye

as Marcus

1985
The Equalizer

as Jumpin' Jack

1985
1985
1984
The Cotton Club

as Bumpy Hood

1984
Miami Vice

as Adonis Jackson

1984
Miami Vice

as Luther

1984
Miami Vice

as Ricky

1984
The Brother from Another Planet

as Man Being Arrested (uncredited)

1983
Trading Places

as Cellmate #2

1981
Taps

as Cadet Captain J.C. Pierce

1979
Running

as Puerto Rican Teenager