Patrick Wilson

by MovieMaker Staff | Published July 2, 2007

Stage and screen actor Patrick Wilson, born in Norfolk, VA on this day in 1973, was that oh-so-familiar friendly face swinging around this seasonâ€™s Gap ads with Claire Danes. Before that Wilson was largely known as a two-time Tony Award nominee for his lead roles in â€œThe Full Montyâ€ and the Broadway revival of â€œOklahoma!â€ But in 2003 he ventured a turn on-screen as the bisexual Mormon in HBOâ€™s â€œAngels in Americaâ€ and took a chance that paid off with nominations at both the Golden Globe and Emmy Awards. The Carnegie Mellon grad then transitioned from small screen to big with roles in Joel Schumacherâ€™s The Phantom of the Opera and 2005â€™s Hard Candy. The following year Wilsonâ€™s recognition grew after playing the adulterous Brad Adamson in Little Childrenâ€”alongside Oscar nominees Kate Winslet and Jackie Earle Haley. Most recently he re-teamed with his Gap partner, Toni Collette, Meryl Streep and a host of other acclaimed actresses in the June release Evening and can be seen in the Edward Burns feature, Purple Violets.

Quotable: â€œDoes it make any difference that I might be one thing deep within? No matter how wrong or ugly that thing is so long as I have fought with everything I have to kill it?â€â€”Patrick Wilson as Joe Pitt in “Angels in America”.