Chazz Palminteri

Academy Award nominee Chazz Palminteri has been very busy, resulting in six films with 2005/2006 release dates. His most recent releases include Ron Underwood’s IN THE MIX starring the music sensation, Usher, and the animated film HOODWINKED, with Glenn Close, Jim Belushi and Anne Hathaway. In 2006 he’ll appear in: A GUIDE TO RECOGNIZING YOUR SAINTS, the controversial coming-of-age drama by Orlando Montiel, and starring Robert Downey, Jr. (just selected as the opening film of Sundance 2006); THE DUKES, a heist movie set to 50’s rock and roll, written and directed by Robert Davi; PUSH, a drama set in the world of drugs, sex, and the allure of fast money directed by Dave Rodriguez, the action thriller RUNNING SCARED, written and directed by Wayne Kramer and co-starring Paul Walker; and the animated adventure comedy CAT TALE, with Sean Astin, Jerry O’Connell and Michael Richards. He is currently in Barcelona, Spain starring in the action film, BODY ARMOUR and has recently finished filming a pilot for ABC titled DRIFT which will hopefully be seen on ABC in the upcoming season.
Palminteri recently made his feature film directorial debut with the holiday film NOEL, starring Penelope Cruz, Susan Sarandon, and Paul Walker. The film is the first feature film to be distributed via Flexplay, the 48-Hour No Return DVD.
Chazz Palminteri earned high praise and an Academy Award nomination for his performance in Woody Allen's BULLETS OVER BROADWAY. His portrayal of "Cheech",”a gangster with unexpected dramaturgical gifts, also earned him an Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Actor, as well as nominations for a Screen Actors Guild Award and an American Comedy Award.
Palminteri delivered another gripping, noteworthy performance in Anthony Drazen's feature HURLYBURLY in which he co-starred opposite Sean Penn, Kevin Spacey, Garry Shandling, Meg Ryan, Robin Wright Penn and Anna Paquin. Based upon David Rabe's acclaimed play and script adaptation, the film was released by Fineline Features in December 1998. He was also seen in DOWN TO EARTH co-starring Chris Rock, Eugene Levy, Greg Germain and Regina King.
On television, Palminteri most recently starred opposite Ving Rhames in USA Network’s series KOJAK. He portrayed Mob Boss Paul Castellano in TNT's BOSS OF BOSSES. In the HBO film EXCELLENT CADAVERS he starred as famed Sicilian prosecutor Giovanni Falcone, who pursued the Mafia and was ultimately assassinated. As a director, Palminteri directed “Unnatural Disasters” -- an episode of the critically acclaimed prison series, OZ. He also directed WOMEN VS. MEN, a Showtime feature, starring Paul Reiser, Joe Montagna and Christine Lahti.
Well known for A BRONX TALE, Palminteri originally wrote the script for the stage and performed it as a one-man show in Los Angeles. He then moved the production to New York, where it played for four sold-out months and earned him nominations for the New York Outer Critics Circle for both acting and writing. While in New York he completed the screenplay of A BRONX TALE, which became one of the hottest properties in Hollywood. He held out for an offer that would let him star in the film, and soon found himself starring opposite Robert DeNiro, who chose the script for his directorial debut. Chazz is currently working with composer Jimmy Webb to bring A BRONX TALE, The Musical to the New York Stage.
For his second play, FAITHFUL, Palminteri again won the Los Angeles Dramalogue Award for acting. He also wrote and starred in the film version of FAITHFUL opposite Cher and Ryan O'Neal.
Palminteri has starred in ANALYZE THIS, with Robert DeNiro and Billy Crystal; THE PEREZ FAMILY opposite Marisa Tomei and Angelica Houston; THE USUAL SUSPECTS co-starring Gabriel Byrne, Kevin Spacey and Stephen Baldwin; JADE opposite David Caruso and Linda Fiorentino for director William Friedkin; MULHOLLAND FALLS opposite Nick Nolte and John Malkovich for director Lee Tamahori; and DIABOLIQUE co-starring Sharon Stone and Isabelle Adjani.
In the fall of 2002, he starred opposite Al Pacino in Bertolt Brecht’s brilliant parable play, “The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui” The standing-room-only production at the National Actors Theatre in New York City, was directed by Tony Randall, with a star-studded cast which included Steve Buscemi, John Goodman, Paul Giamatti, Dominic Chianese, Billy Crudup and Charles Durning.
Chazz received the 1996 Leadership in Entertainment Award from the Coalition of Italo-American Association, Inc. and was honored by President Clinton with a Special Achievement Award for the Performing Arts from the National Italian American Foundation in Washington, D.C.
In addition, Chazz is the National Spokesperson for the Cooley's Anemia Foundation, leading the fight against Thalassemia. Thalassemia is an inherited characteristic of blood which reduces the amount of hemoglobin the body is able to produce, thus causing anemia. This potentially fatal trait is primarily found in people of Mediterranean, African, Asian, Southeast Asian and Indian descent.