Johnny Messner (born April 11, 1970) is an American film and television

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), lit ...

best known for his portrayal of a muscular military man in the 2004 film '' Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid''.

Biography

Messner was born on April 11, 1970, in

Syracuse, New York Syracuse ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States. It is the fifth-most populous city in the state of New York following New York City, Buffalo, Yonkers, and Rochester. At the 2020 census, the city' ...

. He lived in Europe for 13 years while his father served in the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Si ...

, mainly in Germany and England. During this time, he developed a love for sports while playing on teams at military bases. He has one brother and one sister. He briefly attended the

San Diego State University San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system ...

to major in sports broadcasting but eventually decided to drop out. Soon after that he went back to New York where he pursued an acting career. He has several tattoos; one depicts Italian actress Monica Bellucci, and another is of his father. As an actor Messner is probably best known for his work in the films '' Tears of the Sun'', '' The Whole Ten Yards'' and ''

Hostage A hostage is a person seized by an abductor in order to compel another party, one which places a high value on the liberty, well-being and safety of the person seized, such as a relative, employer, law enforcement or government to act, or refr ...

'', and in the TV series ''

Guiding Light ''Guiding Light'' (known as ''The Guiding Light'' before 1975) is an American radio and television soap opera. It is listed in ''Guinness World Records'' as the third longest-running drama in television in American history. ''Guiding Light'' a ...

'' (working with friend Frank Grillo and a young Hayden Panettiere), '' Law & Order: Special Victims Unit'' and ''

Cold Case A cold case is a crime, or a suspected crime, that has not yet been fully resolved and is not the subject of a current criminal investigation, but for which new information could emerge from new witness testimony, re-examined archives, new or r ...

''. In August 2004, American action adventure film '' Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid'', starring Messner as an ex-military man Bill Johnson, premiered in theaters. It was the actor's first leading role in a mainstream movie, and gave him a chance to impress the audiences with a perfect musculature. The portrayal gained him status of a

sex symbol A sex symbol or icon is a person or character widely considered sexually attractive. Pam Cook, "The trouble with sex: Diana Dors and the Blonde bombshell phenomenon", In: Bruce Babinigton (ed.), ''British Stars and Stardom: From Alma Taylor t ...

. Around that time Messner became notorious due to his controversial interviews for '' IGN'' and ''

Lawrence Journal-World The ''Lawrence Journal-World'' is a daily newspaper published in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, by Ogden Newspapers. History Though the ''Journal-World'' title came into existence in 1911, the paper dates itself to 1858, according to the v ...

''. He stated that "in Hollywood we've lost the real man", and that he's the only "

alpha Alpha (uppercase , lowercase ; grc, ἄλφα, ''álpha'', or ell, άλφα, álfa) is the first letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of one. Alpha is derived from the Phoenician letter aleph , whi ...

male" still working in the film industry, along with

Bruce Willis Walter Bruce Willis (born March 19, 1955) is a retired American actor. He achieved fame with a leading role on the comedy-drama series ''Moonlighting'' (1985–1989) and appeared in over a hundred films, gaining recognition as an action hero a ...

. In those interviews Messner expressed harsh criticism for actors

Orlando Bloom Orlando Jonathan Blanchard Copeland Bloom (born 13 January 1977) is an English actor. He made his breakthrough as the character Legolas in ''The Lord of the Rings'' film series '' The Fellowship of the Ring'' (2001), '' The Two Towers'' (2002), ...

Brad Pitt William Bradley Pitt (born December 18, 1963) is an American actor and film producer. He is the recipient of various accolades, including two Academy Awards, a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and a Primetime Emmy Awar ...

and Vin Diesel, among others. In December 2004, the horror-themed website ''CampBlood'' named him the 2004's sexiest man in horror. Known as an

action hero An action hero (sometimes action heroine for women) is the protagonist of an action film or other form of entertainment which portrays action, adventure, and often violence. Other media in which such heroes appear include swashbuckler films, Wes ...

, he starred in numerous genre films including ''Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid'' (2004), ''Tears of the Sun'' (2003), '' Running Scared'' (2006), ''

Arena An arena is a large enclosed platform, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theatre, musical performances, or sporting events. It is composed of a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for spectator ...

'' (2011), ''Kill 'em All'' (2012), '' The Good, the Bad, and the Dead'' (2015), ''Silencer'' (2018), and '' Beyond the Law'' (2019). He portrayed the main protagonist, an ex-police officer Burke Wyatt, in the 2008 action film '' Ring of Death'', created for

Spike TV Paramount Network is an American basic cable television channel owned by the MTV Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Media Networks. The network's headquarters are located at the Paramount Pictures studio lot in Los Angeles. The channel was ...

. A torture sequence, shot for the film, required Messner to be

waterboarded Waterboarding is a form of torture in which water is poured over a cloth covering the face and breathing passages of an immobilized captive, causing the person to experience the sensation of drowning. In the most common method of waterboardi ...

. Messner's partner is

Kathryn Morris Kathryn Morris is an American actress, best known for her lead role as Detective Lilly Rush in the CBS series ''Cold Case''. Career Morris's first role was a minor one in the 1991 tele-movie ''Long Road Home''. Several other small parts foll ...

, whom he met while shooting ''

''. They have twin sons.Leon, Anya; Triggs, Charlotte (September 17, 2003)

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Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Messner, Johnny 1970 births Living people American male film actors American male television actors Male actors from Syracuse, New York