Michael Louis Chernus (born August 8, 1977) is an American actor. He has acted on film, television, and the stage. He is perhaps best known for his role as Cal Chapman on the
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a ...
original comedy-drama series ''
Orange Is the New Black'' (2013–2019). Chernus played
Phineas Mason / Tinkerer in the
Marvel Cinematic Universe
The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on a series of superhero films produced by Marvel Studios. The films are based on characters that appear in American comic books published ...
film ''
Spider-Man: Homecoming'', which was released on July 7, 2017.
Life and career
Chernus was born in
Rocky River, Ohio
Rocky River is a city in western Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. A suburb of Cleveland, it is located along the shore of Lake Erie approximately west of downtown Cleveland. The city is named for the Rocky River that forms its eastern b ...
. He is a graduate of the
Juilliard School's Drama Division. An accomplished stage actor, Michael won a 2011
Obie Award and received a
Lucille Lortel Award nomination for his performance in
Lisa Kron's ''In the Wake'' at
The Public Theater in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...
. On stage, he co-starred with
David Hyde Pierce in the Manhattan Theater Club production of ''Close Up Space'' at
New York City Center
New York City Center (previously known as the Mecca Temple, City Center of Music and Drama,. The name "City Center for Music and Drama Inc." is the organizational parent of the New York City Ballet and, until 2011, the New York City Opera. and ...
. Other New York credits include such theaters as
Playwrights Horizons, the
Roundabout Theatre Company,
Primary Stages,
New York Theatre Workshop, The Atlantic Theater Company, and many productions at the
Rattlestick Playwrights Theater, where he played the lead role of KJ in Annie Baker's play, ''
The Aliens'', which Charles Isherwood, of ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', named the best play of 2010.
His most recent role was
Second Stage Theatre's production of ''
Lips Together, Teeth Apart'', co-starring
America Ferrera. Chernus has acted in films such as ''
Men in Black 3'', ''
Captain Phillips'', ''
The Bourne Legacy'', and ''
Jack and Diane''. His most notable role to date is Cal Chapman, protagonist
Piper Chapman's brother, in the
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a ...
original comedy-drama series ''
Orange Is the New Black''.
Filmography
Film
Television
Stage
Awards and nominations
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Chernus, Michael
Male actors from Ohio
American male film actors
American male television actors
Living people
People from Rocky River, Ohio
21st-century American male actors
1977 births