Patrick Wilson (1973-) is an American actor and occasional singer. He is the character of Chris Mattson in the movie Lakeview Terrace, where he starred alongside Kerry Washington and Samuel L. Jackson. He is recognized as an actor who pushes social boundaries with captivating and believable roles.
Patrick was born in Virginia, but grew up in St. Petersburg, Florida, a large city in the Tampa Bay Area. His mother was a voice teacher with her own choir. Patrick’s early experiences with the choir and education in performing arts led to him aspire to become a professional performer.
Patrick took vocal lessons at Carnegie Mellon University, where he won awards for music and theatre and graduated with a degree in Drama. After college he stayed in the Pittsburg area and worked in opera. He eventually gained wide stage recognition in 1999 with an off-Broadway production of Bright Lights, Big City. In Bright Lights, Big City, he played an aspiring writer who falls off the tracks in New York City with drugs and partying.
Patrick continued his career on the stage with The Full Monty and Oklahoma!, the former of which was called “one of the best performances of 2000”. He made his debut on the small screen as a gay, Mormon Republican attorney in the mini-series Angels in America. With this role he received wide acclaim and established himself as a serious on-screen actor.
As Chris Mattson in Lakeview Terrace
Patrick kept audiences absorbed with his role in Lakeview Terrace in 2008. He played Chris Mattson, husband of Lisa (Kerry Washington). The interracial couple was terrorized by a racist cop played by Samuel L. Jackson. Audiences across America shouted at Chris, “Watch your back!” in the thriller where the two actors faced off in a final scene. Lakeview Terrace debuted at number one in its opening week.
On which partner is subjected to the most opposition in an interracial marriage of the kind portrayed in Lakeview Terrace, he says:
Probably more towards me, just from the male perspective I would imagine…We’ve experienced this before – looks from black men. Whether it’s looks, whether it’s comments, a white man and a black woman is much different than a black man and a white woman so I think it’s very easy to target me.
Patrick gained weight and grew a beard for his roles in the films Watchmen and The A-Team, respectively. He is always willing to do what it takes and more to make his roles spectacular, but due to his good looks, he often finds himself landing roles with nude or semi-nude scenes. For his New Year’s Resolution, he wants:
To be in a movie or a play which doesn’t require me to take off my clothes. Unless, of course, I don’t get another job… In which case I’ll be half-naked and whole-heartedly depressed for the rest of my career.
Off-screen and off-stage, Patrick lives with his wife, actress Dagmara Domińczyk, who he met while studying at Carnegie Mellon. They have two sons. Patrick’s upper arm tattoo –KPW– stand for the initials of his oldest son, Kalin Patrick Wilson.
See also:
aloftyexistence 