Vincent Piazza | |
|---|---|
 Piazza in 2012 | |
| Born | 1975 or 1976 (age 49–50) New York City, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 2005–present |
Vincent Piazza (born 1975 or 1976)[1] is an American actor. He is best known for his portrayal of gangsterLucky Luciano in theHBO television seriesBoardwalk Empire. He has also played Earl Hefner in the comedy-dramaRocket Science (2007) and singerTommy DeVito inClint Eastwood's film adaptation ofJersey Boys (2014).
Piazza was born inMiddle Village, Queens, New York City, and raised in nearbyMaspeth.[2][1] His father is Italian, having immigrated to the United States in the early 1960s. His mother is of German descent.[3]
Piazza playedACHA Division I-AAice hockey forVillanova University, until a shoulder injury forced him to quit playing and leave the university after a year.[4]
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After retiring from hockey, he began to work with acting coach Alice Spivak and joined the TerraNOVA Collective theatre group in Lion Theatre alongTheatre Row inNew York City.[5] After appearing in a number of New YorkOff Broadway productions, includingBaby Steps,A Match Made in Manhattan andMuch Ado About Nothing,[5] he made his feature film debut in the2006 filmStephanie Daley and went on to appear in thetelevision movieThe Dawn and an episode ofLaw & Order: Criminal Intent.[4]
Piazza has appeared in three episodes of the television seriesThe Sopranos; theeighth,eleventh andthirteenth episodes of the show's sixth season. He describes his experience working on the show as "incredible" and says he would appear in any prequels or sequels to the series if he was asked.[6] He then featured in the2007 filmRocket Science as Earl Hefner, thekleptomaniac older brother of the film's protagonist. After auditioning at a casting session held at a New York acting school, he ended up being one of the first actors cast, writer-directorJeffrey Blitz saying: "Vince brought just the right combination of humor and threat to the part ... [I] kept many of the rest of the choices Vince brought to Earl. He's a very physical actor and a very funny one, too."[4] He went on to appear in the independent filmsGoodbye Baby,Tie a Yellow Ribbon andApology, as well as guest-starring in an episode ofLaw & Order, before he landed the recurring role of Tony inRescue Me's fourth season.
Piazza appeared in the 2008 filmAssassination of a High School President in the role of Ricky Delacruz. He had originally unsuccessfully auditioned for a different part, butBrett Simon, the film's director, was fond of his performance inRocket Science and so suggested that he take on another role.[6] In order to master aHispanic accent for the role, he visited a woman he knew who runs aPuerto Rican theatre inManhattan and usually coached Puerto Ricans to adapt American accents, to have her coach him to read his lines in a thick Puerto Rican accent.[6] He also completed atelevision pilot directed byBrett Ratner,Blue Blood, for which he had a seven-year contract if the series had been picked up byNBC.[6]
Piazza was then cast as a series regular onBoardwalk Empire in 2009 as real life Italian-American mobsterLucky Luciano, appearing in all five seasons. In 2013, Piazza won the role ofTommy DeVito in theClint Eastwood-directed adaptation of the Broadway musicalJersey Boys. Piazza had to take vocal, guitar, and dance lessons to play DeVito, one of the founding members of the bandThe Four Seasons.[7]
Piazza was in a relationship with singerAshlee Simpson from June 2011 to November 2012. As of May 21, 2018, he was engaged to actressGenesis Rodriguez but the relationship ended shortly after they became engaged.[8]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Color of a Doubt: an Urban Fable | Chris Parker | |
| 2006 | Stephanie Daley | Geoff | |
| 2006 | The Dawn | Scott | |
| 2007 | Rocket Science | Earl Hefner | |
| 2007 | Goodbye Baby | Dominick | |
| 2007 | Tie a Yellow Ribbon | Ed | |
| 2008 | Assassination of a High School President | Ricky Delacruz | |
| 2010 | Polish Bar | Reuben | |
| 2014 | 3 Nights in the Desert | Barry | |
| 2014 | Jersey Boys | Tommy DeVito | |
| 2015 | The Wannabe | Thomas | |
| 2016 | The Intervention | Peter | |
| 2017 | Never Here | Andy Williams | |
| 2017 | The Girl Who Invented Kissing | Jimmy | |
| 2020 | Centigrade | Matt | |
| 2020 | 618 to Omaha | Ed Merriweather | Short film |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Law & Order: Criminal Intent | Eric Newsome | Episode: "Wrongful Life" |
| 2007 | The Sopranos | Hernan O'Brien | 3 episodes |
| 2007 | Law & Order | Peter Harris | Episode: "Over Here" |
| 2007 | Rescue Me | Tony | 6 episodes |
| 2008 | Blue Blood | Bobby Moran | TV pilot |
| 2009 | How I Met Your Mother | Bus Boy | Episode: "The Rough Patch" |
| 2010–2014 | Boardwalk Empire | Lucky Luciano | Main Cast |
| 2019 | The Passage | Clark Richards | |
| 2021 | Pacific Rim: The Black | Joel | Animated series; voice role |
| Money, Explained | Scam Artist | docuseries; Episode: "Get Rich Quick" | |
| 2022–present | Tulsa King | Vince Antonacci | Main role[9] |
| 2024 | Batman: Caped Crusader | Tony Zito | Voice role |
A native of Queens, Mr. Piazza, 38...
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