Wes Chatham (born October 11, 1978) is an American actor. He has appeared in films such as In the Valley of Elah, W., The Help, and The Philly Kid, and played Castor in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 and Part 2.[1] Between 2015 and 2022, he starred as Amos Burton in The Expanse.

Wes Chatham
Chatham at the 2024 WonderCon
Born (1978-10-11) October 11, 1978 (age 46)
Atlanta, Georgia, United States
OccupationActor
Years active2003–present
Spouse
(m. 2012)
Children2
Military career
Allegiance United States
Service / branch United States Navy
Years of service1997–2001
Rank Petty Officer Third Class (E-4)
Unit USS Essex (LHD-2)
Websiteofficialweschatham.com

Early life

edit

Chatham was born on October 11, 1978 in Atlanta.[2][3] At the age of 7, he got his first acting job in Tide commercials.[3]

After graduating from high school, Chatham joined the U.S. Navy in the rating of Aviation Boatswain's Mate. He worked as an aviation firefighter on the flight deck of the USS Essex, working in crash and salvage for four years, reaching the rank of Petty Officer Third Class.[4]

Acting career

edit

Chatham's break into acting came just three months before his tour was finished when Denzel Washington chose his ship to shoot the movie Antwone Fisher. Chatham was amongst those selected by casting director Robi Reed while Reed was searching for authentic-looking military personnel for the movie. This was Chatham's first movie-making experience, which led to further pursuit of his lifelong dream of acting. Following Antwone Fisher, Reed convinced Chatham to move to Hollywood and shortly thereafter cast him in his first series regular role on Showtime's Barbershop.

Chatham gained further attention when Paul Haggis cast him alongside Tommy Lee Jones as Corporal Steve Penning in In the Valley of Elah. In 2009, Chatham went on to work with Oliver Stone in W. as Frank Benedict, George W's fraternity brother. The following year, Chatham landed another series regular role on the hit CBS TV show The Unit. Chatham was cast as new unit team member Sergeant Sam McBride (aka Whiplash), working with David Mamet and Shawn Ryan. Chatham also starred as Brian Danielson in Brett Simmons’ Husk (2011).

Chatham portrayed Carlton Phelan, the brother of Emma Stone's character, in the 2011 film The Help. The cast won a 2012 Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture.[5] In 2012, Chatham landed his first title role in Joel Silver's The Philly Kid. A fan of mixed martial arts, Chatham dove into the character of Dillion McGwire, performing all of his own stunts.[2] The film debuted in theaters May 2012. Following The Philly Kid, Chatham starred in This Thing With Sarah, which was accepted to the San Diego Film Festival in October 2013.[6] In 2013 Chatham wrapped two studio films, Broken Horses (2013) and The Town That Dreaded Sundown (2014).

Between 2015 and 2022, Chatham starred as Amos Burton in the Amazon Prime Video TV series The Expanse.[7]

Personal life

edit

Chatham is married to TV personality Jenn Brown.[8] Together they have two sons, John Nash, born in 2014, and Rhett Jameson, born in 2016.[9][10] Chatham missed the birth of Nash, as he was filming episode 2 of The Expanse and his son was born while Chatham was in the air, flying back from Toronto, where they filmed.[11]

Filmography

edit
Film
Year Title Role Notes
2003 The Fighting Temptations Cashier
2007 In the Valley of Elah Corporal Steve Penning
2008 W. Fraternity Enforcer
2011 Husk Brian
2011 The Help Carlton Phelan
2012 The Philly Kid Dillon "The Philly Kid" McGuire
2013 Baby Bleed Daddy Short film
2014 This Thing with Sarah Ethan
2014 The Town That Dreaded Sundown Corporal Danny Torrens
2014 The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 Castor
2015 Broken Horses "Ace"
2015 The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 Castor
2016 All I See is You Daniel
2018 Escape Plan 2: Hades Jaspar Kimbral
2020 Tenet SWAT 3
2023 Squealer Jack
Television
Year Title Role Notes
2005–2006 Barbershop Isaac 10 Episodes, as John Wesley Chatham[12]
2005 Sleeper Cell Frat Boy Episode: "Al-Faitha", as John Wesley Chatham
2009 The Unit Staff Sergeant Sam McBride 8 Episodes
2012 Political Animals Gunner Cox Episode: "Lost Boys"
2012 The Mentalist Vince Episode: "Cherry Picked"
2014–2017 Hand of God Shane Caldwell 2 Episodes
2015–2022 The Expanse Amos Burton Series Regular
2017 The Night Shift Clark Episode: "Keep the Faith"
2023 NCIS: Hawaiʻi Brother Ellis Kane Episode: "Shields Up"
2023 Ahsoka Captain Enoch 3 episodes
Web
Year Title Role Notes
2013 Armed Response Blake Morgan 4 episodes

References

edit
  1. ^ Ford, Rebecca (September 23, 2013). "'Hunger Games: Mockingjay' Adds Wes Chatham". The Hollywood Reporter.
  2. ^ a b "Wes Chatham - Bio". officialweschatham.com.
  3. ^ a b DeYoung, Bill (2009-04-12). "Savannah actor Wes Chatham at home with 'The Unit'". Savannah Morning News. Archived from the original on 2024-04-18. Retrieved 2024-04-18.
  4. ^ "'The Expanse' Star Wes Chatham Dishes On How He Got Into Acting". www.cheatsheet.com. February 16, 2021.
  5. ^ THR Staff (29 January 2012). "SAG Awards 2012: The Winners List". The Hollywood Reporter.
  6. ^ "This Thing With Sarah". thisthingwithsarah.com.
  7. ^ Petski, Denise (October 29, 2014). "Dominique Tipper, Wes Chatham, More, Round Out The Expanse". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved January 5, 2015.
  8. ^ McIntyre, Jason (September 28, 2011). "ESPN's Jenn Brown is Engaged to Actor Wes Chatham". The Big Lead.
  9. ^ "Wes Chatham and Jenn Brown Introduce Son John Nash". People. February 2, 2015. Retrieved April 17, 2018.
  10. ^ "Wes Chatham and Jenn Brown Welcome Son Rhett Jameson". People. July 1, 2016. Retrieved April 17, 2018.
  11. ^ Franck, Ty; Chatham, Wes (February 24, 2021). "Ep 003 - Space Will Kill You & The Expanse S1E2". Ty & That Guy. 14:18 minutes in. Retrieved February 27, 2021 – via YouTube.
  12. ^ Gates, Anita (2005-08-13). "They Cut Heads (Those Wacky Barbers of Showtime)". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2015-05-29. Retrieved 2024-04-18.
edit