Joe Chrest
Joe Chrest

Joe Chrest

After serving in the United States Air Force where he was recognized for Cold War service and for expert marksmanship, Chrest earned a BFA Degree in Directing from Marshall University (West Virginia) and a MFA Degree from Louisiana State University. A veteran of over 100 screen roles, and over 60 plays and musicals, Chrest first appeared on the big screen as the malevolent bellhop, Ben, in Steven Soderbergh's King of the Hill (1993). He followed that with the widely acclaimed performance as Mr. Rodman in Soderbergh's "The Underneath". Nearly unrecognizable in many of his roles, Joe continues the chameleon-like range of these early performances to the widely different characters of recent films, from the steely quiet sharpshooter, Mitchell, in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2 (2015) to Jonah Hill's nerdy dad, David Schmidt, in 22 Jump Street (2014) to the despicable Southern aristocrat, James Eakins, in Free State of Jones (2016). Chrest performed onstage at, among other venues, the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. and the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles, working with Tony Award-winning directors, Gordon Davidson and Jerry Zaks, and London Theatre Award winner and Olivier Award nominee, Barry Kyle. He was a founding member of the regional theatre, Swine Palace, with RSC Director Emeritus Barry Kyle, and is the Founding Artistic Director of Ignition Film Repertory Company -- a company dedicated to nurturing and producing original works for the screen. Married to choreographer Christine Chrest, the couple has two children, Nicolas and Samantha.

Movies

Lisa Frankenstein
In 1989, a misunderstood teenager has a high school crush — who just happens to be a handsome corpse! After a set of playfully horrific circumstances bring him back to life, the two embark on a murderous journey to find love, happiness…and a few missing body parts along the way.
The Lovebirds
  • May 22, 2020
  • English
When a couple in the fast lane to splitsville accidentally careens into a murder, they take off on a wild race to find the killer and clear their names.
Looking for Alaska
  • Oct 17, 2019
  • English
A new arrival at a boarding school falls in love with a beguiling female student.
The Perfect Date
To earn money for college, a high schooler launches an app offering his services as a fake date. But when real feelings emerge, things get complicated.
The Dirt
In this unflinching biopic based on Mötley Crüe's best-selling book, four LA misfits navigate the monster highs and savage lows of music superstardom.
Cold Moon
  • Oct 05, 2017
  • English
Cold Moon takes place in tiny Babylon, Fla., where the granddaughter of Clark’s character is murdered by a mysterious assailant, her body sunk into the black waters of the Styx River — the river where her parents disappeared from their boat a decade earlier. Suspicion falls on a duplicitous banker and his wealthy father, played by Stewart and Lloyd.
Deepwater Horizon
A story set on the offshore drilling rig Deepwater Horizon, which exploded during April 2010 and created the worst oil spill in U.S. history.
22 Jump Street
  • Aug 28, 2014
  • OST
After making their way through high school (twice), big changes are in store for officers Schmidt and Jenko when they go deep undercover at a local college. But when Jenko meets a kindred spirit on the football team, and Schmidt infiltrates the bohemian art major scene, they begin to question their partnership. Now they don't have to just crack the case - they have to figure out if they can have a mature relationship. If these two overgrown adolescents can grow from freshmen into real men, college might be the best thing that ever happened to them.
The Lucky One
  • Apr 20, 2012
  • English
U.S. Marine Sergeant Logan Thibault returns from his third tour of duty in Iraq, with the one thing he credits with keeping him alive-a photograph he found of a woman he doesn't even know. Learning her name is Beth and where she lives, he shows up at her door, and ends up taking a job at her family-run local kennel. Despite her initial mistrust and the complications in her life, a romance develops between them, giving Logan hope that Beth could be much more than his good luck charm.