Famous actor with the character of Joey in "Friends": Who is Matt LeBlanc?

His full name is Matthew Steven LeBlanc, he was born on July 25, 1967, in Newton, Massachusetts. He was born to his mother, Patricia, an office manager of Italian descent, and his father, Paul LeBlanc, a mechanic of French-Canadian descent. LeBlanc attended and graduated from Newton North High School, enrolled at Boston's Wentworth Institute of Technology and dropped out a year later.

For LeBlanc, who had no interest in acting as a child, his passion for motorcycles was more prominent. LeBlanc, who got his first motorcycle at the age of 8, started to appear in amateur races in the hope of becoming a professional. However, he gave up this passion after his mother did not want to. LeBlanc, who moved to New York at the age of 17 to pursue a career in modeling, was unable to continue as she was not tall enough to be a model. He started his acting career by being signed by his manager after a woman invited him to audition. Later, he appeared in many television and film roles.

LeBlanc first appeared in commercials for brands such as Heinz Ketchup, Levi's, Coca-Cola, Doritos. The following year, he appeared as Chuck Bender in the CBS drama television series "TV 101". In the following years, he played Vinnie Verducci in the television sitcom "Married... with Children" on Fox. He also guest-starred in the first season of the erotic drama series "Red Shoe Diaries" anthology on the Showtime cable network.

Later, he played the role of Vinnie Verducci in the TV series "Married ... with Children" on the Fox sitcoms "Top of the Heap"(1991) and "Vinnie & Bobby"(1992). Meanwhile, he appeared in two music videos of the rock band Bon Jovi, "Miracle" and "Say It Isn't So". He also appeared in the video for singer Alanis Morissette's song "Walk Away" and singer Bob Seger's single "Night Moves".

In 1994, he took the lead role as Joey Tribbiani in the NBC television sitcom "Friends" created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman. Playing his character for 10 seasons, LeBlanc portrayed the series alongside Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matthew Perry and David Schwimmer. The series, which has received great acclaim and praise since its broadcast, has become one of the most popular television shows of all time. Over its 10 seasons, it was nominated for 62 Primetime Emmy Awards. In addition, he continued to make his name known by being on the best lists of many magazines and newspapers.

His performance earned him three Primetime Emmy Award nominations, three Golden Globe nominations, and a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination. He played the same role in the sitcom "Joey", a spin-off of Friends. Meanwhile, he acted as Anthony Manetti in the detective film "Lookin' Italian"(1994) directed by Guy Magar.

In 1996, he took the lead role in the sports comedy "Ed" directed by Bill Couturié. The movie was a huge failure at both the box office and critically. Later, he starred in the science fiction adventure movie "Lost in Space" directed by Stephen Hopkins. The film, which grossed moderately at the box office, received mixed and negative reviews.

In the following years, he appeared in the role of Jason Gibbons in the McG-directed action comedy film "Charlie's Angels". A healthy success at the box office, the film was met with mixed and positive reviews from critics. In 2001, he got a lead role as Captain Steven O'Rourke in the action comedy war movie "All the Queen's Men" directed by Stefan Ruzowitzky. In 2003, he played the same role in the sequel "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle" action comedy. The movie, which hit number one at the box office in its week of release, was a healthy commercial success around the world. In addition, it received mixed reviews with critical praise.

Deciding to take a break from acting for a year, LeBlanc stayed away from the screens for five years. In 2011, he played a satirical version of himself in the sitcom "Episodes" created by David Crane and Jeffrey Klarik. His performance earned him nominations for a Golden Globe Award and four Primetime Emmy Awards. In 2014, he appeared in the comedy film "Lovesick" directed by Luke Matheny, with Ali Larter, Chevy Chase, and Adam Rodriguez. The film was met with generally negative reviews.

The following year, he appeared in the second episode of the eighteenth series of the BBC auto magazine "Top Gear" and the factual television show. In the following years, he signed a two-year contract to co-host the same automobile magazine and factual television show. Having held the same position for three years, LeBlanc retired from the program in May 2018. He also starred in the television sitcom "Man with a Plan" created by Jackie and Jeff Filgo from 2016 to 2020.

In 2021, he appeared in the same role in the reunion special of the television sitcom 'Friends' called "Friends: The Reunion".

Private life

In 1997, LeBlanc met model Melissa McKnight. The couple got married in May 2003. McKnight was previously married and had two children. The couple has a daughter, born in 2004, and divorced in October 2006. At the same time, LeBlanc met actress Andrea Anders in 2004. The couple announced their relationship in 2006, after LeBlanc's marriage ended. The couple announced their separation in 2015.

LeBlanc, who has a great interest in cars, also worked as a carpenter before starting his acting career.