Matthew Chandler Fox (born July 14, 1966) is an American actor and former model. His first major role was playing older brother and family patriarch Charlie Salinger on Party of Five in the 1990s, co-starring with Scott Wolf, Neve Campbell, Jennifer Love Hewitt, and Lacey Chabert. He is also known for his role as Dr. Jack Shephard on the ABC drama series Lost.
In the early 1990s, he appeared in a number of television ads, such as: 3 Musketeers.
One of Matthew’s very first attempts at acting was in a student film. The film can be viewed here.At the age of 25, Fox made his debut on an episode of Wings. That same year, he also starred on a short-lived dramatic series, Freshman Dorm. Still not a familiar face on the small screen, he continued to be cast in supporting roles, including the role of Charlie in the CBS Schoolbreak Special series, If I Die Before I Wake before he made his big screen debut in My Boyfriend’s Back(1993).
In 1994, Fox was cast in a co-starring role as the eldest of five siblings who lose both parents in a car accident on the 1990s teen drama Party of Five, as Charlie Salinger. In 1996, People Magazine named Fox one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the World. After Party of Five was cancelled following its sixth season, Fox starred in another TV series, Haunted, in 2002.
From September 2004 until May 2010, Fox played the role of the dedicated yet troubled surgeon,Dr. Jack Shephard, on Lost. He initially auditioned for the role of James “Sawyer” Ford. However, co-creator J. J. Abrams thought he would be better for the role of Jack, a role originally slated to be for the pilot episode only. Fox was nominated for a Golden Globe, won the 2005 Satellite Award, and shared the 2006 Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series, for his role in Lost.
On December 2, 2006, he hosted Saturday Night Live with musical guests Tenacious D. In 2006, Fox co-starred with Matthew McConaugheyin the sports drama, We Are Marshall. He also played a bit part in the action film Smokin’ Aces and starred in the 2008 thriller, Vantage Point. In May 2008, Fox starred as Racer X in the movie Speed Racer.
Fox has repeatedly stated that he is “done with television” after Lost.
In 2011, he starred in the stage play In a Forest, Dark and Deep with Olivia Williams in London’s West End.
