---
name: "Jeremy Shamos"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/jeremy-shamos"
fi1m_id: "jeremy-shamos"
imdb_id: "nm0787892"
tmdb_id: 155222
wikidata_id: "Q19665711"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "22 February 1970"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 5
average_fi1m_score: 73
average_as: "actor"
average_over: 5
updated: "2026-09-27T08:27:19.085839+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Jeremy Shamos

## Identity

Jeremy Shamos

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/jeremy-shamos
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** jeremy-shamos
- **IMDb ID:** nm0787892
- **TMDB ID:** 155222
- **Wikidata ID:** Q19665711
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeremy_Shamos, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q19665711, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0787892/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/155222

Actor. Born 22 February 1970 in Brooklyn, New York, USA.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 22 February 1970, Brooklyn, New York, USA
- **Active:** 2014–present
- **Average Fi1m score:** 73, as actor, over 5 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 2010s 76 (3), 2020s 68 (2)
- **Fi1m against the critics:** 73 to 69 across 5 titles
- **Score spread:** 2 at 80+, 2 at 60–79, 1 under 60
- **Lead roles:** 0 of 3 acting credits billed first or second
- **Genres:** Drama 4, Comedy 2, Music 1, Science Fiction 1, Thriller 1
- **Screen time:** 6 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $344m across 2 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeremy_Shamos, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q19665711, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0787892/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/155222

## Streaming the US now

- **HBO Max:** [*Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)*](https://film.one/film/birdman-or-the-unexpected-virtue-of-ignorance.md) (82)
- **Netflix:** [*Ma Rainey's Black Bottom*](https://film.one/film/ma-raineys-black-bottom.md) (69)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Fi1m on Jeremy Shamos

> Jeremy Shamos is good at making timid, self-important men worth watching. We rate the skill behind his supporting work, especially when he plays incompetence; the caveat is how often the screen gives him another version of the same assignment.

In *Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)* (2014), Jeremy Shamos plays Ralph, an inept stage actor. We laughed at Ralph’s bad acting, and at the care Shamos takes over getting it wrong. His theatre experience makes the casting a good joke before he has done much at all. Michael Keaton makes the film funny and unexpectedly painful, and the restless camerawork is another attraction. Shamos’s brief appearance gives the backstage comedy something smaller and agreeably foolish to attend to.

His collaborators include director Pam MacKinnon and playwright Bruce Norris, and his stage work includes dual roles in *Clybourne Park* (2012). Film and television appearances increased from the mid-2010s, while he continued to work on stage. We would be cautious about judging his abilities by the size of his film parts. The stage work is a useful reminder that brief appearances are only part of what he does.

Craig Kettleman, the milquetoast embezzler in *Better Call Saul* (2015–2022), fits his familiar casting as timid men, pedants and moral cowards. We like Shamos’s willingness to take on these unflattering people without demanding a larger share of the film or programme. That is valuable ensemble work, though repeated assignments of this kind can make an actor’s arrival predictable. There is a limit to how much another variation on weakness can tell us about him.

*Disclosure Day* (2026) gives him another supporting role, Claypool, in Spielberg’s alien conspiracy chase. We found it decent, with fluent staging and Emily Blunt a pleasure to watch, but the second-hand mystery and excessive length are substantial drawbacks. Shamos’s presence is no reason to set those objections aside, and we would not choose it as the introduction to his work. *Birdman* earns our recommendation for its performances, despite the screenplay’s insistence on explaining its ideas about fame. Start there, and pay attention to the man playing the actor who cannot act.

## Biography

Jeremy Shamos is an American actor. Born on 22 February 1970 in New York City, he was raised in Denver, Colorado, and holds an MFA from New York University.

Shamos works in theatre, film and television. On stage he has appeared in productions including *Clybourne Park*, for which he received a Tony Award nomination, *Meteor Shower* and *Here We Are*. His screen credits include the role of Ralph in *Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)* (2014), Craig Kettleman in *Better Call Saul* (2015–2022), and Claypool in *Disclosure Day* (2026). He is an Obie Award winner and has appeared in series such as *Only Murders in the Building* and *Nurse Jackie*.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com.*

## On Fi1m (5)

- *Disclosure Day* (2026), Fi1m 68, as Claypool — [page](https://film.one/film/disclosure-day.md)
- *Ma Rainey's Black Bottom* (2020), Fi1m 69, as Irvin — [page](https://film.one/film/ma-raineys-black-bottom.md)
- *Fosse/Verdon* (2019), Fi1m 58, as Joe Hardy — [page](https://film.one/tv/fosse-verdon.md)
- *Succession* (2018), Fi1m 88, as Mark Pierce — [page](https://film.one/tv/succession.md)
- *Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)* (2014), Fi1m 82, as Ralph — [page](https://film.one/film/birdman-or-the-unexpected-virtue-of-ignorance.md)

## Complete filmography (40)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *Disclosure Day* (2026), as Claypool — Fi1m 68, [page](https://film.one/film/disclosure-day.md)
- *American Greed: James McGill* (2022), as Craig Kettleman
- *The Gilded Age* (2022), series, as Mr. Gilbert
- *Only Murders in the Building* (2021), series, as Dickie Glenroy — Fi1m 76, [page](https://film.one/tv/only-murders-in-the-building.md)
- *Watch on the Rhine* (2021), as Teck
- *Ma Rainey's Black Bottom* (2020), as Irvin — Fi1m 69, [page](https://film.one/film/ma-raineys-black-bottom.md)
- *The Undoing* (2020), series, as Robert Connaver — Fi1m 61, [page](https://film.one/tv/the-undoing.md)
- *Evil* (2019), series, as Dr. Phillip Lynch-Giles
- *Prodigal Son* (2019), series, as David Saverstein
- *Bad Education* (2019), as Phil Metzger
- *Fosse/Verdon* (2019), series, as Joe Hardy — Fi1m 58, [page](https://film.one/tv/fosse-verdon.md)
- *Gone Hollywood* (2019), as Saul Resnick
- *New Amsterdam* (2018), series, as Niall Fincannon
- *Succession* (2018), series, as Mark Pierce — Fi1m 88, [page](https://film.one/tv/succession.md)
- *If I Forget* (2017), as Michael Fischer
- *The Big Sick* (2017), as Bob Dalavan
- *Breakable You* (2017), as Robert Gordon
- *No Pay, Nudity* (2016), as Veterinarian
- *5 Doctors* (2016), as Dr. Goldsmith
- *The Night Of* (2016), series, as Dermatologist — Fi1m 81, [page](https://film.one/tv/the-night-of.md)
- *Blindspot* (2015), series, as Casey Marco
- *Better Call Saul* (2015), series, as Craig Kettleman — Fi1m 84, [page](https://film.one/tv/better-call-saul.md)
- *Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)* (2014), as Ralph — Fi1m 82, [page](https://film.one/film/birdman-or-the-unexpected-virtue-of-ignorance.md)
- *The Affair* (2014), series, as Jeremy Kramos
- *The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Him* (2014), as Evangelist
- *Magic in the Moonlight* (2014), as George
- *The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Them* (2014), as Evangelist
- *The Blacklist* (2013), series, as James Maddox — Fi1m 63, [page](https://film.one/tv/the-blacklist.md)
- *Elementary* (2012), series, as Dr. Paul Sutherland
- *Unforgettable* (2011), series, as Adrian Proctor
- *The Good Wife* (2009), series, as Karl Dolan — Fi1m 84, [page](https://film.one/tv/the-good-wife.md)
- *The Rebound* (2009), as Bill
- *Nurse Jackie* (2009), series, as Johanes Karlsen — Fi1m 72, [page](https://film.one/tv/nurse-jackie.md)
- *Fringe* (2008), series, as The Artist — Fi1m 80, [page](https://film.one/tv/fringe.md)
- *Dedication* (2007), as Matthew
- *Damages* (2007), series, as Fiske's Associate — Fi1m 78, [page](https://film.one/tv/damages.md)
- *Law & Order: Criminal Intent* (2001), series, as John Eckhardt
- *Law & Order: Special Victims Unit* (1999), series, as Roger Pierce
- *Law & Order* (1990), series, as Carlton Kelly — Fi1m 72, [page](https://film.one/tv/law-and-order.md)
- *Kid Colter* (1984), as Justin Colter

## Awards

### Other awards — 1 won, 1 nominated

- Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play 2014: Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play (won)
- Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play 2012: Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play (nominated)

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/jeremy-shamos