It would be difficult to go to the movies or turn on the TV right now and not see Chris Messina. He will be in six films by the end of the year, including Ruby Sparks and Celeste and Jesse Forever, and is currently on Damages, The Newsroom, and the upcoming The Mindy Project.
Messina admits he’s been fortunate. “It’s been a lucky year or two,” he said. “It hasn’t always quite been like this. It’s a really nice time—a moment I dreamed of when I was a kid or even just started acting. ‘Maybe it’ll be like this one day!’ It has taken some time to get here so it’s really nice.”
The actor was actually hand-picked for the part of Paul in Celeste and Jesse Forever by the writer/lead Rashida Jones (Parks and Recreation). “It’s always flattering when somebody you really respect and like wants you to be involved in their project—let alone writes a part with your voice in mind,” he told Huffington Post.
“That’s always nice. But whenever you don’t have to fight to get a part—at least this is my experience—and it’s given to you, the first day or so on set, you’re wondering if they’re thinking, ‘Why did we write it for Messina?’ Or, ‘He’s not doing it the way we thought.’ Or, even when it’s not written for you, ‘Why did we just give him this role, we should have had him read.’ When you read for a part, you get to the set and you’re like, ‘They’ve seen me do it, I’ve proven this to them, I’ve won the job.’ Then you still have a ton of other insecurities. But sometimes when they don’t see you do it, you get there and you’re like, ‘I hope I’m doing OK…’”
