# Doug Savant

Douglas Peter Savant (born June 21, 1964) is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Matt Fielding in the Fox prime time soap opera Melrose Place (1992–97), Tom Scavo in ABC comedy-drama Desperate Housewives (2004–12), and as Sgt. O'Neal in Godzilla (1998).

## Early life

Savant was born and raised in Burbank, California. He attended University of California, Los Angeles, but left before graduating to pursue his acting career.

## Career

Savant began his career appearing in teen comedy films Secret Admirer and Teen Wolf in 1985, and the following year appeared in horror film Trick or Treat. From 1986 to 1987, he had a recurring role as a younger version of Mac McKenzie (played by Kevin Dobson) in the CBS prime time soap opera Knots Landing. He was paired with future Desperate Housewives co-star Nicollette Sheridan, who played a younger version of the Anne Matheson character portrayed by Michelle Phillips. In 1988, he co-starred in erotic thriller film Masquerade alongside Rob Lowe and Kim Cattrall
From 1992 to 1997, Savant starred as Matt Fielding in the Fox prime time soap opera Melrose Place, a role that was notable for being one of the first openly gay lead characters on a television series. However, his role was censored greatly by the network - notably a kiss between Matt and guest star Ty Miller during the season two finale was edited out at the last minute by FOX. Savant left the series after five seasons and, a year later, his character was killed off-screen in a car crash. In 1998, he appeared in monster film Godzilla playing Sgt. O'Neal, and the following years had guest-starring roles on The Outer Limits, Profiler, Firefly, JAG, Nip/Tuck, NYPD Blue, and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. In 2004, he had a four-episode arc on 24.
In 2004, Savant was cast as Tom Scavo in the ABC comedy-drama series, Desperate Housewives. In the first season (2004–05), Tom was originally credited as a recurring role throughout Season 1, but became credited as a series regular in Season 2. Married to Lynette Scavo (Felicity Huffman), he was out of town regularly on business. Viewer response to Savant and his character led the producers to contract him as a series regular from season two onwards, and Tom and Lynette were portrayed as the most stable couple on the series. The series ended in 2012, and the following years, Savant had guest-starring roles in a number of shows, including Hot in Cleveland, Criminal Minds, 9-1-1 and NCIS.

## Personal life

In May 1998, he married his Melrose Place co-star Laura Leighton. They have two children together: Jack (born October 10, 2000) and Lucy (born June 9, 2005). Savant also has two children from a previous marriage whom Leighton helped raise, Arianna (born January 17, 1992) and Madeline (born July 20, 1993).

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1984 | Swing Shift | Actor | |
| 1985 | Secret Admirer | Boy | |
| 1985 | Teen Wolf | Brad | |
| 1986 | Trick or Treat | Tim Hainey | |
| 1987 | The Hanoi Hilton | Ashby | |
| 1988 | Masquerade | Mike McGill | |
| 1989 | Paint It Black | Eric Hinsley | |
| 1990 | Red Surf | Attila | |
| 1990 | Shaking the Tree | Michael | |
| 1993 | Maniac Cop III: Badge of Silence | Dr. Peter Myerson | |
| 1998 | Godzilla | Sgt. O'Neal | |
| 1999 | First Daughter | Grant Coleman | |
| 2000 | Dropping Out | Doctor | |
| 2001 | The One | Cop | Uncredited |
| 2006 | All You've Got | Sam McDonald | |
| 2014 | April Rain | Special Agent Singleton | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1985 | Cagney & Lacey | Dwayne Patterson | Episode: "Violation" |
| 1986 | Hotel | Elliot Jessup | Episode: "Scapegoat" |
| 1986 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Joey Medwick | Episode: "Road Hog" |
| 1986–87 | Knots Landing | Young Mack Mackenzie | 7 episodes |
| 1987 | The Facts of Life | Dwayne | Episode: "A Winter's Tale" |
| 1987 | Stingray | Cdt. Thomas O'Conner | Episode: "Night Maneuvers" |
| 1988 | In the Heat of the Night | Scott LaPierre | 2 episodes |
| 1990 | China Beach | Richard | Episode: "The Thanks of a Grateful Nation" |
| 1990 | The Knife and Gun Club | Dr. Barrow | TV movie |
| 1990 | Jake and the Fatman | John Bronski | Episode: "God Bless the Child" |
| 1991 | Aftermath: A Test of Love | Jeff | TV movie |
| 1992 | Columbo | Detective Dennis Mulrooney | Episode: "No Time to Die" |
| 1992 | Bonnie & Clyde: The True Story | Deputy Sheriff Ted Hinton | TV movie |
| 1992–98 | Melrose Place | Matt Fielding | Series Regular 162 episodes |
| 1995 | Burke's Law | Chase Cobb | Episode: "Who Killed the World's Greatest Chef?" |
| 1995 | Fight for Justice: The Nancy Conn Story | Richard Mark Ellard | TV movie |
| 1996 | Terminal | Dr. Sean O'Grady | TV movie |
| 1998 | Love Boat: The Next Wave | Josh Walters | Episode: "Smooth Sailing" |
| 1998 | The Outer Limits | Kel | Episode: "The Hunt" |
| 1999 | Profiler | Toby Watson | Episode: "Inheritance" |
| 1999 | A Face to Kill For | Virgil | TV movie |
| 1999 | First Daughter | Grant Coleman | TV movie |
| 2000 | Harsh Realm | Sergeant Sommers | Episode: "Kein Ausgang" |
| 2000 | Godzilla: The Series | Trespasser #2 | Episode: "Area 51" |
| 2000 | First Target | Grant Coleman | TV movie |
| 2001 | That's Life | J.T.'s Cousin | Episode: "Or What's a Heaven For?" |
| 2001 | The District | Jeffrey Riverton | Episode: "To Serve and Protect" |
| 2001 | Family Law | Harold Raines | Episode: "Sacrifices" |
| 2002 | Firefly | Commander Harken | Episode: "Bushwhacked" |
| 2002 | JAG | Navy Seals Commander | Episode: "Dangerous Game" |
| 2002 | First Shot | Grant Coleman | TV movie |
| 2002 | According to Jim | Rick | Episode: "The Bachelor" |
| 2004 | 24 | Craig Phillips | 4 episodes |
| 2004 | The Guardian | Eric Kane | Episode: "Legacy" |
| 2004 | Faultline | Prof. Anthony McAllister | TV movie |
| 2004 | NYPD Blue | Jason Foster | Episode: "Chatty Chatty Bang Bang" |
| 2004 | NCIS: Naval Criminal Investigative Service | Father Larry Clannon | Episode: "A Weak Link" |
| 2004 | Nip/Tuck | Joel Gideon | Episode: "Joel Gideon" |
| 2004 | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Paul Brady | Episode: "Swap Meet" |
| 2004–12 | Desperate Housewives | Tom Scavo | Recurring role (season 1) Main role (seasons 2–8) 176 Episodes Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series, 2006 Nominated — Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series, 2007–2009 |
| 2008 | Playing for Keeps | Peter Marcheson | TV movie |
| 2012 | Hot in Cleveland | Scott | Episode: "Two Girls and a Rhino" |
| 2013 | Vegas | Mr. Binder | Episode: "Road Trip" |
| 2013 | Rizzoli & Isles | Judge Roger Thorson | Episode: "Judge, Jury & Executioner" |
| 2013 | Drop Dead Diva | Jacob Joardi | Episode: "Jane's Secret Revealed" |
| 2013 | Criminal Minds | Malcolm Taffert | Episode: "The Caller" |
| 2014 | Hawaii Five-0 | Robert Young | Episode: "Wawahi moeʻuhane"- Broken Dreams |
| 2015 | Scorpion | Wilson Adler | Episode: "Tech, Drugs, and Rock 'n Roll" |
| 2016 | The X-Files | Augustus Goldman | Episode: "Founder's Mutation" |
| 2016 | Castle | Trevor Nigel | Episode: "The G.D.S." |
| 2016 | Halt and Catch Fire | Mac Harpor | Episode: "One Way or Another" |
| 2016 | Pure Genius | Simon Monroe | Episode: "It’s Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider Silk Surgery" |
| 2016 | Notorious | Paul Weston | 2 episodes |
| 2017 | SEAL Team | Malcolm | Episode: "Borderlines" |
| 2018 | 9-1-1 | Matthew Clark | 2 episodes |
| 2018 | Lucifer | Forest Clay | Episode: "Quintessential Deckerstar" |
| 2018 | NCIS: New Orleans | Eric Barlow | 2 episodes |
| 2019 | NCIS | Brigadier General Daniel Kent | Episode: "Hail & Farewell" |
| 2020 | Dirty John | Martin Newsome | 2 episodes |
| 2020 | L.A.'s Finest | Richard Reeves | Episode: "Kangaroo Jack" |
| 2020 | S.W.A.T. | Mark | Episode: "Gunpowder Treason" |
| 2021 | Tell Me Your Secrets | Ed Jennings | 2 episodes |
| 2021 | The Rookie | Benjamin | Episode: "True Crime" |