Justin Chambers

Justin Willman Chambers (born July 11, 1970) is an American actor and former model. Born in Ohio, he went to Southeastern High School, South Charleston and later studied acting at New York's HB Studio. Chambers began modeling after being approached by a modeling scout in Paris. He went on to represent fashion brands including Calvin Klein, Armani, and Dolce & Gabbana.
Chambers began his acting career with a recurring role in soap opera Another World, and made his feature film debut with a supporting role in 1999's comedy drama Liberty Heights. His breakthrough role came in 2005 when he was cast as Dr. Alex Karev in the ABC medical drama series Grey's Anatomy. Chambers gained widespread recognition as the series progressed and the character became one of the most popular from the hit series, earning multiple nominations and the 2017 Best TV Network Drama Actor at the People's Choice Awards as well as nominations for the Screen Actors Guild Award.
== Early life ==
Chambers was born in Springfield, Ohio, on July 11, 1970[1] to Pamela Sue (Willman) and John William Eugene Chambers II, who were both deputy sheriffs.[1][2] Chambers was brought up in Springfield and growing up he aspired to be a dentist. He has a fraternal twin brother, Jason; one older brother, John Jr. (Chip); and two older sisters, Mia and Susan. Chambers and his twin brother were hospitalized often as children due to frequent bouts of pneumonia.[3] He attended Southeastern High School in South Charleston, Ohio, and later moved to New York, where he studied for four years at HB Studio and Ron Stetson Studios.[4]
== Career ==
Chambers was discovered by a modelling scout on the Metro and went on to star in ad campaigns for Calvin Klein's fragrance range. He worked throughout Europe, Japan, and the United States for Calvin Klein, Armani, and Dolce & Gabbana.[5] After deciding on an acting career, he moved to New York City in the early 1990s, where he studied at the HB Studio.[6] Studios and Ron Stetson Studios for four years. His first major acting role came in the music video "Ants Marching" by Dave Matthews Band in 1995. He went on to land a few television roles, including recurring role in soap opera Another World as Nicholas Hudson, and New York Undercover. In 1998, he was cast as series regular in the short-lived CBS primetime soap opera Four Corners. Chambers also appeared in several television movies, such as Harvest of Fire, Rose Hill, and Seasons of Love.
Chambers starred in several movies, notably Liberty Heights (1999, as Trey, alongside Adrien Brody),The Wedding Planner (2001, as Massimo, alongside Jennifer Lopez), The Musketeer (2001), Southern Belles(2005), The Zodiac (2005), and the HBO original movie Hysterical Blindness (2002). In 2003, Chambers was cast as one of the leads in the CBS crime drama Cold Case but left after appearing in only four episodes.
In August 2004, Chambers was cast as surgical intern Alex Karev in Shonda Rhimes's medical drama series Grey's Anatomy, opposite Ellen Pompeo, Sandra Oh, Katherine Heigl, and T. R. Knight.[7] In 2006, along with other cast members, he was awarded a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series.[6] In 2009, he also guest-starred on the Grey's Anatomy spin-off, Private Practice, for the Grey's Anatomy/Private Practice crossover event.[8]
== Personal life ==
In 1993, he married Keisha Chambers, a former model agency booker. The two met while Chambers was working for ad campaigns for Calvin Klein and Keisha was working at a modeling agency.[9] They have five children together,[5] Isabella (b. December 1994), twins Maya and Kaila (b. June 1997), Eva (b. March 1999) and Jackson (b. January 2002). They have adopted two rescue dogs and own a beagle.[9][10]
Chambers is involved with the nonprofit Pentecostal Christian Church mission Dream Center of Los Angeles.[10] In late January 2008, he revealed that he suffered from a biological sleep disorder, and had checked himself into Los Angeles's UCLA Medical Center to treat exhaustion after a period of only two hours of sleep each week.[11] Chambers follows a healthy lifestyle and practices hot yoga.[10]
== Filmography ==
=== Film ===
Year	Title 	Role 	Notes
1999	Liberty Heights 	Trey Tobelseted 	
2001	The Wedding Planner 	Massimo Lenzetti 	
2001	The Musketeer 	D'Artagnan 	
2002	Leo 	Ryan Eames 	
2003	For Which It Stands 	German Soldier 	Short film
2005	Southern Belles 	Rhett Butler 	
2005	The Zodiac 	Inspector Matt Parish 	
2008	Lakeview Terrace 	Donnie Eaton 	
2010	The Happiest Man Alive 	Sherman 	Short film
2013	Broken City 	Ryan Blake 	
2013	Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox	The Flash / Barry Allen	Direct-to-video
=== Television ===
Year 	Title 	Role 	Notes
1995 	Another World 	Nicholas 'Nick' Hudson #1	Episode: "#1.7922"
1996 	New York Undercover 	Officer Nick Caso 	Episode: "Unis"
1996 	Harvest of Fire 	George 	Television movie
1996 	Swift Justice 	Rick 	Episode: "Stones"
1997 	Rose Hill 	Cole Clayborne 	Television movie
1998 	Four Corners 	Caleb Haskell 	2 episodes
1999 	Seasons of Love 	Adult Hocking 	Television movie
2002 	Hysterical Blindness	Rick 	Television movie
2003 	Cold Case 	Chris Lassing 	3 episodes
2004 	The Secret Service 	Charles Brody 	Unsold TV pilot
2005–present	Grey's Anatomy 	Dr. Alex Karev 	Main role
2009 	Private Practice 	Dr. Alex Karev 	Episode: "Ex-Life"
== Awards and nominations ==
Year	Association 	Category 	Work 	Result
2005	Teen Choice Awards 	Choice TV Breakout Performance 	Grey's Anatomy	Nominated
2006	Screen Actors Guild 	Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series (Shared with cast)	Grey's Anatomy	Nominated
2006	Gold Derby Awards 	Ensemble of the Year (Shared with cast) 	Grey's Anatomy	Nominated
2006	Satellite Awards 	Best Ensemble in Television (Shared with cast) 	Grey's Anatomy	Won
2007	Gold Derby Awards 	Ensemble of the Year (Shared with cast) 	Grey's Anatomy	Nominated
2007	Screen Actors Guild 	Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series (Shared with cast)	Grey's Anatomy	Won
2007	Golden Nymph Award 	Outstanding Actor - Drama Series 	Grey's Anatomy	Nominated
2008	Screen Actors Guild 	Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series (Shared with cast)	Grey's Anatomy	Nominated
2008	Prism Awards 	Performance in a Drama Series Episode 	Grey's Anatomy	Nominated
2009	Prism Awards 	Performance in a Drama Multi-Episode Storyline 	Grey's Anatomy	Nominated
2014	Prism Awards 	Male Performance in a Drama Series Multi-Episode Storyline 	Grey's Anatomy	Won
2015	People's Choice Awards	Favorite Dramatic TV Actor 	Grey's Anatomy	Nominated
2016	People's Choice Awards	Favorite Dramatic TV Actor 	Grey's Anatomy	Nominated
2017	People's Choice Awards	Favorite Dramatic TV Actor 	Grey's Anatomy	Won
2018	People's Choice Awards	The Male TV Star of 2018 	Grey's Anatomy	Pending