Robert Clark Gregg Jr. (born April 2, 1962) is an American actor, director, and screenwriter. He portrayed Phil Coulson in films and television series set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe from 2008 to 2024, and voiced Coulson in an animated television series and video games.
Gregg played the role of FBI Special Agent Mike Casper on the NBC political drama series The West Wing (2001–2004) and as Richard, the ex-husband of Christine Campbell, in the CBS sitcom The New Adventures of Old Christine (2006–2010).
He wrote the horror film What Lies Beneath (2000), and wrote and directed the black comedy Choke (2008) and the comedy-drama Trust Me (2013). He appeared in the films The Adventures of Sebastian Cole (1998), One Hour Photo (2002), We Were Soldiers (2002), In Good Company (2004), When a Stranger Calls (2006), 500 Days of Summer (2009), Much Ado About Nothing (2012), The To Do List (2013), Labor Day (2013), Live by Night (2016) and Being the Ricardos (2021).
Early life Gregg was born April 2, 1962, in Boston, Massachusetts,"Clark Gregg". Hollywood.com; retrieved January 13, 2012. the son of Mary Layne (née Shine) and Robert Clark Gregg Sr., an Episcopal priest and Stanford University professor. His family relocated frequently and he had lived in seven cities by the time he was 17. He attended high school in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, where his father was a professor at nearby Duke University.
He attended Ohio Wesleyan University for two years before dropping out and moving to Manhattan. He worked various jobs, such as being a bar back, a security guard at the Guggenheim Museum, and a parking valet at a restaurant. He enrolled at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, where he studied drama and English, and graduated in 1986.
Career
Gregg was a founding member, and later artistic director, of the off-Broadway Atlantic Theater Company, which formed in 1983. Gregg has been featured in a number of supporting roles in films, such as Lovely & Amazing, The Human Stain, and In Good Company, and a number of guest spots on TV series, such as Will & Grace, Sports Night, Sex and the City and The West Wing. He wrote the screenplay for the 2000 thriller What Lies Beneath.
He is the director and screenwriter of the 2008 film Choke, based on the Chuck Palahniuk novel of the same name, starring Sam Rockwell. Gregg consulted his father, a retired religion professor at Stanford, for the quotation from Saint Paul's letter to the Galatians which Gregg used in Choke.DVD commentary for Choke, 2008; and Robert C. Gregg , Stanford Department of Classics bio page. Retrieved January 3, 2012. Gregg's father is the former chaplain at Stanford Memorial Church.
In 2008, Gregg appeared in the film Iron Man as S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Phil Coulson. In 2010, he reprised his role as Agent Coulson for Iron Man 2. Gregg had since signed up for a multiple film deal as the character with Marvel Studios. In 2011, he returned again as Coulson for Thor. Gregg noted his being a part of the expanding Marvel Cinematic Universe as being very exciting; "Agent Coulson was one of the guys who wasn't really in the comic books, and he was a very kind of small role in Iron Man," he said, "and I was just very lucky that they chose to expand that character and chose to put him more into the universe of it. It's really a blast!" Following on from his appearance in Thor, he again reprised his role in The Avengers. Gregg stars in a series of short films, Marvel One-Shots, that center around his character and can be seen on the Blu-ray releases of the films.
In October 2010, Gregg was part of the cast of a staged reading of Larry Kramer's The Normal Heart alongside Dylan Walsh, Lisa Kudrow, and Tate Donovan, presented in Los Angeles on the occasion of the play's 25th anniversary (and preceding the play's 2011 Broadway premiere, which retained elements of this staged reading); the reading was directed by his then-father-in-law, Joel Grey.
From 2013 to 2020, Gregg portrayed Agent Phil Coulson in the ABC television superhero drama series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., set within the MCU, alongside Ming-Na Wen and Chloe Bennet. He directed episodes in seasons five and six.
On April 20, 2013, Trust Me, a film written, produced, and directed by Gregg, premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. The film found limited release in the United States in June 2014.
Gregg reprised his role as Agent Coulson in the 2019 superhero film Captain Marvel and the animated series What If...?, episodes "What If... the World Lost Its Mightiest Heroes?" and "What If... Thor Were an Only Child?", released in 2021.
In 2022, he joined the TNT series Snowpiercer for its fourth and final season. However, the series was cancelled by the network before it could air there. The fourth season was picked up by AMC, and aired in 2024.
Personal life
Gregg married actress Jennifer Grey on July 21, 2001; the couple co-starred in the Lifetime TV movie The Road to Christmas. They have a daughter, born December 3, 2001."Briefly". USA Today. December 6, 2001, p. LIFE, 5D Gregg and Grey were two of the demonstrators at the 2017 Women's March held on January 21, 2017, in Washington, D.C. On July 3, 2020, Grey and Gregg announced that they had separated amicably on January 18, 2020, and were in the process of divorcing. Their divorce ruling was issued in November, and became finalized on February 16, 2021.
Gregg is a sober alcoholic, and describes himself as a member of a Jewish family (his former wife's faith).Reddit AMA (June 5, 2014). "I Am Clark Gregg", reddit.com; accessed June 6, 2014.
He has a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu.Martin, Damon (December 18, 2013). "'Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.' star Clark Gregg earns his brown belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu" , Fox Sports. Accessed May 9, 2022
Gregg is a cousin of New York State government official and former New York City mayoral candidate Kathryn Garcia.
Filmography Film Year Title RoleNotes 1988 Things Change Stage Manager 1989 Fat Man and Little Boy Douglas Panton 1991 Lana in Love Marty1994 Ride Me Jake Shank I Love Trouble Darryl Beekman Jr. Clear and Present Danger Staff Sergeant1995 The Usual Suspects Dr. Ridgly Walters Above Suspicion Randy1997 The Spanish Prisoner FBI Sniper The Last Time I Committed Suicide Cop No. 1 Six Ways to Sunday Benjamin Taft 1998 The Adventures of Sebastian Cole Hank / Henrietta Rossi 1999 Magnolia WDKK Floor Director2000 State and Main Doug Mackenzie What Lies Beneath Screenwriter2001 A.I. Artificial Intelligence Supernerd Lovely & Amazing Bill2002 One Hour Photo Det. Paul Outerbridge We Were Soldiers Capt. Tom Metsker2003 Northfork Mr. Hadfield Uncredited 11:14 Officer Hanna The Human Stain Nelson Primus2004 Spartan Miller In Enemy Hands Executive Officer Teddy Goodman In Good Company Mark Steckle2006 When a Stranger Calls Ben Johnson Bickford Shmeckler's Cool Ideas Publisher Hoot Chuck Muckle2007 In the Land of Women Nelson Hardwicke The Air I Breathe Henry2008 Choke Lord High Charlie Also screenwriter and director Iron Man Agent Phil Coulson 2009 500 Days of Summer Vance 2010 Iron Man 2Agent Phil Coulson2011 Thor Mr. Popper's Penguins Nat Jones The ConsultantAgent Phil CoulsonShort film A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Thor's Hammer2012 The Avengers Much Ado About Nothing Leonato Brightest Star Mr. Markovic2013 The To Do List Judge George Klark Labor Day Gerald Wheeler Trust Me Howard Holloway Also screenwriter, producer, and director 2014 Very Good Girls Edward Berger 2015 Thrilling Adventure Hour Live Mason Grantz 2016 Live by Night Chief Inspector Calvin Bordurant 2018 Spinning Man Paul 2019 Captain Marvel Agent Phil Coulson 2020 Run Sweetheart Run James R. Fuller2021 Moxie John Being the Ricardos Howard Wenke 2022 The Anthrax Attacks: In the Shadow of 9/11 Bruce Edwards Ivins Documentary 2024 Thelma Alan2025 G20 Vice President Harold Mosely War of the Worlds Donald Briggs
Television YearTitleRoleNotes 1988 Lip Service Stage Manager Television film1991 Law & Order Patrick Dunne Episode: "Life Choice" Shannon's Deal Mercer 2 episodes A Woman Named Jackie Ken O'Donnell Miniseries 1993 The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles Dickinson Episode: "Princeton, February 1916" 1994 The George Carlin Show Dad Episode: "George Does A Bad Thing"1995 Tyson Kevin Rooney Television film The Commish Tom Cannon 2 episodes Central Park West Manager Episode: "Behind Your Back" 1996 Touched by an Angel Don Dudley Episode: "Lost and Found"2000 Sports Night The Stranger / Calvin Trager 2 episodes Sex and the City Harris Bragen Episode: "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" The Practice Julie McGrath's Brother Episode: "Brother's Keepers" 2001–2004 The West Wing FBI Special Agent Michael Casper 8 episodes2002 My Sister's Keeper Harvey Television film Live from Baghdad Eason Jordan Television film 2003 Will & Grace Cam Episode: "May Divorce Be with You" 2004 The Shield William Faulks 2 episodes 2005 CSI: NY D.A. Allen McShane Episode: "The Fall" 2006 The Road to Christmas Tom Pullman Television film 2006–2010 The New Adventures of Old Christine Richard Campbell Main role 2012–2017 Ultimate Spider-Man Phil Coulson, Nanny Bots Voice; main cast; 29 episodes A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information. 2013 Comedy Bang! Bang! Himself Episode: "Clark Gregg Wears a Navy Blazer & White Collared Shirt" 2013–2020 Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Phil Coulson / Pachakutiq / Sarge Main role; 136 episodesAlso directed episodes: "Fun & Games" and "Missing Pieces" 2015 Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Double Agent Himself Episode: "The Mastermind Is Revealed"2016 Lip Sync Battle Episode: "Clark Gregg vs. Hayley Atwell" BattleBots Episode: "The Gears Awaken" Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Academy 2 episodes Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Slingshot Phil Coulson Episode: "Vendetta" 2019 SMILF Mr. Daddy Episode: "Single Mom is Losing Faith" 2020 The Conners Ron 2 episodes 2021; 2024 What If...? Phil Coulson Voice, 3 episodes2023 Florida Man Deputy Sheriff Ketcher Miniseries; 7 episodes How I Met Your Father Nick Foster 3 episodes Painkiller Arthur Sackler Miniseries; 6 episodes 2024, 2026 Criminal Minds: Evolution FBI Director Ray Madison Recurring role; season 17 & season 192024 Will Trent Arthur Highsmith Episode: "Me Llamo Will Trent" Snowpiercer Admiral Anton Milius Main role (season 4)2025 Zero Day Robert Lyndon Recurring role Murderbot Arletty (playing Lieutenant Kulleruu) Recurring role The ArtistHarry Kendall Thaw6 episodes2026Big City GreensGeneralVoice; Episode: "Fitness Test"
Video games Year Title Voice role Notes2013 Lego Marvel Super HeroesPhil Coulson Marvel Heroes 2016 Lego Marvel's Avengers
Theater Year Title Role Venue 1988 Boys' Life Jack Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater, Off-Broadway 1989 A Few Good Men Lt. Jack Ross Music Box Theatre, Broadway 1991 Unidentified Human Remains and the True Nature of LoveBernieOrpheum Theatre, Off-Broadway 1991 The Old BoyBudPlaywrights Horizons, Off-Broadway 1992 Nothing SacredBazarovLinda Gross Theater, Off-Broadway 1997 MojoBabyLinda Gross Theater, Off-Broadway 2000 Sexual Perversity in ChicagoBernardLinda Gross Theater, Off-Broadway 2003 The Night HeronGriffinLinda Gross Theater, Off-Broadway 2011 Happy HourKoch, BuckPeter Norton Space, Off-Broadway 2025 Good Night, and Good LuckDon HollenbeckWinter Garden Theatre, Broadway 2026 Romeo & Juliet Lord Capulet Harold Pinter Theatre, West End
Awards and nominations