Why Will Harper From The Boogeyman Looks So Familiar

The latest Stephen King adaptation "The Boogeyman" is a terrifying romp through psychological trauma and haunting presences. Following therapist Will Harper (Chris Messina) and his two daughters, Sadie (Sophie Thatcher) and Sawyer (Vivien Lyra Blair), "The Boogeyman" starts with the emotionally reeling family after the death of Will's wife and mother to his children. Unfortunately, the family's grieving (or lack thereof) is soon shattered by a seemingly otherworldly entity that invokes tremendous feelings of fear and terror. Needless to say, Will and his family have a lot to contend with in "The Boogeyman."

In an interview with GamesRadar+, Messina explained what drew him to "The Boogeyman" by saying, "The first meeting I had with Rob, he said, 'You can't have jump scares and screams from the audience unless you have characters that they care about.' That was initially why I wanted to do it, there were human beings in here and they were grieving, going through something. Yes, there's a scary monster, but 'The Boogeyman' is really inside of them — it's what they are not facing or dealing with." 

Upon watching "The Boogeyman," some audience members may find themselves wondering why Will looks so familiar. This is because Messina has had quite a varied career that has seen him act as a romantic interest, a prolific serial killer, and even attempt to wrangle the literal devil in an elevator. Here's why Messina looks so familiar.

According to IMDb, Chris Messina has well over 70 acting credits, with his first endeavor being that of a small part in the 1998 movie about Poker, "Rounders." From there, Messina continued to pop up in minor roles in movies and television shows, "The Siege," and "Law & Order." However, perhaps one of his first major roles was that of Ted Fairwell in the HBO's series, "Six Feet Under." Appearing in six episodes in 2005, Fairwell is the conservative lawyer boyfriend of Claire (Lauren Ambrose). Although their relationship lasts for a time, the coupling is put on hold when Claire moves to New York. However, they reignite their passions for each other after the death of Claire's mother, Ruth (Frances Conroy), and are seemingly together for the rest of their lives.

Speaking with the AV Club, Messina was asked what it was like to work with Conroy and the rest of the cast. "She's unbelievable," Messina said. "I haven't seen her in person in quite some time, but she had an elegance, simplicity, and joy in the way that she worked. She was always very inviting. When I was in 'Six Feet Under,' I was coming on at the end of the sixth season. These people — not just Frances, but Lauren Ambrose, Michael C. Hall, Peter Krause, Richard Jenkins, all of them — were all so welcoming."

Perhaps the next place that people may remember Chris Messina from is the 2010 film, "Devil." Crafted from a story by M. Night Shyamalan, "Devil" is a claustrophobic whodunit that sees four incredibly different people trapped in an elevator. This elevator refuses to move or be repaired by anybody, and those that attempt it usually meet a grisly fate. Considering this turn of events, Detective Bowden (Messina) is called to the scene, where he gets an ear full from a security guard about the literal devil being present in the building.

Though Bowden doesn't believe the security guard, events continue to unfold that see the trapped elevator riders killed one by one, which causes an increased level of volatility and paranoia for the survivors. As these killings unfold, Bowden slowly begins to believe that he is actually dealing with Satan, which becomes more apparent when one of the elevator riders is revealed to have an incredibly personal connection to Bowden. 

As Bowden, Messina gets a chance to flex his acting chops as his character deals not only with the case at the end, but with a tragic backstory that weighs heavy on his soul. This is probably one of the primary reasons why Bowden is the one that must contend with the Devil, and the film ends with a powerful message of forgiveness and contrition.

Shifting gears from playing detectives and lawyers, Chris Messina's next notable effort is in the 2011 television series, "Damages." This particular show is all about Patty Hewes (Glenn Close) and Ellen Parsons (Rose Bryne), two high-powered lawyers that have to contend with one particular issue or case each season. Messina makes his first appearance as Chris Sanchez during the premiere episode of Season 4, where it is established that Sanchez and Parsons are childhood friends. However, Sanchez isn't a lawyer like Parsons and instead is a veteran that gets entangled with a private security firm that engages in some fairly shady practices. In this manner, Sanchez aids Parsons in taking the said company down. Unfortunately, Sanchez bares some serious psychological trauma from combat operations, though Parsons is there for him and helps him with his processing. Later in the series, Sanchez returns the favor and helps Parsons deal with her own issues.

In an interview with Gold Derby, Messina explained how he got into character, saying that he deprived himself of sleep and drank Red Bulls to build his jitters. "I didn't have to act jittery — I was jittery and tired and kind of confused and emotional," Messina said. "I was really happy to go out with the show and that team of people. At that point, they had been on for three years, so they're a family... I remember when I first met [Rose Byrne], her just being so kind and inviting and really opened her arms to me joining this family."

Another notable appearance by Chris Messina is the 2012 HBO television series, "The Newsroom," which is all about a group of newscasters and business people who often cover topical events. As such, "The Newsroom" provides a fictional view of how these breaking developments are researched, edited, and brought to the general public for mass consumption. Although "The Newsroom" typically follows its newscasters, Messina actually plays the role of Reese Lansing, who is the president of Atlantis World News. This means that Will McAvoy (Jeff Daniels) often has to comply or capitulate to Reese's demands, which usually involve television ratings and viewership. Popping up in 14 episodes, Reese's first appearance is in Season 1, Episode 2.

Known predominantly for his cutthroat approach to news, Reese often makes suggestions that are shortsighted. For example, there are several times in "The Newsroom" where Reese thinks they should run with unconfirmed news in order to stay in the media cycle, which are often revealed to be completely false. In addition, Reese doesn't have much of a moral compass and has tapped people's phones in order to get the latest scoops. 

Speaking with TVLine, Messina was asked what his character would be up to if the show was still on, and he replied, "Reese probably would have been fired and arrested for harassment. There was one season in there where it looked like Reese was going to get arrested. I was kind of looking forward to that, seeing Reese behind bars, to see what would his life have been like in jail and Jane Fonda coming to visit me in jail."

Chris Messina doesn't always play dramatic roles, which is best represented by his recurring role in "The Mindy Project." Lending his talents to a staggering 90 episodes between 2012 and 2017, Messina plays Danny Castellano, one of the show's protagonists and love interest for Mindy Kuhel Lahiri (Mindy Kaling). As both Danny and Mindy are doctors, they often butt heads professionally, and the two have somewhat of a playful antagonism towards each other. This kind of behavior eventually results in some shared feelings of attraction, and the two end up dating and having a son together. While Danny and Mindy put this relationship on hold for a spell, they eventually end up back together and at the culmination of "The Mindy Project." Somewhat abrasive at the start of the show, Danny softens up as he gets closer with Mindy, though his self-assured nature and low-grade grumpiness persist throughout the series.

In an interview with TVLine, Messina was asked if he thinks he was playing Danny a little too mean or curmudgeonly. "Yeah. I don't think too mean," Messina said. "I've thought the opposite, like maybe I was getting too soft because there was a lot of stuff that was full of love, which was so fun to play and a nice side to see, but I wanted to make sure that the character that we started wasn't just thrown out the window. It's an interesting balance to try to be honest with the character and make sure that he's not so grumpy that nobody wants to watch him or listen to him."

People may also remember Chris Messina from the 2018 miniseries, "Sharp Objects." This eight-episode story focuses on Camille Parker (Amy Adams), a news reporter that suffers from terrible personal issues that see her committed to a psychiatric hospital before the events of the show. Returning home to Wind Gap, Missouri, Camille finds herself embroiled with the death of two locals, which soon leads her to interact with Detective Richard Willis (Messina). As the two grow closer over their mutual interest in the murders, they end up in a brief romantic entanglement, but this ends quickly due to Camille's adultery. However, Willis is still dedicated to uncovering the truth of the murders, which he believes will be a big notch in his career. Ultimately, Willis and Camille part ways, with Camille fully aware that she would never see Willis again due to the trauma of her past.

Discussing the events of "Sharp Objects" with Vulture, Messina was asked what makes Richard so obsessed with Camille. "Initially, it's that he's obviously not very welcome in the town, he's an outsider, and she has made herself an outsider," Messina said. "It starts with a bit of loneliness and this woman has a real understanding of how this town works. There is a bit of a manipulation on both of their parts. He's falling for her. He spends just as much time — or more — looking into who Camille is, what her story is, and the initial task at hand."

Chris Messina played the vicious murderer Victor Zsasz in the 2020 film, "Birds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn." Scarred and completely unhinged, Zsasz acts as an enforcer and assassin for Black Mask (Ewan McGregor). One of the most notable behaviors of Zsasz is that he will cut a tally mark on his body whenever he kills somebody, and as one can tell by looking at him in "Birds of Prey," Zsasz has killed countless people. Despite the fact that "Birds of Prey" takes place in the DC Comics franchise, Zsasz does not possess any kind of superpowers.

Speaking with ScreenRant, Messina was asked about how Zsasz is usually just a no-nonsense serial killer in the comics, and why Messina brought a sort of energy and depth to the character. "It was a beautiful script, and it was really fun, but there was something in the freedom he kept talking about, 'I'm going to free you. I'm going to set you free,'" Messina said. "That set me off. I started reading all these books about people that kill and say, 'I'm doing it for God. God told me to do it.' And so I just tripped out on this prophet-like guy that thought he was almost saving the world by freeing them." 

Considering the multitude of characters and roles that Messina has embodied, it sure seems like the actor is willing to bridge genres and archetypes as he has played lawyers, law enforcement, killers, doctors, fathers, and business leaders.