Michael Aronov(I)

Nearly unrecognizable in his portrayals, Michael Aronov is a Tony Award winning actor that has made a name for himself by pushing the boundaries on stage and screen. In film he is most known for his role as Chovka, the Chechen warlord and head gangster opposite Tom Hardy and James Gandolfini in the Twentieth Century Fox feature The Drop (2014). In complete contrast, the actor also spent three seasons on the award winning FX series The Americans (2013), playing a physicist that is torn from his family and exiled as a political prisoner. Another indelible TV role was the fast-talking lovable hustler, Smokey Putnum on NBC's The Blacklist (2013). Subsequently Aronov played lead undercover cop, Jackie Dillon in the HBO-Cinemax series Jett (2019). The actor also went head-to-head with Sir Ben Kingsley, portraying a real life Nazi hunter in "Operation Finale" (MGM). He will soon be seen as Isaac, a nightclub owner with a sordid past in the Netflix series "Hit and Run," and in the upcoming Showtime mini-series "The First Lady" - playing Rahm Emanuel opposite Viola Davis as Michelle Obama.

Earlier in his career Aronov earned respect for his unique level of immersion into a role as he lost nearly fifty pounds to reflect the authentic downfall of Sacco Valenzia, a charismatic and boundless addict in the Sundance Film Festival and Independent Spirit Award nominated film - Lbs. (2004) Just prior to that, the actor's film debut was in another Sundance Film Festival favorite, "Hedwig and the Angry Inch" - playing the long-haired, diesel glam-rock drummer, Schlatko.

For his Theatre work, Aronov has won the Tony Award, the Lucille Lortel Award, the Obie Award, and the Elliot Norton Award. The actor has also been nominated for the Drama Desk Award, the Outer Critics Circle Award, and the IRNE Award. He originated the roles of Uri Savir in the Tony Award winning production of "Oslo" on Broadway; Paul in Lyle Kessler's "First Born" at The Actors Studio, and Dennis in Theresa Rebeck's "Mauritius." Other Theatre highlights include: Siggie, in the Tony-nominated revival of "Golden Boy" on Broadway, the American premiere of "Blood and Gifts" by J.T. Rogers at Lincoln Center; his solo-show "Manigma" (NYC); Stanley Kowalski in the classic "A Streetcar Named Desire" (Europe); Jean in "Miss Julie" at the Cherry Lane Theatre, Dionysus in "The Bacchae 2.1," and Edgar in an award winning production of "King Lear."