Matt Keeslar (born October 15, 1972) is a former American actor.

Biography

Matt Keeslar was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, the son of Fred Keeslar and Ann Ferguson, who divorced in 1977.

At eighteen, Keeslar moved from Adrian, Michigan to New York City to attend the Juilliard School. The Juilliard faculty had selected him to fill one of twenty spots in Group 24, the twenty-fourth class to participate in Juilliard's rigorous acting program. Along with the group projects Matt performed at Juilliard, he also played the title role in a touring production of Molière's Don Juan, directed by Joseph Chaiken; produced and starred in a student production of "Waiting for Godot"; and participated in several interdepartmental productions.


Keeslar is known for his roles in Waiting for Guffman, The Last Days of Disco and Scream 3, and the miniseries Frank Herbert's Dune and Stephen King's Rose Red. Keeslar starred in the 2008 ABC Family series The Middleman.


He established a strong working relationship with South Coast Repertory in Costa Mesa, California, where he performed plays and staged readings. Despite his love of theatre, Matt worked in film and television most frequently.

Keeslar retired from acting in 2010 to pursue a career in science. He penned an essay about the struggles with his acting career and subsequent decision to enroll at Portland Community College. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Reed College with a biology degree in May 2014. His biology thesis explored the effects of antimalarials on the brains of frogs. While at Reed he played the "Father" role in Sarah Ruhl's "Eurydice.