Michael Zegen

Michael Zegen was born on February 20, 1979, in Ridgewood, New Jersey. He lived in Glen Rock, New Jersey, before moving to Ridgewood at the age of five. Zegen attended Ridgewood High School, where he participated in the theater program, and later graduated from Skidmore College in 2001. His early career included making over 50 appearances on ‘The Late Show With David Letterman’ as ‘Dwight The Troubled Teen,’ which provided him with initial exposure in the entertainment industry.

Zegen established his television presence with a recurring role as Damien Keefe in ‘Rescue Me’ from 2004 to 2011, eventually being promoted to the main cast in seasons 5–6. His career progressed with notable roles including gangster Bugsy Siegel in HBO’s ‘Boardwalk Empire’ (2010–2014) and Randall Culver in AMC’s ‘The Walking Dead’ (2011–2012). He transitioned to feature films, appearing in projects such as ‘Frances Ha’ (2012), ‘Brooklyn’ (2015), and ‘The Seagull’ (2018). Zegen made his Broadway debut in ‘A View from the Bridge’ in 2015 and returned to the stage in 2021 for ‘Trouble in Mind.’

His most prominent role to date is Joel Maisel in the Amazon Prime series ‘The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,’ which ran from 2017 to 2023. This role earned him two Screen Actors Guild Awards for ‘Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series.’ His recent and upcoming projects include ‘The Penguin’ (2024), where he plays Alberto Falcone, ‘Notice to Quit’ (2024), and the TV mini-series ‘Too Much’ (2025). Zegen married actress Jennifer Damiano in January 2025, having met while performing off-Broadway in ‘Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice’ in 2020.