Ivan Sergei

Tall, dark-haired, handsome and well-built actor Ivan Sergei got his start in the mid-1990s, racking up numerous TV roles following his 1995 big-screen debut, but is best known for his pivotal supporting turn as easily-led eye candy in Don Roos' acclaimed independent "The Opposite of Sex" (1998) and his starring role on the romantic comedy series "Jack & Jill" (The WB, 1999-2001). The New Jersey native's big break came in the form of an open casting call for the 1995 high school-set drama "Dangerous Minds," starring Michelle Pfeiffer as a Marine turned English teacher who connects with her inner city class. Sergei landed the role of intimidating and troubled Huero in the film, working alongside real-life gang members as well as actors. The performer stayed out West and pursued an acting career, working extensively in TV series guest roles including "Touched By an Angel" (CBS, 1994), "Cybill" (CBS, 1995) and "Party of Five" (CBS, 1996) as well as landing parts in numerous TV-movies, from 1994's campy "Bionic Ever After?" (CBS) and 1996's unforgettable "Mother, May I Sleep With Danger" (NBC) to the somewhat more respectable actioner "John Woo's Once a Thief" (Fox).

Sergei returned to feature work with a role in the 1997 independent western "Gunfighter's Moon," an international theatrical release that went direct-to-video in the USA. The following year he essayed the role a slow-witted hunk seduced by the manipulative half-sister (Christina Ricci) of his partner (Martin Donovan) in Don Roos' acclaimed independent black comedy "The Opposite of Sex." Beginning in 1999, he reached a wider audience with a starring role on the romantic comedy "Jack & Jill" as David 'Jill' Jillefsky, an awkward but charming toy designer who falls for his affianced neighbor in New York City. During the series' 1999-2001 run, the actor completed several independent films including 2000's "Playing Mona Lisa." In 2002, he returned to series television with the ABC midseason replacement "Wednesday 8:30 (9:30 Central)," a sitcom set in the world of network television.