Why Daniel Charles From Chicago Med Looks So Familiar
Providing wise psychiatric guidance to his medical colleagues on NBC's "Chicago Med" for over 130 episodes and counting (via IMDb), Oliver Platt's Dr. Daniel Charles is a thoroughly familiar face to the series' millions of devoted fans. Debuting on the franchise in the 2015 premiere episode "Derailed," Platt immediately established Dr. Charles as a compassionate, calming presence amid the chaos and frenetic action of the emergency department of the show's fictional Gaffney Chicago Medical Center.
As the hospital's Chief of Psychiatry, Platt brings the character of Dr. Charles to life with a mix of affable competence and emotional depth that has made him a genuinely beloved fan-favorite during the show's seven-season run — at least according to quite a few Redditors on this r/ChicagoMed thread. Clearly, after his many appearances on episodes spanning the series' multi-year run, viewers would have no difficulty picking Platt out in a crowd. But with that being said, they may also sense that they've seen this performer in TV or on film somewhere else but can't quite pin down when and where. Allow us to answer the question of why "Chicago Med" regular Dr. Daniel Charles looks so familiar.
Platt's early films starred Michelle Pfeiffer and Kevin Bacon
Intrigued with acting from an early age (per Film Monthly), Oliver Platt made his entry into the world of entertainment in 1987 when he landed his first on-screen role in the espionage thriller series "The Equalizer." Shortly after that, observant viewers could have spotted him in small roles in a number of feature film releases, including the South Seas adventure "Crusoe," the Mike Nichols' comedy "Working Girl," and "Married to the Mob," where he shared the screen with Michelle Pfeiffer (via IMDb).
Working his way up the acting hierarchy during the following years, Platt found himself cast in increasingly substantial roles in a variety of TV shows and motion pictures. 1990 saw him on the big screen as Randy Steckel in the paranormal thriller "Flatliners." As part of a group of students conducting risky investigations into near-death experiences, he starred alongside Kiefer Sutherland, Kevin Bacon, and Julia Roberts. In the film, his character resists what he feels are the slightly mad efforts of his fellow students to push the boundaries of medical science, telling them, "I did not come to medical school to murder my classmates, no matter how deranged they might be."
He was uniquely 'convincing' as a Musketeer
In 1993, Oliver Platt would again see his acting stock rising within the industry when he was cast in director Stephen Herek's sprawling big-screen incarnation of "The Three Musketeers." Taking on the role of the brash, bawdy, wine-loving swordsman Porthos, Platt was joined in the spendy period piece by Charlie Sheen as Aramis, Kiefer Sutherland as Athos and Chris O'Donnell as the young firebrand D'Artagnan. Teaming up to oppose the scheming of Tim Curry's sinister Cardinal Richelieu, the friends refuse to be split up by the Cardinal's plan to disband the King's Musketeers and forge an alliance with the English to save their king and their country.
Reviewing "The Three Musketeers," veteran film critic Roger Ebert singled out Platt's performance in particular, saying, "Of the musketeers, the one who was convincing was Oliver Platt's Porthos. The others, who can all be fine actors in the right role, didn't seem comfortable in the period, the costumes, the action or the story."
He co-starred in Dr. Dolittle and got political in The West Wing
In 1998, Platt would join "Saturday Night Live" alum-turned-movie-star Eddie Murphy in the big-budget, feature film family comedy "Dr. Dolittle," portraying Murphy's colleague Dr. Mark Weller.
Two years later, he would land another plum role as the star of producer Dick Wolf's TV drama "Deadline." Playing a reporter with a fondness for drink and a willingness to stretch journalistic ethics, his character also taught the craft to a class of students that he'd frequently employ to help him write his stories — regardless of the rules being bent or broken.
In 2001, Platt would score yet another career highlight when he joined the cast of Aaron Sorkin's acclaimed primetime political drama "The West Wing." From 2001 to 2005, he played Oliver Babish, a legal advisor to Martin Sheen's idealistic Democratic President Josiah "Jed" Bartlet. Platt's outing on "The West Wing" would earn him an Emmy Award nomination for outstanding guest actor in a drama series. Other Emmy nominations would also come his way, as he picked up Emmy nods for his work in TV's "Nip/Tuck" and a pair of nominations for Showtime's "Huff" in 2005 and 2006 (via Emmys.com).
Platt went from Fargo to all three One Chicago shows
TV fans may well have noticed Oliver Platt's next major series appearance when he took on the role of "Supermarket King of Minnesota" Stavros Milos in the small-screen continuation of Joel and Ethan Coen's dark-crime-comedy feature film "Fargo." As a devoutly religious but deeply conflicted grocery chain owner, Platt's character would debut in the episode "The Rooster Prince," followed by four more installments during 2014.
It was just one year later that Platt would be tabbed by producer Dick Wolf to join his Chicago-verse of network shows as the head of psychiatry in Wolf's medical drama "Chicago Med." And while long-time Med viewers would, as noted above, be more than familiar with Platt's Dr. Daniel Charles on the show, they may also have seen the character elsewhere in Wolf's "One Chicago" lineup. The fact is, they could have spotted Platt's Dr. Charles during his numerous crossover visits to both of the sister series, including nine outings on "Chicago P.D.," and seven "Chicago Fire" episodes.
All of the above taken into consideration, these TV shows and movies are among the most likely reasons that Dr. Daniel Charles looks so familiar to "Chicago Med" Chi-hards.