Elias Koteas was born on March 11, 1961 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

He actor made his film debut in the Mary Steenburgen drama One Magic Christmas in 1985 and went on to do supporting work in a variety of films that included Francis Ford Coppola's Gardens of Stone (1987), Some Kind of Wonderful (1987), Coppola's Tucker: The Man and His Dream (1988), and She's Having a Baby (1988). He appeared in Exotica (1994.

Koteas was subsequently featured to great effect as the creepy Vaughan in David Cronenberg's controversial Crash (1996), and he invested his brief but pivotal role as Holly Hunter's mystery man in the acclaimed Living out Loud (1998) with memorable charisma.

He also starred in The Thin Red (1998) alongside Nick Nolte, Sean Penn and John Cusack. Another his roles including Skinwalkers (2007), Zodiac (2007) and Shooter (2007).

Filmography

• I Come with the Rain (2008)
• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)
• The Girl in the Park (2007)
• Dark Streets (2007)
• Shooter (2007)
• Zodiac (2007)
• Prisoner (2007)
• "American Dad!" (3 episodes, 2005-2006)
• "House M.D." (1 episode, 2006)
• Skinwalkers (2007)
• "Conviction" (1 episode, 2006)
• The Big Empty (2005)
• The Greatest Game Ever Played (2005)
• "Traffic" (2004)
• "The Sopranos" (1 episode, 2002)
• S1m0ne (2002)
• Ararat (2002)
• Collateral Damage (2002)
• Shot in the Heart (2001)
• Novocaine (2001)
• Lost Souls (2000)
• Harrison's Flowers (2000)
• Dancing at the Blue Iguana (2000)
• The Thin Red Line (1998)
• Living Out Loud (1998)
• Apt Pupil (1998)
• Fallen (1998)
• Divorce: A Contemporary Western (1998)
• Gattaca (1997)
• Hit Me (1996)
• Crash (1996)
• Sugartime (1995)
• The Prophecy (1995)
• Power of Attorney (1995)
• Camilla (1994)
• Exotica (1994)
• Cyborg 2 (1993)
• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III (1993)
• Chain of Desire (1992)
• The Habitation of Dragons (1992)
• Contact (1992)
• The Adjuster (1991)
• Almost an Angel (1990)
• Look Who's Talking Too (1990)
• Desperate Hours (1990)
• Backstreet Dreams (1990)
• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990)
• Blood Red (1989)
• "Knightwatch" (1 episode, 1989)
• Malarek (1989)
• Friends, Lovers, & Lunatics (1989)
• Full Moon in Blue Water (1988)
• Tucker: The Man and His Dream (1988)
• Onassis: The Richest Man in the World (1988)
• "Crime Story" (1 episode, 1988)
• Gardens of Stone (1987)
• Some Kind of Wonderful (1987)
• One Magic Christmas (1985)
• Private Sessions (1985)