Richard-John Seikaly

Richard-John Seikaly, a.k.a. R-J was born in Syracuse, New York, to Claudine Saunal and Richard Seikaly. He is of dominantly French and Lebanese, Palestinian descent. He is also of Italian, Greek, and Native American-Andean descent. He is fluent in French and a novice in Arabic and Spanish. He holds dual citizenship with the U.S and France. He grew up in the Washington D.C. area, where he found his true passion for acting. He then moved to New York City to study at the Actors Studio. R-J instinctively brings the depths of his layered characters to life through his vulnerability and strength. He has starred in several independent films, one of which earned him a Best Actor nomination in a leading role, for the film "Soulmates". In Television, credits include NCIS: LA. In Theatre, he starred as the lead in "No Exit" by Jean-Paul Sartre at the Lee Strasberg Institute, L.A. His next lead role was in the world premiere of "The Spanish Prayer Book" by Angela Davis at the Road Theatre Company in Los Angeles. He is pursuing a well balanced career between Film, Television, and Theatre. In recent times, he has been consistently rehearsing his passion project: Shakespeare's "Hamlet", at the Actors Studio, L.A. which had been fortunately led by his late legendary mentors, Penny Allen and Academy Award Winner, Martin Landau. Additionally, R-J is a member of The Actor's Gym, led by Academy Award Winner, Bobby Moresco. R-J has always been drawn to the cathartic experience of film and theatre. During his final semester in Business School at American University in Washington D.C., he performed in his first role on stage in Shakespeare's "Much Ado About Nothing". This earned him an encouraging review from the Washington Post, citing Seikaly as delivering "A very strong performance". He holds a Masters of Fine Arts from the Actors Studio Drama School at Pace University in New York City. There, he developed his stage work, culminating with his thesis performance as "Edmund Tyrone" in Eugene O'Neill's "Long Day's Journey into Night". R-J became a lifetime member of The Actors Studio following a final audition before a panel headed by Academy Award Winner, Ellen Burstyn.