American actor Matthew Settle was born on September 17, 1969 in Hickory, North Carolina. When he was 18, he moved to New York City to pursue an acting career. While there, his talent got recognized by the legendary Jay Julien. He awarded the aspiring star with a three-year scholarship with the renowned William Esper. This led to Settle’s first role in 1996.
Matthew Settle started his acting career when he starred in the television movie Shaughnessy for CBS-TV. Two years later, he made his film debut, starring in the 1998 horror flick I Still Know What You Did Last Summer. He also appeared in films such as U-571, The In Crowd and Attraction.
Settle’s first major television role came in 2001, when he was cast in the acclaimed miniseries Band of Brothers. He played the character of Ronald Spiers, the platoon leader of Easy Company with a reputation for being fierce in war. This was followed by recurring roles in the medical drama ER, where he played the role of Brian Westlake, and in The Practice, as Russell Bakey. In addition, he starred in other films, including Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood, Until the Night and Rancid.
In 2006, Settle played a recurring guest role in Brothers & Sisters, playing the fiance of Kitty Walker (Calista Flockhart). He also starred in the short-lived television series The Wedding Bells, where he played a guest role for two episodes before the show got cancelled. In 2007, he received his regular television role is in the CW’s successful teen drama Gossip Girl, where he plays Rufus Humphrey, a former rock star who now owns an art gallery. His character is the father of Dan (Penn Badgley) and Jenny (Taylor Momsen). That year, he appeared in the films Blue Smoke and Beneath, and has signed on to portray the character Dan in The Ex-Terminators.