Jake Canuso
Jake Canuso is a Swiss-born Italian actor,[1] best known for his role in the ITV comedy series Benidorm, in which he played the Solana barman Mateo Castellanos from 2007 until 2018. Canuso was a professional dancer for eighteen years, working with artists including Spice Girls, Annie Lennox and Elton John.
Jake Canuso | |
|---|---|
Jake Canuso in 2015 | |
| Born | Jake Canuso 1970 Zurich, Switzerland |
| Nationality | Swiss |
| Occupation |
|
| Years active | 1990–present |
| Known for | Role of Mateo Castellanos in: Benidorm (2007–2018) Benidorm Live (2018–2019) |
Early life
Canuso was born near Zurich, Switzerland, to immigrants from southern Italy. He moved to the UK when he was 18 years old.[2]
Career
Previously a dancer, Canuso appeared dressed as a ballet dancer in the music video for "No More I Love You's" by Annie Lennox. He also appeared in the video of Kakko's 1990 song "We Should Be Dancing", JX's "Son of a Gun", Alex Party's "Don't Give Me Your Life", Carter USM's "Let's Get Tattoos", 2 unlimited's "Here I Go", and Emma Bunton's "Crickets Sing for Anamaria". Canuso also toured as a dancer for acts including the Spice Girls, Elton John and Annie Lennox.[3] He also appeared as a dancer on Top of the Pops.[2]
Between 2007-2018, Canuso featured in the ITV comedy series Benidorm as flirtatious barman Mateo Castellanos and is the sitcom's longest-serving actor, appearing in all 74 episodes.[4] Canuso was chosen along with several other members of the cast to star in Benidorm Live, a touring stage adaptation of the show.[5]
In January 2013, Canuso participated in ITV diving show Splash!, hosted by Tom Daley.
Canuso has performed in numerous pantomimes. In 2022, he appeared as Abanazar in Aladdin, which was staged at the Rhyl Pavilion Theatre.[6][7]
Personal life
Canuso survived the Indian Ocean tsunami on 26 December 2004,[8][9] whilst on holiday in Ko Phra Thong, Thailand. He climbed a tree after seeing the first waves, and was trapped underwater after the tree snapped.[8] He developed aquaphobia and did not swim in water for several years.
Credits
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | School for Seduction | Giovanni | |
| Piccadilly Jim | Marcel | ||
| 2005 | Kinky Boots | Waiter | |
| Russian Dolls | Miguel | ||
| 2006 | In A Day | Italian Waiter | |
| Flyboys | French Infantryman | ||
| Flirting with Flamenco | Pablo | ||
| 2007 | Tick Tock Lullaby | Laurence | |
| 2008 | Journal of a Contract Killer | Alessandro | |
| 2009 | City Rats | Marco Harper | |
| Nine | Reporter 4 | ||
| 2011 | Naachle London | Alan | |
| 2012 | The Dark Knight Rises | Waiter in Florence café | |
| 2019 | Fork | Robert Medlow | |
| Wisteria Cottage | Carl | Short film |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Hustle | Barman | Series 1 episode 5: A Touch of Class |
| Keen Eddie | Michael Hoffman | Series 1 episode 13: Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité | |
| 2005 | Heartbeat | Giovanni Viora | Series 14 episode 15: Icon |
| Casualty | Matt Franks | Series 19 episode 40: Swallowers | |
| 2006 | Doctors | Andy Clark | Series 7 episode 155: Ignorance is Bliss |
| 2007 | Suburban Shootout | Yuri | |
| 2007-2018 | Benidorm | Mateo Castellano | 74 episodes |
| 2009 | Shameless | Damien di Soto | Series 6 episode 4: Loving Wife |
| 2012 | The Hour | Peter Grey | Series 2 episode 3: Vice |
| 2013 | The Bible | Daniel | 9 episodes |
| Bad Education | Javier | Series 2 episode 7 | |
| 2014 | Cardinal Burns | Priest | Series 2 episode 5: The Priest |
| 2017 | Snatch | Petru | 1 episode |
| Drunk History | Various characters | 5 episodes; series 3 | |
| 2018 | The Royals | Javier | 1 episode |
| 2019 | Scarborough | Tony Peroni | 6 episodes |
| MyBad! | Stewie | Television film |
Music videos
| Year | Artist | Title |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Kylie Minogue | Give Me Just A Little More Time |
| 1994 | Carter USM | Let's Get Tattoos |
| JX | Son of a Gun | |
| 1995 | 2 Unlimited | Here I Go |
| Alex Party | Don't Give Me Your Life | |
| Annie Lennox | No More I Love You's | |
| 1997 | Spice Girls | Too Much |
| 2004 | Emma Bunton | Crickets sing for Anamaria |
Theatre
| Year | Title | Role | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014–2015 | Aladdin | TBC | The Forum, Billingham |
| 2015–2016 | Jack & the Beanstalk | Jack | Alhambra Theatre, Bradford |
| 2017–2018 | Mother Goose | TBC | Sheffield Lyceum, Sheffield |
| 2018–2019 | Benidorm Live | Mateo Castellanos | UK tour with 250 shows |
| 2019–2020 | Aladdin | The Genie | New Theatre, Hull |
| 2022 | Abanazar | Rhyl Pavilion Theatre |
Video games
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Driver 3 | Didier Dubois, additional voices | [10] |
| 2012 | Professor Layton vs. Ace Attorney | Additional voices |
References
- ^ "Jake Canuso". IMDb. Retrieved 1 March 2023.
- ^ a b Benidorm Live Podcast 2 - Jake Canuso, retrieved 1 April 2019
- ^ Features. "An Interview with Jake Canuso | The Enquirer Newspaper". Retrieved 1 April 2019.
- ^ Benidorm (TV Series 2007– ) - IMDb, retrieved 1 April 2019
- ^ "Benidorm on Stage". www.benidormonstage.com. Retrieved 1 April 2019.
- ^ Vranic, Marko (6 December 2022). "Jake Canuso talks about upcoming role in Rhyl's Aladdin panto". Rhyl Journal. Retrieved 1 March 2023.
- ^ Owen, Annie (8 October 2022). "Meet the TV stars swapping Benidorm and Coronation Street for Rhyl this Christmas". Daily Post. Retrieved 1 March 2023.
- ^ a b Jake Canuso [@JakeCanuso] (26 December 2010). "Today 6 years ago i survived the Tsunami,thanks to a stubborn tree. Unfortunately some of my friends and thousands of others werent so lucky" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Dixon, Laura. "Tsunami survivor Jake Canuso's terror at diving lessons".
- ^ "Jake Canuso (visual voices guide)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved 28 September 2021. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its opening and/or closing credits and/or other reliable sources of information.
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