Doug Savant


Douglas Peter Savant is an American actor, known for his roles as Matt Fielding in the Fox prime time soap opera Melrose Place, and Tom Scavo in ABC comedy-drama Desperate Housewives.

Career

Savant began his career appearing in teen comedy films Secret Admirer and Teen Wolf in 1985, and the following year appeared in horror film Trick or Treat. From 1986 to 1987, he had a recurring role as a younger version of Mac McKenzie in the CBS prime time soap opera Knots Landing. He was paired with future Desperate Housewives co-star Nicollette Sheridan, who played a younger version of the Anne Matheson character portrayed by Michelle Phillips. In 1988, he co-starred in erotic thriller film Masquerade alongside Rob Lowe and Kim Cattrall
From 1992 to 1997, Savant starred as Matt Fielding in the Fox prime time soap opera Melrose Place, a role that was notable for being one of the first mainstream openly gay characters on television. However, his role was censored greatly by the network - notably a kiss between Matt and guest star Ty Miller during the season two finale was edited out at the last minute by FOX. Savant left the series after five seasons and, a year later, his character was killed off-screen in a car crash. In 1998, he appeared in monster film Godzilla playing Sgt. O'Neal, and the following years had guest-starring roles on The Outer Limits, Profiler, Firefly, JAG, Nip/Tuck, NYPD Blue, and . In 2004, he had a four-episode arc on 24.
In 2004, Savant was cast as Tom Scavo in the ABC comedy-drama series, Desperate Housewives. In the first season, Tom was originally credited as a recurring role throughout Season 1, but became credited as a series regular in Season 2. Married to Lynette Scavo, he was out of town regularly on business. Viewer response to Savant and his character led the producers to contract him as a series regular from season two onwards, and Tom and Lynette were portrayed as the most stable couple on the series. The series ended in 2012, and the following years, Savant had guest-starring roles in a number of shows, including Hot in Cleveland, Criminal Minds, 9-1-1 and NCIS.

Personal life

Savant was born and raised in Burbank, California. He attended University of California, Los Angeles. In May 1998, he married his Melrose Place co-star Laura Leighton. They have two children together: Jack and Lucy. Savant also has two children from a previous marriage whom Leighton helped raise, Arianna and Madeline.

Filmography

Film

Television