David Boreanaz Bio
David Paul Boreanaz, born on May 16, 1969, in Buffalo, New York, is an American actor, television producer, and director whose career has spanned more than three decades. He first gained national attention as Angel, the vampire with a soul, on the supernatural drama Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and continued the role on the spin-off series Angel. He later headlined the long-running Fox crime procedural Bones as FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth and went on to lead the CBS military drama SEAL Team as Master Chief Petty Officer Jason Hayes. Beyond acting, Boreanaz has built a second career behind the camera, producing and directing episodes of his own series and preparing to take on a new lead role in a reboot of the classic television series The Rockford Files.
Early Life and Background
David Paul Boreanaz was born in Buffalo, New York, where his father, Dave Roberts, was working as a weather presenter and host of the children’s show Rocketship 7 at the ABC affiliate WKBW-TV. His mother, Patti Boreanaz, worked as a travel agent, and he grew up with two older sisters. On his father’s side, Boreanaz is of Italian and Slovenian descent, while his mother is of half Slovak and part Irish, German, French, and Swiss descent. The family moved to the Philadelphia area when he was seven years old, after his father accepted a job at the local ABC affiliate WPVI-TV.
Boreanaz was raised Catholic and attended Rosemont School of the Holy Child in Rosemont, Pennsylvania, before enrolling at Malvern Preparatory School in Malvern, Pennsylvania. At Malvern Prep, he was a keen athlete and played on the school football team, an experience that shaped his early interest in physical performance and teamwork. After high school, he went on to study at Ithaca College in Ithaca, New York, where he graduated in 1991 with a degree in cinema and photography. That program gave him both the technical foundation and the storytelling instincts that would later define his work in front of and behind the camera.
Path to Acting
After earning his degree in filmmaking, Boreanaz moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in the entertainment industry. Like many young actors, he found that breaking in was difficult at first, so he slept on a couch at his sister’s place while visiting film sets and working as a production assistant to learn the craft from the ground up. He worked as a background extra in the 1993 film Aspen Extreme, appearing as a fan waving at skiers, and also prepared props for Best of the Best II, where he had a small uncredited role. His first paid acting appearance came that same year with a guest spot on the sitcom Married… with Children, playing Kelly’s unfaithful biker boyfriend.
Boreanaz’s big break arrived when a neighbor of one of the show’s writers spotted him walking his dog and suggested him for a mysterious new role on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The casting led to his portrayal of Angel, a vampire cursed with a soul by the Romani people as punishment for past crimes. The character became central to Buffy the Vampire Slayer and proved popular enough to anchor his own spin-off series, Angel, which gave him room to grow as a leading man. The success of those early roles established Boreanaz as a steady television presence and opened the door to a much wider range of projects.
David Boreanaz Career
Early Career (1993-1999)
Boreanaz’s earliest on-screen work in the mid-1990s was a mix of small film appearances and television guest spots that helped him learn the rhythm of a professional set. He took uncredited parts in Aspen Extreme and Best of the Best II in 1993, landed a guest role on Married… with Children that same year, and continued to pick up supporting work through the decade. These early credits gave him the experience and confidence he needed when the opportunity to play Angel on Buffy the Vampire Slayer arrived in 1997.
His role as Angel on Buffy the Vampire Slayer quickly became his defining early project, earning him a loyal fan base and critical notice for a layered performance as a tortured immortal. The character was introduced in the first season and proved so popular that the network ordered a spin-off series, Angel, which premiered in 1999 and allowed Boreanaz to carry his own show for the first time.
Breakthrough (1999-2004)
The launch of Angel in 1999 marked Boreanaz’s transition from supporting player to leading man, and the series ran until 2004 while he continued to make recurring appearances on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. During this period, he also took on film work, most notably starring opposite Denise Richards and Katherine Heigl in the 2001 slasher horror film Valentine. The role in Valentine gave him his first starring role in a major theatrical film and showed that he could carry a feature as well as a series. He also appeared in the 2002 film I’m with Lucy, voiced Leon, also known as Squall Leonhart, in the video game Kingdom Hearts, and appeared in Dido’s 2003 music video for the hit single White Flag, broadening his profile across formats.
Notable Works and Milestones
In 2005, Boreanaz began one of the most important runs of his career when he was cast opposite Emily Deschanel in the Fox crime procedural Bones, playing FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth for twelve seasons until 2017. Beyond starring, he became a producer on Bones from its third season and directed at least one episode every season from season four onward, sharpening his skills as a hands-on showmaker. He also lent his voice to the DC Comics animated feature Justice League: The New Frontier in 2006 and took on supporting film roles in projects like The Mighty Macs, Officer Down, and the miniseries Full Circle, building a varied résumé across genres.
On March 22, 2017, Boreanaz joined the cast of a CBS drama project based on the United States Navy SEALs, and the show, titled SEAL Team, premiered on September 27, 2017. He starred as Master Chief Petty Officer Jason Hayes until the series concluded its run in 2024, earning praise for his grounded portrayal of a career military leader. More recently, on February 12, 2026, he joined an NBC drama project based on the 1970s series The Rockford Files, which received a series order on May 8, 2026, and on which he is set to star and serve as a producer.
Personal Life
David Paul Boreanaz was first married to Ingrid Quinn from 1997 to 1999. He later wed Playboy model Jaime Bergman on November 24, 2001, and the couple went on to have two children together. Their son, Jaden Rayne Boreanaz, was born on May 1, 2002, and their daughter, Bella Vita Bardot Boreanaz, was born on August 31, 2009.
Outside of his family and career, Boreanaz is a devoted hockey fan and an avid supporter of the Philadelphia Flyers and the Philadelphia Eagles. In 2013, he and his wife, along with friends Melissa and Aaron Ravo, co-founded the nail polish line Chrome Girl, where the two wives handle daily operations while the husbands support the business. In 2004, he underwent reconstructive surgery on the anterior cruciate ligament of his left knee, the result of an old running injury from high school, though he continued working through his recovery.