Daniel K. Isaac
Daniel K. Isaac | |
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| Born | December 5, 1988 Fullerton, California, U.S. |
| Occupations |
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Daniel K. Isaac is an American actor and writer. He is known for his recurring role as Ben Kim in Showtime's Billions.[1][2] Isaac is also known for creating the hashtag #AccordingToMyMother, which he uses to share comedic conversations between him and his mother.[3]
Early life and education
[edit]Isaac's parents are immigrants from Korea. His mother raised him in California as a single parent, and he grew up bilingual. Isaac is an only child.[4] He received his bachelor's degree in theater from the University of California, San Diego.[5]
Career
[edit]In 2015, Isaac created the hashtag #AccordingToMyMother to share comedic conversations with his mother.[4] He then started a Kickstarter campaign to finance a short film loosely based on their relationship. Isaac produced and starred in what became a television pilot, According to My Mother, with Cathy Yan and Devin Landin.[6] It premiered at the New York Television Festival in October 2016 and won the award for Best Drama. Isaac was named Best Actor in a Drama for his performance.[6]
Isaac has appeared in the role of Ben Kim in Billions since its premiere in 2016.[1][2] The role was initially written to be to a three-episode part, but the writers ended up making the character a series regular the first two seasons. Isaac also stars as a bike courier with a foot fetish in the BDSM-focused web series Mercy Mistress, produced by Margaret Cho.[7]
He portrayed William Inge in an off-Broadway production of Philip Dawkins' The Gentleman Caller in May 2018.[8]
Isaac appeared in a recurring role as Jeremy Delongpre in the first season of the 2019 Comedy Central series The Other Two.[9] He also played the role of "Sandwich Artist" in the May 22, 2022 Episode (#251) of the HBO series Last Week Tonight with John Oliver.
In 2022, Isaac made his play-writing debut with Once Upon a (Korean) Time, which was produced by the Ma-Yi Theatre Company and performed at the historic La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club in New York City. The production was directed by Ralph Peña.[10] Also in 2022, it was announced that Isaac would star in the comedy film Plan B, alongside Jon Heder, Tom Berenger, and Shannon Elizabeth.[11]
Personal life
[edit]Isaac is gay.[4] He voluntarily participated in gay conversion therapy from the age of 13 to 16.[12][3] His mother, a devout Christian, disowned him for his sexuality when he was a freshman in college. Isaac later embraced his sexuality.[12]
Credits
[edit] | This section of a biography of a living person needs additional citations for verification. (November 2022) |
Film
[edit]| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Too Big To Fail | Translator | TV movie |
| 2016 | Money Monster | Male Raver | |
| 2016 | Urban Teach Now | Vincent | TV movie |
| 2016 | Eugenia and John | Dan Eisenberg | |
| 2016 | Drew | Noah | TV movie |
| 2017 | Maggie Black | Delivery Guy | |
| 2020 | The Dark End of the Street | Keith | |
| 2021 | The Drummer | Mike | |
| 2025 | Outerlands | Emile |
Television
[edit]| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Kelsey | Tyrone | |
| 2014 | Believe | Lab Tech | Episode: Pilot |
| 2014 | Person of Interest | Virgil | 2 episodes |
| 2014–15 | Mr. Right | Justin | |
| 2015 | The Following | Paramedic | Episode: Dead or Alive |
| 2015 | Dog Park | Jacob Hart | |
| 2016 | The Jim Gaffigan Show | Foshay | Episode: No Good Deed: Part 3 |
| 2016 | Search Party | Barista | Episode: The Return of the Forgotten Phantom |
| 2016–23 | Billions | Ben Kim | 55 episodes[13] |
| 2017 | Quiet Tiny Asian | Boyfriend | |
| 2017 | Crashing | Korean Man | Episode: Barking |
| 2017 | Don't Shoot the Messenger | Michael | Episode: Episode #1.6 |
| 2018 | Ollie & Molly Can't Get Arrested | Ryan | 2 episodes |
| 2018 | Puffy | Gordon | Mini series |
| 2018–19 | Mercy Mistress | Ken | 9 episodes |
| 2019 | The Other Two | Jeremy Delongpre | 2 episodes |
| 2019 | Indoor Boys | Walker | Web series, 3 episodes |
| 2019 | The Deuce | Dr. Lee | Episode: Episode #3.5 |
| 2024 | Elsbeth | Lieutenant Steve Connor | 7 episodes[14] |
Theater
[edit]| Year | Title | Role | Venue | Level of Production |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Miss Electricity | Freddy | La Jolla Playhouse | Regional |
| 2013 | Shalom Shanghai | Suzuki | Shanghai International Arts Festival | International |
| 2015 | Underland | Taka | 59E59 Theaters | Off-Broadway |
| 2016 | Sagittarius Ponderosa | Owen | 3LD Art and Technology Center | |
| 2017 | The Ballad of Little Jo | Tin Man Wong | Two River Theater | Regional |
| 2018 | The Chinese Lady | Atung | Barrington Stage Company | Regional[13][2] |
| 2018 | The Gentleman Caller | William Inge | Abingdon Theatre | |
| 2018 | The Chinese Lady | Atung | Beckett Theater | Off-Broadway[13][2] |
| 2022 | Once Upon a (Korean) Time | Playwright | La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club | Off-Broadway[13] |
| 2022 | You Will Get Sick | #1 | Laura Pels Theatre | Off-Broadway[15][13] |
| 2023 | Every Brilliant Thing | Narrator | Geffen Playhouse |
References
[edit]- ^ a b Feldman, Dana. "'Billions' Recap: This Week's Episode Brings Both 'Redemption' And A Striptease". Forbes. Retrieved 2019-04-27.
- ^ a b c d Soloski, Alexis (February 24, 2022). "An actor who cedes the spotlight while quietly commanding it". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 26, 2022. Retrieved October 25, 2025.
- ^ a b "Meet the Logo30: Daniel K. Isaac | NewNowNext". www.newnownext.com. Retrieved 2019-04-27.
- ^ a b c Nichols, James Michael (2015-05-16). "This Guy's Mom Doesn't Approve Of His Sexuality. His Response Is Awesome". HuffPost. Retrieved 2019-04-27.
- ^ "A Gay Actor and His Born-Again Christian Korean Mother Connect in 'According to My Mother'". IndieWire. 2015-05-27. Retrieved 2019-04-27.
- ^ a b "Indie Pilots 'According to My Mother,' 'Poor Todd' Take New York Television Festival Prizes". Variety. 2016-10-30. Retrieved 2019-04-27.
- ^ "We're Head Over Heels for This Queer BDSM Web Series". them.us. 22 May 2018. Retrieved 2019-04-27.
- ^ Collins-Hughes, Laura (2018-05-26). "Review: In The Gentleman Caller, a Talky Tennessee Williams". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2019-04-27.
- ^ "'The Other Two' Explains Why Bottoms Don't Eat on Dates". www.advocate.com. 2019-03-16. Retrieved 2019-04-27.
- ^ "ONCE UPON A (korean) TIME".
- ^ "Jamie Lee & Jon Heder Topline Comedy 'Plan B' for Joke Zero and Future Proof Films". 16 July 2022.
- ^ a b "Daniel K. Isaac Is Opting For The Gray Area | Death, Sex & Money". Slate. Retrieved 2024-07-29.
- ^ a b c d e Haun, Harry (September 6, 2022). "Daniel K. Isaac brings a Korean epic, full of fairy tales and history, to the La MaMa stage". Observer. Archived from the original on September 6, 2022. Retrieved October 25, 2025.
- ^ Quihuiz, Ariana; Comiter, Jordana (October 12, 2025). "Meet the real-life loves of the Elsbeth cast (including the actors whose partners have gust starred!)". People. Retrieved October 25, 2025.
- ^ Jesse Green (November 6, 2022). "Review: You Will Get Sick Tells the Untellable, for a Price". The New York Times. Retrieved November 26, 2022.
External links
[edit]- Living people
- 21st-century American male actors
- American stage actors
- American gay actors
- American male actors of Korean descent
- American male television actors
- American LGBTQ people of Asian descent
- University of California, San Diego alumni
- Male actors from Fullerton, California
- 21st-century American LGBTQ people
- 1988 births