Biographie
Christopher Thornton was born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana. His father, an amateur opera singer, introduced Christopher to the performing arts by taking him to rehearsals at a local church theatre. Christopher began acting onstage while majoring in drama at the University of New Orleans, performing works ranging from Mamet to Shakespeare. After two years, he left school and moved to Los Angeles to study at the Stella Adler Conservatory. There, he joined the student theatre group and performed regularly, catching the attention of an agent.
He soon landed his first professional role in the horror sequel Watchers II: The Outsider, portraying a young man who takes a prostitute to a motel, only to have his eyes gouged out by a psychopathic mutant. Over the following year, Christopher continued securing small television roles while staying deeply involved in theatre, frequently performing with his small company in numerous plays on the Los Angeles equity waiver circuit.
At age 25, tragedy struck when Christopher suffered two fractured vertebrae in a rock climbing accident, resulting in paralysis from the waist down. Unsure of what lay ahead, he was cast in a lead role by his theatre company in a small production of Waiting For Godot just six months after his injury. Initially tentative, Christopher eventually won a Drama-Logue Award for his portrayal of Estragon, performed from a wheelchair.
He continued to take on multiple stage roles with the company and was eventually noticed by a new agent who sent him to audition for a network pilot. Christopher landed a significant role, believing his big break had arrived, but the pilot was not picked up.
In 2000, Joanne Linville cast him as Hamlet at the Lillian Theatre in Los Angeles. His acclaimed performance, notable for being the only known portrayal of Hamlet in a wheelchair, earned rave reviews. This role marked a turning point in his theatre career, attracting the attention of the Mark Taper Forum and playwright John Belluso. Christopher auditioned and was cast in a supporting role in Belluso's The Body Of Bourne at the Taper, later assuming the lead role. This collaboration fostered a strong partnership between Thornton and Belluso, a disabled playwright whose works often explored disability themes. Christopher starred in the premiere of Belluso's Pyretown in upstate New York and made his Off-Broadway debut reprising the role to critical acclaim in New York City.
Christopher has worked extensively in television, starring in four network pilots and guest-starring on shows such as Unhitched, My Name Is Earl, and Larry David's Curb Your Enthusiasm. He remains dedicated to theatre, earning praise for his 2008 performance as a drug-addicted Iraqi veteran in The Poor Itch at the Public Theatre in New York.
