1. Overview
Dmitri "Misha" Collins is an American actor, author, and philanthropist, widely recognized for his portrayal of the angel Castiel in The CW television series Supernatural from 2008 to 2020. Beyond his acting career, Collins is a published poet and author, having co-written a cookbook and an academic paper. He is also a prominent figure in philanthropy, notably as the co-founder and board president of Random Acts, a non-profit organization dedicated to inspiring acts of kindness globally. He also founded the international scavenger hunt, GISH, which supports Random Acts' initiatives. In recent years, Collins has actively engaged in social activism, particularly in support of Ukraine, serving as an ambassador for the United24 platform and leading fundraising efforts for humanitarian demining.
2. Early life and background
Misha Collins' early life was marked by frequent moves and financial hardship, with his family often experiencing poverty and homelessness.
2.1. Birth and family
Collins was born on August 20, 1974, in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. His full birth name is Dmitri Tippens Krushnic. His mother is Rebecca Tippens, and his father is Richard Edward Krushnic. The name "Misha" is a nickname given to him by his mother, who believed it was a diminutive of "Dmitri" after a boyfriend she had while living in the Soviet Union during college, though the correct diminutive is MityaRussian. His stage surname, Collins, is his grandmother's maiden name.
Collins has a brother named Sasha and a sister who completed a White House internship. He is of partial Jewish descent, with ancestors from Hungary, Russia, Germany, Britain, Scotland, and Ireland. His family surname, Krushnic, has been in Canada for six generations, with uncertain origins that could be Russian, Ukrainian, or Polish.
2.2. Education
Collins attended Greenfield Center School and Northfield Mount Hermon School, graduating from the latter in 1992. He later enrolled at the University of Chicago, where he pursued studies in social theory. He graduated from the University of Chicago with honors in 1996.
2.3. Early career and internship
Before embarking on his acting career, Collins gained diverse professional experiences. He completed a four-month internship at the White House during the Clinton Administration, working in the Office of Presidential Personnel. Additionally, he worked as a carpenter and woodworker in the Berkshire Mountains of New England and was employed at the National Public Radio headquarters in Washington, D.C.. His first acting experience was at the age of six, in a play at the University of Massachusetts Amherst where his mother was a lead actress, with Collins playing the role of a five-year-old girl.
3. Career
Misha Collins' career spans acting in film, television, podcasts, and web series, alongside significant contributions as a writer, producer, and director.
3.1. Acting
Collins has a diverse acting portfolio across various media, with his most prominent role being Castiel in Supernatural.
3.1.1. Film
Collins has appeared in several feature and short films. His film debut was an uncredited role as "Guy" in the 1999 movie Liberty Heights. The same year, he played Tony in Girl, Interrupted. Other film credits include Al Hegelman in Par 6 (2002), Tony Derrick in Moving Alan (2003), and Dave in Finding Home (2003). In 2004, he appeared as a man hanging from a rope in the short film The Crux. He took on the role of Paul Bernardo in the 2006 film Karla. In 2008, he was cast as Brian in Over Her Dead Body and Buster in The Grift.
He also starred as Officer Franklin in a series of short films, including TSA America: Just Relax (2013), TSA America: Suspicious Bulge (2014), and TSA America: Yeah, But Is It Ticking? (2014), for which he also served as producer, director, and writer. His recent film work includes the role of Dylan in the 2021 film Encounter.
3.1.2. Television
Collins has an extensive list of television appearances, including recurring and guest roles, as well as television films. His television career began in 1998 with an appearance as Andrew in the episode "The Big Fix" of Legacy. In 1999, he played Eric Bragg in the Charmed episode "They're Everywhere". He appeared in NYPD Blue as Blake DeWitt in 2000 and as Sergei Chubais in Seven Days in 2001.
A notable early role was Alexis Drazen in seven episodes of 24 in 2002. He also appeared as Vlad in the CSI: Crime Scene Investigation episode "Nesting Dolls" in 2005. From 2005 to 2006, he had a recurring role as Bret in three episodes of ER. In 2006, he made guest appearances as Justin Farris in NCIS, Michael Karapov in Monk, and Todd Monroe in Close to Home. His 2007 television credits include Chester Lake in Without a Trace and Morton Brite in CSI: NY. He also appeared in the unaired television pilot Reinventing the Wheelers as Joey Wheeler.
Collins is most widely known for his role as the angel Castiel on Supernatural, appearing from 2008 to 2020. He began as a recurring character in Season 4, became a main cast member from Seasons 5-6 and 9-15, and had guest appearances in Seasons 7 and 8, totaling 147 episodes. In this series, he portrayed multiple characters including Castiel, Jimmy Novak, Himself, a Leviathan, Lucifer, and the Cosmic Entity. He also made his directorial debut with a Season 9 episode of Supernatural.
Other television roles include Manny Skerritt in Nip/Tuck (2009) and Jacob in the television film Stonehenge Apocalypse (2010). In 2012, he appeared as Dylan in the Ringer episode "Whores Don't Make That Much". He was a guest on Whose Line Is It Anyway? in 2014 and played a Porn Director in Kittens in a Cage in 2015. From 2015 to 2018, he had guest roles as a Ghostbusters Receptionist and Dancer in The Hillywood Show. He provided voice work as Prisoner 2 and Maestro Wave in The Venture Bros. (2016) and appeared as Eliot Ness in Timeless (2017). In 2021-2022, he hosted Roadfood: Discovering America One Dish at a Time, a TV show exploring local American foods. In 2023, he took on a main role as Harvey Dent in The CW's Gotham Knights.
3.1.3. Podcasts and web series
Collins has expanded his acting to audio dramas and web series. In 2018, he voiced Adler Harrison in four episodes of The Angel of Vine podcast. In 2021, he starred as Jeremy Bradshaw in the main role of the 10-episode podcast Bridgewater.
He also appeared as Castiel in the 2011 web series Ghostfacers in the episode "Ghostfacers Meet Castiel". He played Father Christopher in Divine: The Series (2011), for which he also served as producer and writer. From 2015 to 2018, he had guest roles as a Ghostbusters Receptionist and Dancer in The Hillywood Show.
| Year | Title | Role | Air Date | Notes | Episode Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Winchester Radio | Himself | Nov 11, 2012 | Guest Role | Winchester Radio - Special edition with guest Misha Collins |
| 2013 | ID10T with Chris Hardwick | Himself | Jul 1, 2013 | Guest Role | |
| 2014 | girl on guy | Himself | February 4, 2014 | 125: misha collins | |
| 2016 | Hype Podcast | Himself | Jun 17, 2016 | Guest Role | Hype Special #13 - Talking G.I.S.H.W.H.E.S. with Misha Collins |
| Too Beautiful To Live | Himself | Dec 27, 2016 | Guest Role | City of Subdued Podcasting w/ Misha Collins | |
| 2018 | The Angel of Vine | Adler Harrison | Nov 2018 - Jan 2019 | 4 Episodes | |
| 2019 | Inside of You with Michael Rosenbaum | Himself | Oct 2, 2019 | Guest Role | |
| The Art of Fatherhood | Himself | Nov 5, 2019 | Guest Role | ||
| 2020 | The "Doctor Mom" Podcast | Himself | Jan 2020 | Guest Role | Raising Adventurous Eaters with Misha and Vicki Collins |
| Craft Service | Himself | Dec 2020 | Guest Role | The Unpredictability of Life ft Misha Collins | |
| 2021 | Kings of Con: The Podcast | Himself | Jan 27, 2021 | Guest Role | Misha Collins and kitchen decor |
| Alyssa Milano: Sorry Not Sorry | Himself | Jul 12, 2021 | Guest Role | Supernatural's Misha Collins on Acting, Activism, and What's Next | |
| 2021 | Bridgewater | Jeremy Bradshaw | Aug 5, 2021 - Oct 1, 2021 | Main Role; 10 Episodes | |
| 2022 | Inside of You with Michael Rosenbaum | Himself | Mar 22, 2022 | Guest Role | Misha Collins On Supernatural End, Jared and Jensen, Standing Out, Cult Fans & More |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Ghostfacers | Castiel | Episode: "Ghostfacers Meet Castiel" |
| Divine: The Series | Father Christopher | Also producer and writer | |
| 2015-2018 | The Hillywood Show | Ghostbusters Receptionist / Dancer | Guest role; 2 episodes |
3.2. Writing and publishing
Collins is a recognized author and poet. His poetry includes works such as "Baby Pants" and "Old Bones," which have been published in literary magazines including the 2008 edition of Columbia Poetry Review #21, Pearl Magazine, and The California Quarterly 21. In October 2021, he published a full collection of poems titled Some Things I Still Can't Tell You, a 144-page book that became a New York Times bestseller.
In collaboration with his wife, Victoria Vantoch, Collins co-authored a cookbook titled The Adventurous Eaters Club: Mastering the Art of Family Mealtime. A significant portion of the book's sales is reportedly donated to charitable organizations specializing in food nutrition.
Beyond creative writing, Collins has also contributed to academic research. He is a co-author, alongside Kathryn Leonard and other collaborators, of "The 2D Shape Structure Dataset," an academic paper published in Computers & Graphics in August 2016. This paper focuses on a crowd-sourced database concerning the structure of shapes.
3.3. Producing and directing
Collins has also taken on roles behind the camera as a producer, director, and writer. He served as an associate producer for the 2008 documentary film Loot, which won the Best Documentary award at the 2008 Los Angeles Film Festival and was broadcast on HBO.
He has also produced, directed, and written several short films, including the TSA America series: TSA America: Just Relax (2013), TSA America: Suspicious Bulge (2014), and TSA America: Yeah, But Is It Ticking? (2014). In 2010, he directed and wrote the short film Stranger Danger. Additionally, he was a producer and writer for the web series Divine: The Series (2011).
3.4. Founding of GISHWHES
In 2011, Misha Collins founded the Greatest International Scavenger Hunt the World Has Ever Seen, commonly known as GISHWHES and now simply GISH. This annual international competition is designed to inspire creativity and kindness through a series of unusual and often humorous challenges. The entrance fees collected from participants are directed towards supporting Random Acts, Collins' non-profit organization. In 2012, GISHWHES achieved a world record for the most pledges to perform an act of kindness, demonstrating its significant impact on charitable endeavors.
5. Personal life
Misha Collins' personal life includes his family and public statements regarding his identity. He is 71 in (180 cm) tall. He has a YouTube channel with over 580,000 subscribers, where he shares content including family cooking, charitable activities, and updates on his acting and directing projects. He is also an active Twitter user, with over 2.9 million followers, whom he affectionately refers to as his "minions." He was recognized as the "Best of Twitter 2009" champion.
5.1. Marriage and children
On October 6, 2001, Collins married Victoria Vantoch in Maine. Victoria Vantoch is a journalist and historian with a doctorate in history, who previously worked at NASA. The couple has two children: a son, West Anaximander Collins, born on September 23, 2010, and a daughter, Maison Marie Collins, born on September 25, 2012. In the acknowledgments section of his 2021 poetry book, Some Things I Still Can't Tell You, Collins stated that he and his wife had separated.
5.2. Personal stance
In April 2022, following a fan convention appearance that led to public reports suggesting he had come out as bisexual, Collins issued a clarification. He affirmed that he is straight, apologizing for any misunderstanding caused by his remarks.
6. Awards and nominations
Misha Collins has received several awards and nominations throughout his career, primarily for his acting work on Supernatural.
| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | TV Guide Awards | Favorite TV Bromance | Supernatural | Won |
| 2014 | People's Choice Awards | Favorite TV Bromance (shared with Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles) | Supernatural | Nominated |
| 2014 | Los Angeles New Wave International Film Festival | Best Documentary | Loot | Won |
| 2015 | People's Choice Awards | Favorite Sci-Fi/Fantasy TV Actor | Supernatural | Won |
| 2015 | Teen Choice Awards | Choice TV Actor: Sci-Fi/Fantasy | Supernatural | Nominated |
| 2016 | People's Choice Awards | Favorite Sci-Fi/Fantasy TV Actor | Supernatural | Nominated |