# Michael Malarkey
**Michael Malarkey** is a British-American actor and singer-songwriter, born in 1983 in Beirut, Lebanon, best known for playing the vampire Enzo St. John on [The CW](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-cw)'s *The Vampire Diaries* (2013–2017) and Captain Michael Quinn on History's *Project Blue Book* (2019–2020).[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/michael-malarkey/) • [2](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/23298/michael-malarkey) In 2026 he joined the CBS drama *Tracker* in the recurring role of Adam Shevlin.[3](https://www.tvline.com/2260743/boston-blue-season-2-cast-marg-helgenberger-tracker-season-4-michael-malarkey/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1983, Beirut, Lebanon; to a British mother and an Irish-American father; raised in Yellow Springs, Ohio[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/michael-malarkey/) |
| Training | London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA); began his career on the London stage[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/michael-malarkey/) |
| Breakthrough role | Enzo, the Augustine Vampire, in *The Vampire Diaries* (The CW, 2013–2017)[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/michael-malarkey/) |
| Lead role | Captain Michael Quinn in *Project Blue Book* (History, 2019–2020, 20 episodes)[2](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/23298/michael-malarkey) |
| Recent television | Markus Dargan in *The Night Agent* (2025); recurring role of Adam Shevlin in *Tracker* season 4 (2026)[2](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/23298/michael-malarkey) • [3](https://www.tvline.com/2260743/boston-blue-season-2-cast-marg-helgenberger-tracker-season-4-michael-malarkey/) |
| Music releases | *Feed the Flames* EP (2014), *Knots* (2015), *Mongrels* (2017), *Captain Solitaire* EP (2018), *Graveracer* (2020), *Strays* EP (2022), *Future Tense* EP (2024)[4](https://music.apple.com/us/artist/michael-malarkey/543922836) |
| Personal life | Married to actress Nadine Lewington since June 6, 2009; two children; dual US–UK citizenship[5](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3295096/bio/) |
## Early life and training
Malarkey was born in Beirut, Lebanon in 1983 to a British mother and an Irish-American father, and grew up in [Yellow Springs, Ohio](https://www.edgepedia.org/yellow-springs-ohio), where he performed in high school punk bands.[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/michael-malarkey/) He moved to London to study at the Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) and has lived in London since 2006.[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/michael-malarkey/) • [5](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3295096/bio/) On the London stage he appeared in productions including *Inches Apart*, *Spring Storm*, and *Beyond the Horizon*, and played [Elvis Presley](https://www.edgepedia.org/elvis-presley) in the jukebox musical *Million Dollar Quartet* and [Jay Gatsby](https://www.edgepedia.org/jay-gatsby) in *The Great Gatsby*.[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/michael-malarkey/) In interviews he has named Shakespeare as his first acting love, the interest that led him to train in London.[6](https://www.moviemarker.co.uk/an-interview-with-michael-malarkey/)
His early screen work included the short film *Good Morning Rachel* (2009), a role as Titanic victim Milton Long in the [Discovery Channel](https://www.edgepedia.org/discovery-channel) series *Curiosity*, and guest spots in *Dark Matters: Twisted But True* on the [Science Channel](https://www.edgepedia.org/science-channel).[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/michael-malarkey/)
## The Vampire Diaries
Malarkey's profile rose sharply in 2013 when he was cast as Enzo, the antihero Augustine Vampire, on *The Vampire Diaries* (The CW, 2009–17).[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/michael-malarkey/) He joined during season five as a character from Damon's past, expecting a short guest stint, and remained with the series through its eighth and final season, ending with the 2017 finale.[7](https://thehollywoodnews.com/2015/01/15/thn-interview-michael-malarkey-about-new-ep-and-the-vampire-diaries/) • [8](https://www.indiependent.co.uk/interview-michael-malarkey/) His performance drew notice for blurring the line between villain and hero.[8](https://www.indiependent.co.uk/interview-michael-malarkey/)
The show also carried his music: his song "Scars" featured in a season eight episode, and his character Enzo shared a romance with Bonnie Bennett, played by [Kat Graham](https://www.edgepedia.org/kat-graham).[8](https://www.indiependent.co.uk/interview-michael-malarkey/) • [9](https://www.rostercon.com/fr/mag/actus/the-vampire-diaries-michael-malarkey-nouvel-invite-de-la-convention-the-blood-legacy-4-461237) He remains a regular on the series' fan-convention circuit, including the French convention The Blood Legacy, which he attended in earlier editions and is scheduled to return to in October 2027.[9](https://www.rostercon.com/fr/mag/actus/the-vampire-diaries-michael-malarkey-nouvel-invite-de-la-convention-the-blood-legacy-4-461237)
## Television roles after The Vampire Diaries
After *The Vampire Diaries*, Malarkey took recurring and lead roles across American television. He played Sam Foster in the Crackle series *The Oath* (2018–2019, 13 episodes), then starred as Captain Michael Quinn in *Project Blue Book*, History's Cold War-era drama about the U.S. Air Force's UFO investigation, for 20 episodes across 2019 and 2020.[2](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/23298/michael-malarkey) His character, a World War II hero charged with overseeing the astronomer [J. Allen Hynek](https://www.edgepedia.org/j-allen-hynek) ([Aidan Gillen](https://www.edgepedia.org/aidan-gillen)) and keeping him aligned with the Air Force, was described by *Time* as "the grounded Scully to his obsessive Mulder"; the character was based on an amalgamation of real figures involved in the historical [Project Blue Book](https://www.edgepedia.org/project-blue-book).[10](https://time.com/5492638/project-blue-book-tv-show-review/) • [11](https://maysville-online.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/TVBK010519A.pdf)
Subsequent guest and recurring parts included Deputy Harvey in *Big Sky* (2021, five episodes), Seamus O'Meara in *Law & Order: Organized Crime* (2023, three episodes), Emmett in *Westworld* season four (2022), Cole in the *Quantum Leap* revival's pilot (2022), and Markus Dargan in season two of Netflix's *The Night Agent*, whose episodes were released on January 23, 2025.[2](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/23298/michael-malarkey)
In September 2026, CBS announced that Malarkey had been cast in the recurring role of Adam in season four of the drama *Tracker*, which premiered that fall.[3](https://www.tvline.com/2260743/boston-blue-season-2-cast-marg-helgenberger-tracker-season-4-michael-malarkey/) His character, Adam Shevlin, is described as "disarmingly handsome, intelligent and sophisticated, but with a bit of a bad-boy undercurrent," a private investigator for high-end law firms who runs into the lawyer Reenie ([Fiona Rene](https://www.edgepedia.org/fiona-rene)), an old friend he has not seen in years.[12](https://www.tvinsider.com/1291491/) He guest stars in the episode "Original Parts," broadcast Sunday, October 18, 2026, written by Elwood Reid and directed by [Ken Olin](https://www.edgepedia.org/ken-olin), in which the reunion leaves Reenie revisiting her past.[13](https://www.paramountpressexpress.com/cbs-entertainment/shows/tracker/releases/?view=113304-colter-gets-hired-to-track-down-a-woman-who-disappeared-after-an-argument-with-her-husband-in-a-deserted-texas-town-on-tracker-sunday-oct-18)
## Music career
Music predates Malarkey's screen fame: he began in the screamo band Shadyside and has said he has been making music since childhood.[8](https://www.indiependent.co.uk/interview-michael-malarkey/) • [7](https://thehollywoodnews.com/2015/01/15/thn-interview-michael-malarkey-about-new-ep-and-the-vampire-diaries/) His recorded output spans folk, what he calls "weird pop," and moody alternative, and no single record stays within one genre.[8](https://www.indiependent.co.uk/interview-michael-malarkey/)
His releases, in order, are the five-track *Feed the Flames* EP (2014), inspired by [Nick Cave](https://www.edgepedia.org/nick-cave), Leonard Cohen, and [Bob Dylan](https://www.edgepedia.org/bob-dylan); *Knots* (2015); the full-length debut *Mongrels* (September 2017), themed around restlessness and "the mongrel"; the *Captain Solitaire* EP, released on Hudson Records on May 23, 2018; *Graveracer* (2020); the *Strays* EP (2022), recorded at Strongroom Studios in London; and the *Future Tense* EP (2024).[1](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/michael-malarkey/) • [4](https://music.apple.com/us/artist/michael-malarkey/543922836) • [14](https://hudsonrecords.co.uk/artist/michael-malarkey) • [15](https://www.altpress.com/michael_malarkey_mongrels_album_stream/) • [8](https://www.indiependent.co.uk/interview-michael-malarkey/) He has toured in Europe and the United States between filming commitments, and in 2022 performed a one-off London show with his Gretsch Country Gentleman electric guitar, his first solo show with an electric instrument.[14](https://hudsonrecords.co.uk/artist/michael-malarkey) • [8](https://www.indiependent.co.uk/interview-michael-malarkey/)
## Personal life
Malarkey has been married to the actress Nadine Lewington since June 6, 2009, and they have two children, Marlon and Hugo.[5](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3295096/bio/) He holds dual citizenship of the United States and the United Kingdom.[5](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3295096/bio/) Away from acting and music, he has spoken about his long-running enthusiasm for the card game [Magic: The Gathering](https://www.edgepedia.org/magic-the-gathering), including competing in a few tournaments as a teenager.[16](https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/watch-project-blue-books-michael-malarkey-shares-his-magic-the-gathering-obsession)
## References
1. [Michael Malarkey – Actor, TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/michael-malarkey/)
2. [Michael Malarkey, TVmaze](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/23298/michael-malarkey)
3. [Casting News: Boston Blue Adds Marg Helgenberger, Tracker Books Vampire Diaries Vet, And More, TVLine (Sept. 16, 2026)](https://www.tvline.com/2260743/boston-blue-season-2-cast-marg-helgenberger-tracker-season-4-michael-malarkey/)
4. [Michael Malarkey, Apple Music](https://music.apple.com/us/artist/michael-malarkey/543922836)
5. [Michael Malarkey – Biography, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3295096/bio/)
6. [An Interview With… Michael Malarkey, Movie Marker](https://www.moviemarker.co.uk/an-interview-with-michael-malarkey/)
7. [THN Interview: Michael Malarkey About New EP And The Vampire Diaries, The Hollywood News (Jan 15, 2015)](https://thehollywoodnews.com/2015/01/15/thn-interview-michael-malarkey-about-new-ep-and-the-vampire-diaries/)
8. [Interview: Michael Malarkey, The Indiependent (June 18, 2022)](https://www.indiependent.co.uk/interview-michael-malarkey/)
9. [The Vampire Diaries : Michael Malarkey, nouvel invité de la convention The Blood Legacy 4, Roster Con (Oct 20, 2026)](https://www.rostercon.com/fr/mag/actus/the-vampire-diaries-michael-malarkey-nouvel-invite-de-la-convention-the-blood-legacy-4-461237)
10. [Aliens and Cold War Paranoia Collide in Project Blue Book, Time (Jan 3, 2019)](https://time.com/5492638/project-blue-book-tv-show-review/)
11. [Project Blue Book cover story, Maysville Online TV weekly (Jan 2019)](https://maysville-online.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/TVBK010519A.pdf)
12. ['Tracker' Casts Michael Malarkey — What's His Connection to Reenie?, TV Insider (Sept 16, 2026)](https://www.tvinsider.com/1291491/)
13. [Tracker press release: "Original Parts," Paramount Press Express (Sept 24, 2026)](https://www.paramountpressexpress.com/cbs-entertainment/shows/tracker/releases/?view=113304-colter-gets-hired-to-track-down-a-woman-who-disappeared-after-an-argument-with-her-husband-in-a-deserted-texas-town-on-tracker-sunday-oct-18)
14. [Michael Malarkey, Hudson Records](https://hudsonrecords.co.uk/artist/michael-malarkey)
15. ['Vampire Diaries' actor Michael Malarkey debuts haunting new album, 'Mongrels'—exclusive, AltPress](https://www.altpress.com/michael_malarkey_mongrels_album_stream/)
16. [WATCH: Project Blue Book's Michael Malarkey shares his Magic: The Gathering obsession, SYFY WIRE (Mar 5, 2019)](https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/watch-project-blue-books-michael-malarkey-shares-his-magic-the-gathering-obsession)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › English actors: 2000s onward › Surnames L to Mb*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license