Joe Coyle, a Philadelphia native, graduated from Temple University's School of Communications and Theatre with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism. His early foray into acting was in a college spoof of Batman & Robin, where he played the iconic role of Batman. He then began his formal training at the Wilma Theatre in Philadelphia under the guidance of Gordon Phillips, a disciple of the Actor's Studio.
Coyle made his New York City stage acting debut in "Waiting for Lefty" and his first national commercial appearance was in a VH1 commercial alongside Madonna and Ellen Pompeo. Notably, he is one of the few actors still working who have done a live film, Fail Safe (2000),on TV.
Coyle has had the distinction of serving as a stand-in for George Clooney on nine feature films and two seasons of the hit TV series ER (1994). He has also worked as a stand-in for Ben Affleck on four feature films. His first producing credit was for a music video shot in North Hollywood with the crew of ER, while his first feature film producing credit was for Can't Stop Dancing (1999),starring Margaret Cho, Noah Wyle, John Aylward, Laura Innes, and Fred Willard.
Coyle has written, produced, and directed numerous short films, including Lily Mariye's AFI Directing Workshop for Women project, The Shangri-la Café (2000). He has also taught Acting for the Camera at Carnegie Mellon University's School of Drama.
In recent years, Coyle founded "Fern Rock Pictures", a Film & TV Development Company, through which he plans to finance and produce content for all media. He has also found great fulfillment in working with disadvantaged youth at Holy Family Institute, where he wrote and directed scenes in which they appeared on camera. Coyle has witnessed firsthand the transformative power of acting, stating, "You have never seen a young man's self-esteem grow so quickly as I did when the young men memorized their lines, allowed themselves to be directed through the process of shooting masters and close-ups, and then watched themselves in playback."
Coyle is married to Susan Ransom-Coyle and they have two children, Ava and Joey. In 2005, they relocated from Los Angeles to Pittsburgh, where they currently reside.
