Chris Diamantopoulos talks about ‘The Sticky’ and ‘Criminal’ on Amazon Prime

Chris Diamantopoulos. Photo Credit: Irvin Rivera.

Greek-Canadian actor Chris Diamantopoulos chatted about his latest projects and his acting career.

Walt Disney once said: “All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.” This wise quote from the cartoon legend applies to Chris Diamantopoulos.

Background on Chris Diamantopoulos

Diamantopoulos is a distinguished actor in film, TV and animation voice. He has been performing professionally on stage and screen for over four decades.

After a decade on Broadway, he starred in shows such as “Les Misérables,” “The Full Monty” and in “Waitress” opposite Sara Bareilles.

In 2025, Diamantopoulos will be seen on Amazon Prime Video in three shows. He is starring in “The Sticky” opposite Margo Martindale and Jamie Lee Curtis, co-starring in “Criminal” opposite Emelia Clarke, Luke Evans and Charlie Hunnam, and opposite Taylor Kitsch in “Dark Wolf.”

He is best known for his portrayal as Russ in the HBO series “Silicon Valley,” and he has played characters ranging from the iconic Moe Howard in the Farrelly Brothers’ “The Three Stooges,” and journalist Royal Brougham in George Clooney’s epic “The Boys in The Boat,” to the sadistic Sotto Voce in the Netflix blockbuster “Red Notice” alongside Dwayne Johnson, Ryan Reynolds, and Gal Gadot.

Diamantopoulos on ‘The Sticky’ on Amazon Prime

In “The Sticky,” Diamantopoulos stars alongside Margo Martindale and Jamie Lee Curtis (who also serves as an executive producer). The series is inspired by the true story of “The Great Canadian Maple Syrup Heist.”

The real heist involved the theft of $18 million Canadian dollars of Quebec’s national maple syrup, which is more than 70 percent of the global maple syrup supply.

On his lead role in “The Sticky,” Diamantopoulos said, “It was great! It was a really unique experience. I’ve never shot in Northern Montreal before, and I’ve never worked with Jamie Lee Curtis before.”

“It was a unique role that allowed me to explore a lot of different facets from comedy to drama, and I had a wonderful time,” he added.

Playing Mike Byrne in ‘The Sticky’

Diamantopoulos was drawn to his character Mike Byrne for several reasons.

“I liked how he started out as one thing and ended up being something completely different. That’s what I loved about him,” he admitted.

“As the series went on and as his desperation grew, Mike slowly removed various skins,” he added.

‘Criminal’ series on Amazon Prime Video

Diamantopoulos also spoke about being a part of the series “Criminal” on Amazon Prime Video. “I think it’s going to be a really big event,” he exclaimed.

“They have a fantastic cast and crew. I’ve never worked with Emilia Clarke before… she is one of my favorite people I’ve ever worked with in my 40 years in this business. She is super professional and unbelievably talented. She was a great presence to have on set,” he elaborated.

“I think this show is going to be really big,” he foreshadowed. “It is very dark, gritty, noir, and very stylized, and I think it’s going to be beautiful.”

The digital age

On being a part of the digital age, Diamantopoulos responded, “I mean I wasn’t cryogenically frozen or in a coma and woke up to it; it pervaded life over the last 15 years, so I feel like I’ve evolved and adapted with it as it has been happening.”

“I can’t say that I am gregariously involved in social media, but I believe there is merit and opportunity any time new technologies take over,” he said.

“I think there is a lot of good that can come. I am not particularly concerned with the streaming age; stories are stories, people are people, and entertainment is entertainment,” he noted.

“I am hoping that 2025 and 2026 will be new beginnings and will find a nice balance between how things were before streaming and how things are now,” he acknowledged.

Advice for young and emerging actors

For young and emerging actors, Diamantopoulos said, “This is all I’ve ever done, and I think you have to want it so much where you are willing to deal with the discomfort of what being an actor brings.”

“That discomfort can be very great especially when you are looking for work or trying to keep yourself from going crazy when things are too slow. You have to measure your desire against your will to suffer,” he elaborated.

Diamantopoulos continued, “There is a great percentage of acting that is not what an aspiring actor would want to be doing, so my advice would be the following: ‘if this really is what you want to do, then you have to build yourself as a human being as much as you can outside of the acting world.’ You need to have a life that can be your foundation and your basis.”

“For me, a family, good health, exercise, and meditation come into play because nine out of ten times, you are not acting; you are in between acting jobs, and you need a real bedrock to be able to support yourself as a person,” he explained.

“So, I would say to build yourself as a person and make sure that you are aware of how strong your desire is, and how hardy your will is, and then, Godspeed,” he added.

Diamantopoulos on his career-defining moments

Regarding his career-defining moments, he shared, “In various times, there have been moments that defined me.”

“When I was 18 years old, I did a school musical called ‘Man of La Mancha,’ and that defined for me, the understanding that I love playing characters and that I love telling stories,” he recalled.

“Years later, I did a television movie about Robin Williams and I got to play him and that defined for me the understanding that playing a character outside of myself (particularly somebody who is a real person) is something very interesting to be in, something that I had a facility for, especially embodying other roles,” he elaborated.

Diamantopoulos on ‘The Three Stooges’

Yet another career-defining moment was starring in “The Three Stooges,” which was directed by Peter and Bobby Farrelly.

“A few years later, I got ‘The Three Stooges’ movie, where I played Moe, which was a really special moment,” he said. I loved making it, and when I was a little boy, I was obsessed with ‘The Three Stooges’.”

“Back when I was a young kid and would visit Greece in the summers, I would watch ‘The Three Stooges’ in the outdoor cinemas there, I would sit and watch them on the meadow because I didn’t have money to buy a ticket there,” he recalled.

“That was amazing a true career-defining moment for me because that job should never have come to me, especially because they were looking at big movie stars for that part,” he added.

Diamantopoulos revealed, “It took me six months and 14 auditions, and by the Grace of God, I ended up getting that job, so that was a big moment for me to realize that sometimes the things that I want are bigger than what is actually possible but that shouldn’t stop me.”.

Diamantopoulos on the HBO series ‘Silicon Valley’

The TV series “Silicon Valley” was also a defining moment for Diamantopoulos.

“That was one that I didn’t count on,” he noted. “I didn’t know that it would be career-defining. I just knew that I loved the show and that I wanted to be a part of it. We also didn’t know what the character was going to turn into.”

“Originally, my character was only scheduled to be in two episodes, but he ended up being such an awesome character that they kept writing more and more and more,” he added.

Diamantopoulos on voicing Mickey Mouse

He earned two Emmy nominations in his career, one of which was a nod for “Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program” for his voice-over performance of Mickey Mouse.

“Voicing Mickey Mouse was the job of my life,” he admitted. “This was such an iconic role because in the history of TV and cinema, Mickey Mouse has been voiced by a total of five people, and I am one of those people! That was such a huge honor for me.”

Stage of his life

On the title of the current chapter of his life, Diamantopoulos said, “To keep moving on all levels.”

“Career-wise, find the way to find the spark and say ‘yes’ whenever you can,” he said. “Doing always brings something: it brings some adventure and some understanding of self. By not doing, not much is going to happen. I think it’s important to just keep moving. Let’s see what happens if we keep moving.”

Superpower of choice

His superpower of choice would be for his “four children to stay healthy until their time is up.”

“I would want them all be health, healthy, healthy, and healthy,” he underscored. “Then one day, when they are 150 years old, they can pass away peacefully in their sleep content and with a beautiful life. That would my superpower.”

Greek heritage

Diamantopoulos was candid about his Greek heritage and roots.

“I learned how to speak Greek before I learned how to speak English,” he revealed. “My mother is originally from Ioannina and my father is originally from Kyparissia (in the Peloponnese), but the truth is that they are both Athenians. My mother is from Aigaleo and my father is from Piraeus. My parents raised us speaking Greece in the house, and we would visit Greece in the summers whenever we could afford it.”

Diamantopoulos continued, “I always loved the idea that I had two identities: there was ‘Chris from Toronto’ and ‘Christos from Aigaleo,’ and I loved that, especially since I could be an exotic creature in Greece, and when I was a teenager, I liked meeting girls in Greece. My accent to them was exotic and the way that they were was exotic to me.”

When he was growing up, Diamantopoulos spent most of his time in the region of his mother in Krapsi (in Ioannina), a small village that is situated in the mountain range of Pindos.

“Being Greek has always been an intrinsic part of who I am; it really informs everything,” he acknowledged.

“Billy Zane said it best: ‘My Greekness is my weakness,’ and I love that line,” Diamantopoulos expressed, as he finds it relevant and relatable to him.

2024 Hellenic Charity Ball GALA in the West Coast

Most recently, Diamantopoulos was recognized at the 2024 Hellenic Charity Ball GALA in San Francisco, California, in November of 2024 along with George Frangadakis, Alexandra Patsavas, and Tony Orlando.

The biennial Hellenic Charity Ball has raised over $2 million supporting charities devoted to preserving Greek culture.

This GALA recognizes prominent individuals of Greek origin in the arts and entertainment industry. “That was really lovely, and they are beautiful people,” he said.

“I was really loved; it was a wonderful experience. I would spend time with them honoring the Greek-American community like that any day that I can,” he exclaimed.

“I think the work that they are doing to raise money for the Elios Charitable Foundation is just lovely,” he said. “I’ve never really delved into that part of the world in terms of Greek-Americans on the West Coast; it’s a new community for me but they welcomed me so beautifully.”

Diamantopoulos finds his home in Los Angeles

Regarding his future plans, he responded, “I try not to make too many plans. It’s the first time in our lives that we feel like we are home, here in Los Angeles, which is funny because for many years it haunted me that I would never feel home in Los Angeles because it’s not where I am from, and it is just so foreign. Between the pandemic and the births of more children, we finally feel at home here in Los Angeles.”

“The plan for the future is to keep building on the joys and adventures. I’ve been doing this for 40 years professionally, but I really feel like I am still at the beginning of my career,” he said.

“I really do believe that the best is yet to come,” he foreshadowed. “I don’t think that audiences have seen what I am capable of.”

“I am forward to finding a writer, producer, and a director that is able to tap into what I can do so that I can really show people what I’ve got,” he added.

Success

Regarding his definition of the word success, Diamantopoulos shared, “Success is multi-leveled and multi-tiered. From an artistic standpoint, it is being able to tell stories that I can add value to, and that add value to my life.”

“From a monetary standpoint, success is being able to tend to my home and my family in a way that doesn’t give me any stress,” he noted.

“Personally, success is being able to see the people that I love and enjoy them without the constraints of time and obligation,” he said.

“I think in terms of legacy, it is being able to do all of those things, and one day when I am gone, hopefully, when if my name is ever brought up people say ‘yeah, Chris was a really good guy,’ and that’s it,” he acknowledged.

Message for his fans and supporters

For his dedicated fans and supporters, Diamantopoulos remarked, “Thank you. As an actor, I only exist by a virtue of people that match the material that I put out there.”

“When the people are entertained by what I do, then I am eternally grateful to them,” he said, effusively.

“I am so happy that they are enjoying what I do because I truly love what I do. I would love the opportunity to do that until the day that I die. That’s what wakes me up every morning, and that’s what keeps me going,” the Greek-Canadian actor concluded.

To lean more about Chris Diamantopoulos, check out his IMDb page.