Patrick Ball (actor) 📖 Wikipedia

Patrick Marron Ball^[1] (born November 10, 1989)^[2] is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Dr. Frank Langdon on the HBO Max medical drama television series The Pitt (2025–present), for which he has received critical acclaim and a nomination for the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series.

Ball was born to Jim and Lee Ann Ball;^[3] his father is a former paramedic and his mother is a former emergency room nurse.^[4][5] He has two younger siblings.^[3] One of his sisters works as an occupational therapist.^[6]

Ball grew up in Summerfield, North Carolina, and attended Northwest Guilford High School.^[7][8][9] As a student, he participated in athletics and theatre, though he did not view performing as a particular passion at this time.^[10] He attended the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, where he studied broadcast journalism, but he dropped out before graduating to pursue acting.^[11][12] He was motivated to pursue acting after a friend requested that he perform a 10-minute theatre scene; the head of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro's theatre department subsequently encouraged him to become an actor.^[10]

After moving to New York City and spending five years acting in local theater productions throughout the United States, Ball received a Certificate in Drama from the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale University in 2022.^[1][9] That year, he also completed a BFA from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, which allowed his Certificate in Drama to be converted to a Master of Fine Arts degree.^[9]

Following his debut as a guest on Law & Order in 2023, Ball's next work in television was playing Dr. Frank Langdon in the HBO Max medical drama The Pitt.^[6] His casting was announced on July 12, 2024.^[13] To prepare for the role, he spoke to real physicians and nurses who have experienced addiction.^[14] Reporting on Ball's portrayal of his character's journey towards sobriety and regaining his confidence in the emergency department, Shadan Larki for Awards Buzz praised his performance for its subtlety and restraint, which culminated into "an emotional payoff that feels fully earned."^[15] Ball was nominated for the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for his role as Langdon.^[6] With his co-stars, he won the Actor Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series for 2025.^[16]

In theatre, Ball starred as Prince Hamlet in Robert O'Hara's production of Hamlet at the Mark Taper Forum from May to July 2025.^[17][18] In April 2026, he played Andrew in Gina Gionfriddo's Becky Shaw at the Hayes Theater in New York.^[19][20]

Ball has been in a relationship with actress Elysia Roorbach since October 2023. She guest starred as a patient of his character on season 2 of The Pitt.^[21][22] They met while performing in a stage production of Las Adventuras de Juan Planchard in Miami.^[23] They enjoy hiking and gardening together.^[6]

Ball has experienced addiction. He faced suspensions throughout high school, and often took drugs.^[6] He was initially only accepted into the University of North Carolina at Greensboro's BFA program on probation due to his habit of drinking, partying and getting arrested.^[10] As of February 2026, he has been sober for four years.^[24]

Prior to his television success, Ball worked four jobs in New York, including in a coffee shop and as a wardrobe assistant for And Just Like That....^[10] He considered joining the FBI, becoming a Merchant Marine, and working in an Alaskan fishing camp in order to financially support himself.^[25] While studying at the David Geffen School of Drama, his parents urged him to drop out and pursue a more stable career so he would not accumulate more debt.^[14] After three months of working on The Pitt, Ball was able to clear $80,000 worth of student debt.^[10]

• Patrick Ball at IMDb