Yanic Truesdale (born March 17, 1970) is a Canadian-American actor best known for his portrayal of Michel Gerard in the television series Gilmore Girls.
Early life and education Truesdale was born and raised in Montreal. At 17 years old, he joined the National Theatre School of Canada and graduated at age 20.
Career One of Truesdale's first big breaks was a starring role in He Shoots, He Scores, a popular Canadian series about hockey. He went on to work for six years on the television series Les héritiers Duval, and in 1998 was nominated for his first Gemini Award for Best Acting - Comedy Series or Special for his performance in the sitcom Majeurs et vaccinés. The series was a critical hit throughout Canada, with Truesdale portraying the only Black child in a white family. Truesdale then starred in Mauvais Karma, which landed him his second Gemini nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy.
Truesdale moved to New York City and studied at the renowned Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute. Truesdale’s very first audition in Los Angeles was for Gilmore Girls, starring opposite Lauren Graham, Alexis Bledel and Melissa McCarthy as the opinionated, sarcastic, and good-hearted concierge of the Independence Inn, Michel Gerard. The role garnered Truesdale critical acclaim, landing him on the Variety 10 Actors to Watch list opposite Ryan Gosling and Jennifer Garner.
Additional recent credits for Truesdale include appearing in the award nominated film My Salinger Year opposite Sigourney Weaver and Margaret Qualley, which opened the Berlin Film Festival, Curb Your Enthusiasm for HBO (where he played Lin-Manuel Miranda’s agent), and is a part of the ongoing murder mystery franchise Fallen Angels Murder Club for Lifetime opposite Toni Braxton.
In 2022, Truesdale performed in the Netflix comedy series God's Favorite Idiot opposite Melissa McCarthy and Ben Falcone. God’s Favorite Idiot follows a mid level tech support employee who finds love with a co-worker at exactly the same time that he becomes the unwitting messenger of God.
In 2025, Truesdale reunited with Gilmore Girls creators Amy Sherman-Palladino and Daniel Palladino for their Amazon Prime series Étoile, appearing as Raphaël Marchand, colleague and confidant of the director of the fictional Le Ballet National in Paris, in all eight episodes of the show's first season.
Personal life Truesdale is the owner of indoor cycling studio, Spin Énergie in Montreal.
Filmography + Film/TV Year Title Role Notes 1991 Joseph BrousseauTV movie 1992 Prince Lazure Michel1996 Majeurs et vaccinés Philippe Tessier Gemini Award Nomination – Best Acting: Comedy Series or Special Les héritiers Duval Arsenio 2 episodes 1997 Un gars, une fille Le guide / Le serveur 1999 The Sentinel Patrolman 2003 See Jane Date Noah TV movie 2006 Tout sur moi Yanick 2000–2007 Gilmore Girls Michel Gerard Main role 2008 Réjean (le comptable) 2 episodes 2012 Mauvais Karma Yan Patrick 5 episodesGemini Award Nomination – Best Supporting Actor: Comedy 2014 Mohawk Girls Sex Shop Clerk 2014–2015 La théorie du K.O. Patrick 2 episodes 2015 The Fixer FBI Agent KincaidMiniseries2016 Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life Michel Gerard Sing It! Beau Hemsworth Web series; episode: "Let's be Real!"2017 Curb Your Enthusiasm Aaron The Catch The Cleaner 2018 Christmas Catch KenTV movie2020 Love by Accident Officer Paul My Salinger Year Max 2020–2022 Les mecs Étienne LebeauMain role2023 Gemini Award Nomination - Best Actor: Comedy 2022 God's Favorite Idiot Chamuel Main role 2025 Étoile Raphaël Marchand Recurring roleTBAMurdoch MysteriesTBDEpisode:
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