• Benjamin Salisbury is an American actor, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1980.
• He is known for his role as Brighton Sheffield in the TV series “The Nanny”, and won multiple awards and nominations for his performance.
• He has appeared in 8 movies and TV series, with his latest role being in the 2005 series “Numb3rs”.
• He is married with two children and lives in Southern California.
• His net worth is estimated to be over $500,000.
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Who is Benjamin Salisbury?
An actor with nearly 20 acting credits to his name, Benjamin Salisbury is probably still known best for his portrayal of Brighton Sheffield in the family romantic comedy “The Nanny”, which brought him numerous accolades and award nominations, including three for the YoungStar Award for Best Performance by a Young Actor in a Comedy TV Series, in 1995, ’97 and ’99.
Since his last role, people have wondered what happened to him, why he stopped acting, and what is he doing now. If you are one of those interested in Benjamin’s life and career, let us tell you the naked truth.
Early life, family, and education
Born Benjamin David Salisbury under the zodiac sign of Libra on 19 October 1980, he’s today aged 42 (as of January 2023). He is a Minneapolis, Minnesota USA native, holds American nationality, and comes from a family of Caucasian descent. Benjamin was raised by his parents, David Arthur and Mindy Jo, alongside his two sisters and brother.
Benjamin enjoyed dancing from an early age, which lead to his stage roles, and later acting in movies and on television.
Speaking of his educational background, he attended Wayzata High School, and upon matriculating in 1998, he enrolled at American University in Washington D.C. from which he graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor’s degree in Broadcast Journalism in 2002.
Roles in movies
Benjamin made his acting debut playing Benjamin Harvey in the 1992 adventure comedy “Captain Ron”, which brought him the Young Artist Award nomination for Best Young Actor Starring in a Motion Picture.
He followed with his role as a Young Spacy in the 1993 drama “Shimmer”, set in a harsh juvenile detention center, which won the Heartland International Film Festival Crystal Heart Award.
Next, Benjamin was cast to play a small part as Scout #1 in the 1994 family adventure “Iron Will”, starring Kevin Spacey, Mackenzie Astin, and David Ogden Stiers, and two years later, Benjamin was heard as Tin Boy in the animated movie “The Nome Prince and the Magic Belt”, and reprised his voice role in “Toto Lost in New York” and “Virtual Oz”, also in 1996.
Later that year, he was seen as Josh in the action comedy-drama “D3: The Mighty Ducks”, also starring Emilio Estevez and David Selby, which followed the story of an unruly team of hockey misfits.
Benjamin’s next movie role came in 2002 when he was cast to play Production Assistant in the science-fiction drama “S1m0ne”, starring Al Pacino and Rachel Roberts. In the following year, he portrayed Derek in the drama “Red Zone”, written and directed by Lee Madsen, which although having no nominations, was well-accepted by the audience.
Benjamin’s most recent movie role was his portrayal of Craig in the 2006 short drama “On the Brink”, co-starring Julian Franco and Amy Grabow, which also had no nominations, but the audience rated it highly 8.1/10.
Roles in series
Benjamin’s first television series appearance is also marked as his most notable role. From 1993 to 1999, he was seen as Brighton Sheffield in 145 episodes of the series “The Nanny”, also starring Fran Drescher, Charles Shaughnessy, and Daniel Davis, which had 34 award nominations and won seven, including one Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Costuming for a Series.
The series followed the story of a cosmetic saleswoman, who after being fired and then dumped by her boyfriend, becomes the nanny to three children whose father is a rich English widower. As time passes, the love story between the father and the nanny begins.
Benjamin played one of the children, and for his performance, besides the aforementioned nominations, he was also nominated for the Young Artist Award for Best Performance by a Young Actor – TV Comedy Series in 1996, and Best Performance in a TV Comedy Series – Supporting Young Actor in 1998.
Concurrently, Benjamin was seen as Preston Beckman in an episode of the series “Kirk” in 1996, and made an appearance as Trevor Riley in an episode of the series “Promised Land”, which brought him the Young Artist Award for Best Performance in a Drama Series – Guest Starring Young Actor.
More recently, Benjamin was seen as a Docent in an episode of the series “Numb3rs” in 2005. This crime drama follows the story of a mathematician who uses equations to help the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents to solve various crimes.
Love life, wife, and divorce
Benjamin was not one of those actors whose lives are full of intrigues and controversies, and he managed to keep his love life under wraps. On 2 July 2006, he married his long-term girlfriend Kelly Murkey, in a private ceremony held in presence of their closest family members and friends.
In 2008, they welcomed their first child, a daughter, whose name hasn’t been disclosed, while their second child, and first son, was born in 2013. The youngest, their second son, was born in 2016 – the names of the boys are also unrevealed.
Although some rumors were saying that Benjamin and his wife divorced in 2013, it appears that this was false news. The family lives in their residence in Southern California.
Where is he now?
Benjamin has no social media accounts, and it’s hard to find more information about his current life. The last update about his work was back in 2017, and he was then serving as the Director of Operations for the park at Universal Studios, Hollywood.
In one of his interviews, Benjamin said that he would like to pursue a career in either sportscasting or politics, but also had a plan to occasionally act.
Net worth
If you ask film critics, most actors who start their careers as children later take a different path, because they feel the stress and sacrifices that fame brings. Benjamin made the majority of his money as a child actor during his brief acting career; according to sources, as of early 2023, his net worth has been estimated at over $500,000.
