Ganios was born on October 21, 1959. He made his film debut at the age of 20. When his uncle heard that Philip Kaufman was looking for a young man with an athletic figure for his new production, he imposed murderous training on his nephew. The effort paid off, and Ganios appeared in “The Vagabonds”.
He then starred in Martin Ritt’s Backroads, in which he had a dancing scene with Sally Field. He also appeared in the comedy “Across the Continent” alongside John Belushi.
Then he joined the cast of Bob Clark’s vulgar comedy “Snitch”. Although reviewers slammed the film, audiences were pleased. Ganios reprized his role in two sequels. Years later, the actors of this film still kept in touch and met at conventions. “We are one big, slightly dysfunctional family,” he joked in a 2015 interview.
Ganios also appeared in the series “Wiseguy”, in which he played the role of a well-built mafia lawyer. The actor appeared in five episodes of the Golden Globe-winning production.
He also played a small but memorable role in “Die Hard 2”. He played one of the terrorists that John McClane must defeat. His character’s death scene was special. During the struggle, the thug is supposed to kill McClane’and, with the last of his strength, he grabs an icicle and sticks it in the aggressor’s eye.
The last film in Ganios’ career was “The Rising Sun”, directed by Kaufman.
Ganios died during surgery, which was necessary due to spinal cord problems. During the procedure, cardiac arrest occurred. His death was confirmed by his wife, Amanda Serrano-Ganios, in a post on the X platform.