Enrico Colantoni was born in Toronto, the youngest of two sons of an Italian immigrant worker and his homemaker wife. Having seen his older brother—who is now a policeman—perform in a high-school production, he welcomed an opportunity to take drama as an elective course while studying psychology and sociology at the University of Toronto.

A college drama teacher encouraged Colantoni to pursue an acting career, and he left school to go to New York City, where he studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts for three years. While there, he received the Princess Grace Scholarship and the Charles Jehlinger Award. A graduate of the Yale School of Drama, Colantoni appeared in Hamlet at the Yale Repertory and received the school's prestigious Carol Dye Award.

Among his theater credits are The Merry Wives of Windsor at the New York Shakespeare Festival's Delacorte Theater in Central Park, Arabian Nights at the Manhattan Theater Club and The Triumph of Love at the Guthrie Theater. Most recently, he played Renfield in San Diego's Old Globe Theater production of Dracula.

Colantoni co-starred for two seasons on Hope & Gloria as Gloria's lovable but unenlightened ex-husband, Louis. His guest-starring credits include NBC's Law & Order, NYPD Blue and New York Undercover. He starred in the cable television movie A Member of the Wedding with Alfre Woodard and Anna Paquin and in the NBC made-for-television movie Cloned. Colantoni appeared in the feature films Bigger Fish, Albino Alligator, The Money Train and The Wrong Guy, with Dave Foley. He portrays an Italian priest in the upcoming feature film Stigmata, starring Gabriel Byrne.

An avid fan of the Toronto Maple Leafs hockey team, Colantoni plays the sport frequently as a member of a celebrity hockey team. He and his wife, Nancy, live in Los Angeles with their 11-month-old son, Quintin. Colantoni's birthday is February 14.