Georgia-born and Bronx-reared, actor Desmond Harrington had the envious success of landing the first major role for which he auditioned when Luc Besson tapped him to play Aulon, the co-starring role, in "The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc" (1999). Although few critics noted the young actor's performance, he acquitted himself well and quickly landed in several other projects. Harrington was cast as a teen actor with a troubled past in "Drop Back Ten," which premiered at the 2000 Sundance Film Festival. He also had a small role in "Boiler Room" (2000) and filmed "Massholes" (2000), which follows one night in the 1980s in the lives of a group of Massachusetts residents.