Ellington is from
Madison, Mississippi, the son of Deborah (Cochran) and James R. Ellington, who own a residential construction company. In high school, he was a starting
center for the school's
football team for three seasons. Ellington enrolled as a double major in art and theater at the
University of Mississippi, after turning down a
scholarship to the
Savannah College of Art and Design. He graduated with a
bachelor's degree in theatre performance and is a member of the
Sigma Chi fraternity. == Career ==