U.S. Marshals - About The Cast

U.S. Marshals: About The Cast

Books from Amazon.com:
Buy The Book.

TOMMY LEE JONES (Chief Deputy Marshal Samuel Gerard) won the 1993 Academy Award as Best Supporting Actor for his memorable screen portrait of the tenacious federal marshal Gerard in "The Fugitive." The performance also earned Jones a Golden Globe, a Los Angeles Film Critics Award, a Chicago Film Critics Award and a British Academy Award (BAFTA).

In a career spanning three decades, Jones has brought a wide range of keenly etched characters to the movie screen. He captured his first Golden Globe nomination as Mooney Lynn in the Oscar-winning film, "Coal Miner's Daughter," and garnered his first Oscar nomination and another Golden Globe nomination playing alleged assassination conspirator Clay Shaw in Oliver Stone's riveting drama, "JFK." He embodied the legendary baseball player Ty Cobb in "Cobb," created the role of Two Face in the box-office blockbuster "Batman Forever" and twice reunited with Stone, playing a maniacal prison warden in "Natural Born Killers" and a sympathetic Vietnam vet in "Heaven & Earth."

Jones debuted on the big screen in Arthur Hiller's drama, "Love Story," and has also starred in such films as "Jackson County Jail," "Rolling Thunder," "Eyes of Laura Mars," "The River Rat," "Stormy Monday," "The Package," "Under Siege," "The Client," "Blue Sky," "The Big Town," "Blown Away" and "House of Cards." Early last year he starred in the disaster epic "Volcano," then starred opposite Will Smith in the year's top-grossing film, the blockbuster science-fiction comedy "Men in Black."

For his work on television, Jones has been honored with the Emmy Award for his breakthrough performance as convicted murderer Gary Gilmore in "The Executioner's Song"; a second Emmy nomination and a Golden Globe for the acclaimed miniseries "Lonesome Dove"; and a CableACE Award nomination and a Screen Actors Guild Award for his role in TNT's "The Good Old Boys," the 1995 adaptation of Elmer Kelton's novel which he also wrote and directed. His numerous network and cable credits include the title role in "The Amazing Howard Hughes," the PBS/American Playhouse presentation of "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof," HBO's "The Rainmaker," the HBO/BBC production "Yuri Nosenko, KGB" and the CBS/Hallmark Hall of Fame drama "April Morning."

Born in San Saba, Texas, Jones worked briefly with his father in the oil fields before entering Harvard University, where he graduated cum laude with a degree in English literature. Jones moved to New York, where he made his Broadway debut in 1969 in John Osborne's "A Patriot for Me." His other Broadway appearances include "Four in the Garden" with Carol Channing and Sid Caesar, "Ulysses in Nighttown" opposite Zero Mostel and the New York Shakespeare Festival staging of Sam Shepard's "True West." He returned to the stage in 1990 as director of "The Authentic Life of Billy the Kid" at San Antonio's Street Theatre.

WESLEY SNIPES (Sheridan) reunites with producer Arnold Kopelson following his top-billed role as a detective investigating a crime in the nation's capital in the recent action-thriller "Murder at 1600."

Snipes has displayed his versatility and commanding screen presence through a succession of memorable performances in widely varied roles, such as Spike Lee's interracial love story, "Jungle Fever"; the street-smart basketball hustler in "White Men Can't Jump"; the ruthless Harlem drug lord Nino Brown in "New Jack City"; one of a trio of drag queens stranded in a small midwestern town in "To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar"; and the diabolical Simon Phoenix in the futuristic adventure, "Demolition Man," opposite Sylvester Stallone.

Born in Florida, Snipes moved to the South Bronx as an infant and later attended New York's famous High School for the Performing Arts, studying dancing and acting. He completed his secondary education in Orlando, Florida, then teamed up with friends to form a traveling puppet troupe that performed in public parks and schools.

In 1980, he returned to New York to attend college at SUNY/Purchase, winning an audition into its competitive theatre arts program. He subsequently landed roles on Broadway in such productions as "The Boys of Winter," "Executive of Justice" and the Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka's "Death and the King's Horsemen" before venturing into movies.

Snipes' film career began in 1985, playing a high school football player for coach Goldie Hawn in "Wildcats." He followed his debut with a role in the Michael Jackson music video "Bad," directed by Martin Scorsese, then won the part of jazz saxophonist Shadow Henderson in Spike Lee's "Mo' Better Blues."

He continued to showcase his broad range as a dramatic and comedic actor in such diverse projects as "Money Train," "Major League," "The Waterdance," "The King of New York," "Passenger 57," "Drop Zone," "Sugar Hill," "Rising Sun," "The Fan" and "Streets of Gold." He recently won the Best Actor prize at the 1997 Venice Film Festival for his role in Mike Figgis' drama, "One Night Stand," and will next be seen in New Line Cinema's "Blade," which he also produced through his own production company, Amen Ra Films.

On television, Snipes won the CableACE Award for his role as Sgt. Bookman in HBO's "Vietnam War Story" and will executive produce the ABC pilot "Futuresport." The actor recently appeared in the Maya Angelou-directed feature "Down in the Delta" for Showtime, a project developed by his production company.

Amen Ra Films is creating a varied slate of films, and Snipes will also finance and narrate a series of documentaries entitled "African Scholars," the first profiling Dr. John Henrik Clarke.

ROBERT DOWNEY, JR. (John Royce) won widespread acclaim, an Academy Award nomination and the British Academy Award (BAFTA) for his uncanny personification of the great silent screen comedian Charlie Chaplin in Richard Attenborough's "Chaplin."

The son of maverick filmmaker Robert Downey, Sr., Downey, Jr. was born in New York City, where he lived in Greenwich Village before moving to Los Angeles as a teenager. He attended Santa Monica High School, then moved back east to pursue acting in Off-Broadway plays and regional theater.

As a youngster, he made his film debut playing a canine in his father's controversial 1970 absurdist satire, "Pound." He appeared in "Greaser's Palace," also under his father's direction, in 1972, then returned to the big screen a decade later in John Sayles' critically-acclaimed comedy, "Baby, It's You." In between film assignments, he served as a cast regular on "Saturday Night Live" during the 1985-86 season.

Celebrated for the vigor and emotional depth with which he imbues his characters, Downey, Jr. has won accolades for such roles as the flamboyant Julian Wells in "Less Than Zero," the gay sibling who shares an unconventional Thanksgiving family reunion in Jodie Foster's "Home for the Holidays" and the sardonic talk-show host Wayne Gale in Oliver Stone's blistering satire, "Natural Born Killers."

Downey, Jr. also starred in the recent film version of "Richard III" and includes among his film credits "First Born," "Weird Science," "Back to School," "The Pick-Up Artist," "True Believer," "1969," "Chances Are," "Air America," "Soapdish," "Heart and Souls," "Only You," the Oscar-winning costume epic "Restoration," "The Last Party," Robert Altman's "Short Cuts" and "Too Much Sun," again working with his father.

He recently reunited with Downey, Sr. in "Hugo Pool," and also starred in James Toback's "Two Girls and a Guy" and, opposite Wesley Snipes in Mike Figgis' film, "One Night Stand." He will next be seen in Robert Altman's "The Gingerbread Man," followed by a starring role as a serial killer in Neil Jordan's "In Dreams."

JOE PANTOLIANO (Deputy Marshal Cosmo Renfro) has more than 60 movie and 40 stage credits in a 25-year career that began in the national touring company of "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest."

Moving across the river to Manhattan from his hometown of Hoboken, New Jersey at age 17, Pantoliano's first film role was a bit part in "The Godfather, Part II." He moved to Los Angeles in 1976 and was immediately cast in the TV pilot "MacNamara's Band," then joined Rob Reiner in another pilot, "Free Country" and the telefilm "More Than Friends."

While in Los Angeles, he returned to the stage, winning the Dramalogue and Drama Critics Circle Awards for his role in Lyle Kessler's "Orphans." He garnered a second Dramalogue prize as Best Actor in John Patrick Shanley's "Italian-American Reconciliation," and also appeared Off-Broadway in "Visions of Kerouac," "The Kitchen," "The Death Star" and "The Off Season."

He won widespread recognition for his portrayal of Maggio in the TV adaptation of "From Here to Eternity," a role previously embodied by another Hoboken native, Frank Sinatra, in the classic 1953 feature film. Other TV credits include "NYPD Blue," "L.A. Law," "The Fanelli Boys," "Civil Wars," "Hill Street Blues" and the telefilm "RFK: His Life and Times."

Pantoliano starred in the critically acclaimed 1996 series "EZ Streets," winning accolades and a Television Critics Association citation for his work as crime boss Jimmy Murtha. He also starred in the TNT feature "Nightbreakers," and HBO's "El Diablo" and an episode of "Tales from the Crypt," winning a CableACE nomination for the last-mentioned. He will next star in the television comedy series "Hollywood P.O.," now in development at CBS under the creative guidance of writer-director Ron Shelton.

In addition to "The Fugitive," Pantoliano's numerous film credits include "The Idolmaker," "Empire of the Sun," "Midnight Run," "Eddie and the Cruisers," "La Bamba," "The Mean Season," "The Goonies," "Running Scared," "Used People," "Calendar Girl," "Baby's Day Out," "Bad Boys" and "Risky Business," co-starring opposite Tom Cruise as Guido the killer pimp.

Most recently, he co-starred in the crime thriller, "Bound," winning a Saturn Award nomination for his role as a money-laundering mobster, and starred in the independent films "Self Storage" and "Taxman," also serving as those films' associate producer. He will next be seen opposite Keanu Reeves and Laurence Fishburne in "The Matrix." Andy and Larry Wachowski, for whom Pantoliano appeared in "Bound," again write and direct the futuristic thriller, which is produced by Joel Silver and Village Roadshow Productions and distributed by Warner Bros.

Pantoliano is also one of the owners of the Grand Havana Room, a cigar emporium with sites in Beverly Hills, New York and Washington, D.C.

Acclaimed actress KATE NELLIGAN (U.S. Marshal Walsh) won an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress as Nick Nolte's destructive mother in "The Prince of Tides," and the British Academy Award (BAFTA) for her role as the tart, sassy waitress Cora opposite Michelle Pfeiffer in "Frankie and Johnny."

One of the most honored stage actresses of her generation, Nelligan studied in London, England, before joining the Bristol Old Vic, Britain's prestigious repertory company, and immediately won the first of many awards, that of the London Critics' Most Promising Actress, for her West End stage debut in the comedy "Knuckle."

During her 12- month stay with the Bristol company, she appeared in such classics as "Misalliance," "A Streetcar Named Desire," "The Playboy of the Western World," "London Assurance," "Lulu" and "Private Lives." She next joined the Royal Shakespeare Company to play Rosalind in "As You Like It." And, with the renowned National Theatre Company, Nelligan starred in "Heartbreak House," "Tales from the Vienna Woods" and David Hare's "Plenty," winning the Evening Standard Award as Best Actress for her role as Susan Traherne. Five years later, she reprised the role in her Broadway debut, winning the first of her five Tony Award nominations. Most recently she starred in Wendy Wasserstein's Broadway hit, "An American Daughter."

Nelligan made her film debut in 1975 in Joseph Locay's "The Romantic Englishwoman." She first won acclaim for her role as Lucy in John Badham's big screen adaptation of the stage play "Dracula" and for her work opposite Donald Sutherland in the spy thriller "Eye of the Needle." She has also starred in such features as "Eleni," "Without A Trace," Woody Allen's "Shadows and Fog," "Fatal Instinct," Mike Nichols' "Wolf," "Up Close and Personal" and "How to Make An American Quilt."

On television, Nelligan has appeared in such acclaimed PBS series as Great Performances ("The Arcata Promise"), The Shakespeare Plays ("Measure for Measure"), Masterpiece Theatre ("Therese Raquin") and American Playhouse ("Three Hotels" by Jon Robin Baitz). Nelligan is currently shooting a feature with Joe Mantegna called "Boy Meets Girl," which will be released later this year.

French actress IRÈNE JACOB (Marie) won the 1991 Best Actress prize at the Cannes Film Festival for her illuminating, haunting portrait of two women of distinct destinies in Krzysztof Kieslowski's "The Double Life of Veronique." She reunited with the late Polish filmmaker three years later on "Red," the final part of the seminal "Three Colours" trilogy, which garnered two Academy Award nominations, including one for Best Director.

Following her training at the Conservatory of Dramatic Arts, Jacob left her home town of Geneva, Switzerland, at age 19 to study acting at Paris' famous Ecole Nationale Superieure des Arts et Techniques du Theatre. She made her film debut in Louis Malle's acclaimed autobiographical drama, "Au Revoir Les Enfants," following that with appearances in a variety of features, including "Erreur de Jeunesse," "La Bande des Quatre" and her American debut, "Trusting Beatrice."

Following her triumph at Cannes, Jacob starred in such films as "La Prediction," "Enak," Mark Peploe's adaptation of Conrad's "Victory," with Willem Dafoe; "Beyond the Clouds," directed by Michelangelo Antonioni and Wim Wenders; and "Othello," playing Desdemona opposite Laurence Fishburne and Kenneth Branaugh. She was most recently seen in John Badham's thriller "Incognito" and Hugh Hudson's "The World of Moss." She also recently starred in the French comedy "American Cuisine."

Jacob divides her time between the big screen and the stage, where she has acted in plays by Genet, Pirandello and Pagnol. The actress has appeared in Moliere's "Le Misanthrope," and starred in Robert Craft's adaptation of Igor Stravinski's "Persephone" and Claude Debussy's "Les Chansons de Bilitis" at New York's Lincoln Center.

DANIEL ROEBUCK (Biggs) most recently had a recurring role in the hit CBS series "Nash Bridges," starring Don Johnson, and played comedian Jay Leno in HBO's critically acclaimed feature, "The Late Shift."

Born in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, Roebuck began performing at age nine in local events, and by age 13, had traveled the tri-state area as a clown in a regional circus. He continued to hone his craft by acting, directing and writing plays and performing a magic act at local area clubs that evolved into a stand-up comedy routine. Making the move to Los Angeles at age 21, Roebuck won stage roles in such presentations as the U.S. premiere of "Sarcophagus" at L.A.T.C., "No Time for Sergeants" and the world premiere stagings of "Holy Toledo" and "Who Killed Orson Welles."

He won praise for one of his first movie roles, the haunting, stoned-out teenage murderer, in Tim Hunter's searing drama, "River's Edge." In addition to his co-starring role in "The Fugitive," Roebuck has appeared in such motion pictures as "Disorganized Crime," "Project X," "Only You," "Dudes," "House Arrest," "Together Alone," "Driven" and "Cave Girl."

A familiar face to fans of the hit TV series "Matlock," in which he played legal assistant Clifford Lewis opposite star Andy Griffith for three seasons, Roebuck has logged roles in such telefilms as "Caught in the Crossfire," "Runaway Father," the small screen remake of "The Dirty Dozen" and "The Killing Mind" on Lifetime. He also shared a small piece of television history with a role in the episode of "Star Trek: The Next Generation" which resurrected Leonard Nimoy's Mr. Spock and introduced the new TV series.

TOM WOOD (Newman) has worked with several renowned directors, including Barry Levinson ("Avalon"), Ron Howard ("Apollo 13"), Nora Ephron ("This Is My Life") and Andrew Davis ("Under Siege," "The Fugitive," "Steal Big, Steal Little"). He co-starred opposite Peter Fonda in Victor Nunez's drama, "Ulee's Gold," and also recently completed a starring role opposite Joe Pantoliano in Tony Spiridakis' "Self Storage," which premiered at last year's Montreal Film Festival.

Wood received his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Pittsburgh's Carnegie Mellon University and studied acting at New York's Playwright's Horizons. He starred in the Broadway production of Harold Pinter's "No Man's Land" at the Roundabout Theatre and Off- Broadway in "The Palace of Amateurs," opposite Laura Dern, at the Minetta Lane. He toured with Des McAnuff's production of "Shout Up A Morning" which enjoyed a run at the LaJolla Playhouse in San Diego and the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.

On television, the Southern California native has guest-starred on several series, including "The Wonder Years," "The Powers That Be," "Brooklyn Bridge" and "China Beach." His telefilm credits include "Too Young the Hero" for CBS and "Black Widow Murders" on NBC.

LATANYA RICHARDSON (Cooper) hails from Atlanta, where she began her professional acting career at 14. Discovered by the legendary theater producer Joseph Papp, she moved to New York at his insistence, and appeared in several plays for his New York Shakespeare Festival, including "Casanova," "Spell #7," "Unfinished Women" and the critically-acclaimed "For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Is Enuf."

She continued honing her craft on the stage, with appearances in "Charlotte's Web" at Lincoln Center, the Negro Ensemble Company's "From the Mississippi Delta," "The Talented Tenth" at the Manhattan Theatre Club and with various performance art groups nationally and internationally.

After spending 15 years in Harlem with her husband, actor Samuel L. Jackson, and daughter, Zoe, she moved with her family to Los Angeles to star in the CBS series "Frannie's Turn." Other television credits include guest-starring roles on "NYPD Blue," "Homicide," "Chicago Hope," "Party of Five," "Civil Wars," "Law and Order," "Sesame Street" and "Dream Street." She also had a recurring role on the daytime serial "One Life to Live."

She recently finished voices for Ken Burns' upcoming PBS special "Jazz," having also worked with Burns on his other two successes "The Civil War" and "Baseball."

Her motion picture credits include "Lone Star," "Losing Isaiah," "When A Man Loves A Woman," "Sleepless in Seattle," "Lorenzo's Oil," "Juice," "Malcolm X," "Fried Green Tomatoes," "Hangin' with the Homeboys" and "Julian Po."

MICHAEL PAUL CHAN (Chen) began his association with producer Arnold Kopelson on his controversial drama, "Falling Down," directed by Joel Schumacher, playing a Korean grocer terrorized by Michael Douglas' emotionally drained sociopath. He also appeared for Schumacher in "Batman Forever" and "Batman & Robin." Chan's other motion-picture credits include Michael Mann's "Thief," Richard Donner's "Maverick" and "The Goonies," Oliver Stone's "Heaven and Earth" and Wayne Wang's critically acclaimed "The Joy Luck Club."

Chan grew up in the San Francisco Bay area, and studied his profession at the famed American Conservatory Theatre. He made his professional debut in Frank Chin's play, "Year of the Dragon" with the Asian American Theatre Company in San Francisco, and has also appeared in such stage productions as "Woman Warrior" at the Doolittle, "Family Devotions" at the New York Shakespeare Festival, "Hedda Gabler" with the East-West Players and "Made in Bangkok" at L.A.'s Mark Taper Forum. In all, he has appeared in more than 100 plays at various Los Angeles theaters.

On television, Chan starred in the American Playhouse presentation of Nancy Kelly's "Thousand Pieces of Gold" on PBS, and such telefilms as "Sudden Terror: The Hijacking of School Bus #17," "Dangerous Heart," "Stranger on My Land" and "Honor Thy Father and Mother." His guest-starring appearances include such series as "Party of Five," "Lois and Clark," "Nash Bridges," "Murder, She Wrote," "The Wonder Years," "Knots Landing," "Tour of Duty," "Northern Exposure," "Brooklyn South," "Michael Hayes" and Jerry Bruckheimer's "Soldier of Fortune" among others. He also starred in the series pilots for "Tropical Heat" and "Hell."

Back to "U.S. Marshals"

Suggestions? Comments? Fill out our Feedback Form.