Ed Harris

Harris began his career onstage, appearing in the world premiere of Thomas Rickman’s Baalam at the Pasadena Repertory Theatre in 1976, followed by the West Coast premiere of Tennessee Williams’ Kingdom of Earth that same year. He made his film debut in Coma (1978), followed by Borderline (1980), Knightriders (1981) and Creepshow (1982). He also worked steadily in television during the late 1970s and early 1980s, appearing in series including The Rockford Files, Lou Grant, CHiPs, Hart to Hart and American Playhouse.

Harris gained recognition portraying astronaut John Glenn in The Right Stuff (1983). He subsequently appeared in Places in the Heart (1984), Swing Shift (1984), Sweet Dreams (1985), Walker (1987), The Last Innocent Man (1987), To Kill a Priest (1988), Jacknife (1989) and The Abyss (1989). He also appeared on Broadway in Precious Sons in 1986, earning a Tony Award nomination, and later returned to Broadway in Taking Sides (1996).

During the 1990s, Harris appeared in Glengarry Glen Ross (1992), The Firm (1993), Needful Things (1993), China Moon (1994), Just Cause (1995), Nixon (1995), Apollo 13 (1995), Riders of the Purple Sage (1996), Eye for an Eye (1996), The Rock (1996), Absolute Power (1997), The Truman Show (1998) and Stepmom (1998). His performance in Apollo 13 earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor, while his role in The Truman Show earned him another Academy Award nomination and a Golden Globe Award.

Harris made his directorial debut with Pollock (2000), in which he also played artist Jackson Pollock. He received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for the film. He subsequently appeared in A Beautiful Mind (2001), Enemy at the Gates (2001), The Hours (2002), Radio (2003), Empire Falls (2005), A History of Violence (2005), Copying Beethoven (2006), Gone Baby Gone (2007), National Treasure: Book of Secrets (2007) and Appaloosa (2008), which he co-wrote, directed and starred in.

In 2010, Harris appeared in Once Fallen and The Way Back and provided the voice of Jason Hudson in Call of Duty: Black Ops. He appeared in Man on a Ledge (2012) and portrayed Senator John McCain in the HBO film Game Change (2012), earning a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy nomination. His subsequent film work included Pain & Gain (2013), Snowpiercer (2013), Sweetwater (2013), The Face of Love (2013), Gravity (2013), Planes: Fire & Rescue (2014), Cymbeline (2015) and Run All Night (2015).

Harris appeared in the stage production of Buried Child in 2016 and began playing the Man in Black in HBO’s Westworld that same year. He also appeared in Rules Don’t Apply (2016), Geostorm (2017), Mother! (2017) and Kodachrome (2017).

In 2019, Harris took over the role of Atticus Finch in Aaron Sorkin’s Broadway adaptation of To Kill a Mockingbird. He later appeared in The Lost Daughter (2021), Top Gun: Maverick (2022) and Love Lies Bleeding (2024). In 2024, Harris was announced as the writer and director of the feature-film adaptation of Kim Zupan’s novel The Ploughman, with Owen Teague, Nick Nolte, Bill Murray and Amy Madigan among the cast.