Dylan Baker

For the baseball player, see Dylan Baker (baseball).

Dylan Baker
Baker in February 2008
Born	(1959-10-07) October 7, 1959 Syracuse, New York, U.S.
Alma mater	College of William and Mary Southern Methodist University Yale University
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1986–present
Spouse	Becky Ann Baker (1990–present)
Children	Willa

Dylan Baker (born October 7, 1959) is an American actor, known for playing supporting roles in both major studio and independent films along with regular work in television and on stage.

Early life and education

Baker was born in Syracuse, New York, but was raised in Lynchburg, Virginia. He began his acting career as a teenager in regional theater productions. He attended Holy Cross Regional Catholic School and then went on to attend Darlington School and finally graduated from the Georgetown Preparatory School in 1976.

Baker attended the College of William and Mary in Virginia and later graduated from Southern Methodist University in 1980. Baker then received a Masters in Fine Arts from the Yale School of Drama, where he studied alongside Chris Noth and Patricia Clarkson.

Career

Baker's Broadway theatre credits include Eastern Standard, La Bête, Mauritius, and God of Carnage. He won an Obie Award in 1986 for his performance in the off-Broadway play Not About Heroes.

The next year, he made his motion picture debut in the 1987 film Planes, Trains and Automobiles.

Baker's first recurring TV role was on Steven Bochco's highly acclaimed Murder One. Since then, he has appeared in such TV series as Northern Exposure, Law & Order, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Without a Trace, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, The West Wing, and the short-lived sitcom The Pitts.

He garnered major critical attention in 1998 with his performance as a tormented pedophile in Todd Solondz's Happiness. He also gained notice for his portrayal of Dr. Curt Connors in Spider-Man 2 and Spider-Man 3.

In 2000, he portrayed Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara in Thirteen Days, a historical drama about the Cuban Missile Crisis. He also held a small role in Requiem for a Dream, where he played a doctor who sees Jared Leto's character with a severely infected, rotting arm. In 2002 he portrayed Alexander Rance, an accountant for the Chicago Outfit, in Road to Perdition.

During the short-lived 2007 series Drive, Baker played the role of John Trimble, a father suffering from a terminal illness.

In 2009, Baker played William Cross in NBC's Kings, in which his wife Becky Ann Baker played Jessie Shepherd, the mother of protagonist David Shepherd. Baker also guest starred in an episode of Monk, playing a theater critic in "Mr. Monk and the Critic".

Baker guest starred in the November 2010 House episode "A Pox on Our House".

Baker guest starred in the season four finale of Burn Notice as Raines, an old spy friend of Michael's. He reprised the role in the season five premiere, and also permitted his likeness to be used in the Burn Notice graphic novel "A New Day". In 2010, Baker played Hollis B. Chenery in Secretariat.

Baker played Pashto-speaking CIA agent Jerry Boorman in season 4 of Damages.

In 2012, Baker guest-starred in "Upper West Side Story", an episode of the TV series White Collar; he also has a recurring role as the father of Katharine McPhee's character Karen Cartwright on the NBC TV series Smash. He appeared in the USA Network miniseries Political Animals which aired in summer 2012. For his performance as Colin Sweeney on The Good Wife, he was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series in 2010, 2012, and 2014.

In November 2014 it was announced that Baker will join Helen Mirren on Broadway in The Audience. The play depicts meetings between Queen Elizabeth II and important historical figures. Baker will play former Prime Minister John Major. The play opened on March 8, 2015.

Audiobooks

Baker is a prolific narrator of audiobooks, having narrated a wide range of books, from fiction (The Grapes of Wrath, The Corrections) to biographies (Steve Jobs) to Argo, the true story of how six Americans were rescued from Iran, by the CIA and Hollywood.

Dylan garnered the 2002 Audie Award for Abridged Fiction for his reading of The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen. Baker has also recorded Jonathan Franzen's latest novel, (Purity).

Personal life

In 1990, he married actress Becky Gelke, now known professionally as Becky Ann Baker. They have a daughter, Willa, and reside in New York City.

On September 1, 2015, Baker tried to save the life of his neighbor, Broadway and movie actress and dancer Vivien Eng, in the high-rise where he lives in New York City when her apartment caught fire but was driven back by smoke and fire. Firefighters eventually got the seriously injured woman out of the apartment and rushed to the hospital. Unfortunately her injuries were too severe and she succumbed to her injuries September 3, 2015.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1986	A Case of Deadly Force	Kevin O'Donnell	Television movie
1987	Planes, Trains & Automobiles	Owen
1988	The Wizard of Loneliness	Duffy Kahler
1990	The Long Walk Home	Tunker Thompson
1990	Judgement	Father Delambre	Television movie
1991	Delirious	Blake Hedison
1992	Passed Away	Unsworth
1992	The Last of the Mohicans	Capt. De Bougainville
1992	Love Potion No. 9	Prince Geoffrey
1993	Love, Honor & Obey: The Last Mafia Marriage
1993	Life with Mikey	Mr. Burns
1994	Disclosure	Philip Blackburn
1995	The Stars Fell on Henrietta	Alex Wilde
1996	True Blue	Michael Suarez, S.J.
1998	Happiness	Bill Maplewood	Gotham Award for Best Breakthrough Performance National Board of Review Award for Best Cast Nominated—Independent Spirit Award for Best Male Lead Nominated—New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor
1998	Celebrity	Priest at Catholic Retreat
1999	Simply Irresistible	Jonathan Bendel
1999	Random Hearts	Richard Judd
1999	Oxygen	FBI Agent Jackson Lantham
2000	Committed	Carl's Editor
2000	Requiem for a Dream	Southern Doctor
2000	The Cell	Henry West
2000	Thirteen Days	Robert McNamara
2001	The Tailor of Panama	General Dusenbaker
2001	Along Came a Spider	Ollie McArthur
2002	Road to Perdition	Alexander Rance
2002	A Gentleman's Game	Mr. Price
2002	Changing Lanes	Finch
2003	Head of State	Martin Geller
2003	How to Deal	Steve Beckwith
2003	Rick	Buck
2003	The Elizabeth Smart Story	Ed Smart	Television movie
2004	Spider-Man 2	Dr. Curt Connors
2004	Kinsey	Alan Gregg
2006	The Matador	Lovell
2006	Stealing Martin Lane	Parker Banks
2006	Hide and Seek	Sheriff Hafferty
2006	Fido	Bill Robinson
2006	Let's Go to Prison	Warden
2007	When a Man Falls	Bill
2007	Spider-Man 3	Curt Connors
2007	The Hunting Party	CIA Operative
2007	Across the Universe	Mr. Carrigan – Lucy's Father
2007	The Stone Angel	Marvin Shipley
2007	Trick 'r Treat	Principal Steven Wilkins	Fangoria Chainsaw Award for Best Supporting Actor
2008	Diminished Capacity	Mad Dog McClure
2008	Revolutionary Road	Jack Ordway	Palm Springs International Film Festival Award for Best Cast
2009	Under New Management	Legal Aid Lawyer
2010	Secretariat	Hollis Chenery
2011	About Sunny	Max
2012	2 Days in New York	Ron
2013	23 Blast	Larry Freeman	Director
2013	Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues	Freddy Shapp
2014	Turks & Caicos	Gary Bethwaite
2014	The Humbling	Dr. Farr
2014	Selma	J. Edgar Hoover	Nominated—Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Acting Ensemble Nominated—San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Cast Nominated—Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Ensemble
2015	Actor Seeks Role	Dr. Freidman	Short film
2015	America Is Still the Place	Mr. Bennett
2015	Applesauce	Stevie Bricks
2015	Nightfire	Olivetti	Short film
2016	Confirmation	Orrin Hatch	TV movie

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1988	The Murder of Mary Phagan	—	2 episodes
1988	Miami Vice	Lt. Edward Jerell	Episode: "Honor Among Thieves?"
1988	Spenser: For Hire	Sam Reynolds	Episode: "Substantial Justice"
1988	American Playhouse	—	Episode: "Journey Into Genius"
1991	Law & Order	Sean Hyland	Episode: "His Hour Upon the Stage"
1993	Return to Lonesome Dove	Nigel Winston, Cattleman's Alliance	3 episodes
1993	Northern Exposure	Jeffy O'Connell	Episode: "Grosse Pointe, 48230"
1995–96	Murder One	Det. Arthur Polson	18 episodes
1997	Feds	Jack Gaffney	Episode: "Smoking Gun"
1998	Law & Order	Aaron Downing	Episode: "Flight"
1998	Oz	Schillinger's Defense Attorney	Episode: "Great Men"
2000	Strangers with Candy	Minister Arsenew	Episode: "Is Freedom Free?"
2001	Big Apple	Inspector Bob Cooper	2 episodes
2001	The Practice	Sen. Keith Ellison	2 episodes
2001	CSI: Crime Scene Investigation	Father Powell	Episode: "Alter Boys"
2003	The Pitts	Bob Pitt	7 episodes
2003	The West Wing	Attorney General Alan Fisk	Episode: "Abu el Banat"
2004–06	Law & Order	Sanford Rems	3 episodes
2004	Third Watch	Councilman Daniels	Episode: "Broken"
2004	Life as We Know It	Roland Conner	2 episodes
2005	Without a Trace	Brian Stone	Episode: "Manhunt"
2006	The Book of Daniel	Roger Paxton	6 episodes
2007	Drive	John Trimble	6 episodes
2009	Kings	William Cross	12 episodes
2009	Law & Order: Special Victims Unit	Henry Muller	Episode: "Major Case"
2009	Monk	John Hannigan	Episode: "Mr. Monk and the Critic"
2009	Ugly Betty	Bennett Wallis	3 episodes
2010–15	The Good Wife	Colin Sweeney	8 episodes Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series (2010, 2012, 2014)
2010	House	Dr. Dave Broda	Episode: "A Pox on Our House"
2010–11	Burn Notice	Raines	2 episodes
2011	Damages	Jerry Boorman	10 episodes Nominated—Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Guest Performer in a Drama Series
2012	White Collar	Andy Woods	Episode: "Upper West Side Story"
2012	Political Animals	Fred Collier	5 episodes
2012–13	Smash	Roger Cartwright	3 episodes
2013	Zero Hour	FBI Chief Terrence Fisk	3 episodes
2013–14	Chicago Fire	Dr. David Arata	2 episodes
2014	Chicago P.D.	Dr. David Arata	Episode: "8:30 PM"
2015	The Mentalist	Bill Peterson	2 episodes
2016	The Americans	William Crandall	8 episodes
2016	Blindspot	FBI Director Pellington	Episode: "If Love a Rebel, Death Will Render"

External links

• Dylan Baker at IMDb
• Dylan Baker at AllMovie