Michael Rooker
Michael Rooker | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Rooker in February 2015 | |
| Born | April 6, 1955 |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1986–present |
| Spouse | Margot Rooker |
| Children | 2 |
Michael Rooker (born April 6, 1955)[1] is an American actor, best known for his roles as Chick Gandil in Eight Men Out, Henry in Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, Merle Dixon in The Walking Dead, Yondu Udonta in Guardians of the Galaxy, Frank Bailey in Mississippi Burning, Bill Broussard in JFK, Hal Tucker in Cliffhanger and Jared Svenning in Mallrats.
Early life
Michael Rooker was born in Jasper, Alabama. He has eight brothers and sisters. His parents divorced when he was 13 years old, and he moved with his mother and siblings to Chicago, Illinois, where he studied at the Goodman School of Drama.[2][3][4]
Career
Rooker made his film debut in 1986, playing the title role in Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, a film based on the confessions of serial killer Henry Lee Lucas.[5] He was acting in a play when the director of the play, who was going to do the prosthetics for Henry, told him about the film. Rooker did not care if the script was good or bad, he just wanted to act in a film as it would "challenge" himself.[6] Henry was a critical success and got Rooker noticed in the filmmaking industry, which led to his receiving more film roles.
Rooker was given more dramatic roles in films such as Eight Men Out, Mississippi Burning, and JFK, but he became widely known for his roles in action and thriller films such as Sea of Love, Days of Thunder, Cliffhanger,[7] and Tombstone.[8] He also starred in Mallrats, Rosewood, The 6th Day, Slither, Jumper, Super[9] and Hypothermia.[10][11]
In June 2010, he revealed via Twitter that he was to appear in the AMC television series The Walking Dead as Merle Dixon, one of the survivors of a zombie apocalypse. He guest starred in two episodes of the first season and one of the second season before finally becoming a series regular for the third season.[12][13]
Rooker is also known for his roles in video games such as Call of Duty: Black Ops (where he played himself), Mike Harper in Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 in November 2012, and voiced Merle in The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct, the video game based on the television series.
Rooker played Yondu in the Marvel Studios film Guardians of the Galaxy, which was directed by James Gunn.[14] Rooker announced at the Wizard World Tulsa Comic Con that he will reprise his role as Yondu in the announced Guardians of the Galaxy 2 in 2017.[15]
Personal life
Rooker lives in Tujunga, California, and is married to Margot Rooker. They have two daughters.[1]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer | Henry | Fantasporto Award for Best Actor Golden Space Needle Award for Best Actor Nominated – Independent Spirit Award for Best Male Lead |
| 1987 | Light of Day | Oogie | |
| 1987 | Rent-A-Cop | Joe | |
| 1988 | Above the Law | Man in bar | |
| 1988 | Eight Men Out | Arnold "Chick" Gandil | |
| 1988 | Mississippi Burning | Frank Bailey | |
| 1989 | Sea of Love | Terry Cruger | |
| 1989 | Music Box | Karchy Laszlo | |
| 1990 | Days of Thunder | Rowdy Burns | |
| 1991 | JFK | Bill Broussard | |
| 1993 | The Dark Half | Sheriff Alan Pangborn | |
| 1993 | Cliffhanger | Hal Tucker | |
| 1993 | Tombstone | Sherman McMasters | |
| 1994 | Suspicious | Attendant | Short film |
| 1994 | The Hard Truth | Jonah Mantz | |
| 1995 | Mallrats | Jared Svenning | |
| 1996 | Bastard Out of Carolina | Uncle Earle | |
| 1996 | The Trigger Effect | Gary | |
| 1996 | Back to Back | Bob Malone | |
| 1997 | Song of Hiawatha | Bertrand | |
| 1997 | Rosewood | Sheriff Walker | |
| 1997 | Keys to Tulsa | Keith Michaels | |
| 1997 | Deceiver | Kennesaw | |
| 1998 | The Replacement Killers | Stan "Zeedo" Zedkov | |
| 1997 | Shadow Builder | Father Vassey | |
| 1998 | Brown's Requiem | Fritz Brown | Also associate producer |
| 1998 | Renegade Force | Matt Cooper | |
| 1999 | A Table for One | Matt Draper/Dr. Matthew Swan | Also co-executive producer |
| 1999 | The Bone Collector | Captain Howard Cheney | |
| 2000 | Table One | Rowdy | |
| 2000 | Here on Earth | Malcolm Arnold | |
| 2000 | NewsBreak | John McNamara | |
| 2000 | The 6th Day | Robert Marshall | |
| 2001 | Replicant | Det. Jake Riley | |
| 2002 | Undisputed | AJ Mercker | |
| 2003 | The Box | Det. Stafford | |
| 2004 | The Eliminator | Miles Dawson | |
| 2005 | Chasing Ghosts | Mark Spencer | |
| 2006 | Repo! The Genetic Opera | Repo Man | Short film |
| 2006 | Lenexa, 1 Mile | Russ | |
| 2006 | Slither | Grant Grant | |
| 2007 | Whisper | Sidney | |
| 2008 | The Lena Baker Story | Randolph County Sheriff | |
| 2008 | Jumper | William Rice | |
| 2008 | This Man's Life | Richard Crummly | Short film |
| 2009 | Super Capers | Judge/Dark Winged Vesper | |
| 2009 | Penance | Mann | |
| 2009 | The Marine 2 | Church | Direct-to-DVD |
| 2010 | Scott's Dead | Mitch | Short film |
| 2010 | Freeway Killer | Detective St. John | |
| 2010 | Blood Done Sign My Name | Defense Attorney Billy Watkins | |
| 2010 | Cell 213 | Ray Clement | |
| 2010 | DC Showcase: Jonah Hex | Red Doc (voice) | Short film |
| 2010 | Louis | Pat McMurphy | |
| 2010 | Super | Abe | |
| 2011 | Atlantis Down | Father/Alien | |
| 2011 | Mysteria | Captain McCarthy | |
| 2011 | Elwood | Condello | Short film |
| 2012 | The Lost Episode | Director | |
| 2012 | Hypothermia | Ray Pelletier | |
| 2013 | Brother's Keeper | Chief Carver | |
| 2014 | Guardians of the Galaxy | Yondu | |
| 2016 | Bolden! | Pat McMurphy | Post-production |
| 2016 | The Belko Experiment | Bud Melks | Post-production |
| 2017 | Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 | Yondu | Filming |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Crime Story | Lieutenant | Episode: "Pilot" |
| 1988 | The Equalizer | Bill Whitaker | Episode: "No Place Like Home" |
| 1989 | Gideon Oliver | Det. John Quinn | Episode: "Sleep Well, Professor Oliver" |
| 1989 | The Edge | Deputy Sheriff | Television film |
| 1989 | L.A. Takedown | Bosko | Television film |
| 1990 | Equal Justice | Wallace 'Wally' Dalton | Episode: "Sugar Blues" |
| 1992 | Afterburn | Casey "Z" Zankowski | Television film |
| 1995 | Fallen Angels | Babe McCloor | Episode: "Fly Paper" |
| 1995 | Johnny & Clyde | Frank Tennant | Television film |
| 2001 | The Outer Limits | Col. Beckett | Episode: "Patient Zero" |
| 2001 | Hostage Rescue Team | Special Agent Nicholas Roberts | Pilot |
| 2002 | Jeremiah | Major Quantrell | Episode: "Firewall" |
| 2003 | Tremors | Kinney | Episode: "Hit and Run" |
| 2003 | Lucky | Gibby | Episode: "Savant" |
| 2003 | Stargate SG-1 | Col. Edwards | Episode: "Enemy Mine" |
| 2003 | CSI: Miami | Marty Jones | Episode: "Dead Zone" |
| 2003 | On Thin Ice | Hopkins | Television film |
| 2003 | Saving Jessica Lynch | Col. Curry | Television film |
| 2004 | Skeleton Man | Capt. Leary | Television film |
| 2004 | Las Vegas | Marcus Wexler | Episode: "Degas Away with It" |
| 2005 | Numb3rs | Don's partner | Unaired pilot |
| 2005 | JAG | Capt. Jack Ramsey | Episode: "Heart of Darkness" |
| 2006 | Thief | Det. John Hayes | 5 episodes |
| 2007 | Crossing Jordan | Shawn Curaco | Episode: "D.O.A." |
| 2008 | Law & Order | Jamie Yost | Episode: "Executioner" |
| 2008 | Shark | Oscar Riddick | Episode: "Bar Fight" |
| 2008 | Chuck | Mauser | Episode: "Chuck Versus Santa Claus" |
| 2008 | Humanzee! | Priest | Episode: "Pilot" |
| 2009 | Meteor | Calvin Stark | 2 episodes |
| 2009 | Criminal Minds | Chief Carlson | Episode: "House on Fire" |
| 2009 | Psych | Garth Longmore | Episode: "Shawn Takes a Shot in the Dark" |
| 2010 | Burn Notice | Dale Lawson | Episode: "Guilty as Charged" |
| 2010 | Matadors | John Canterna | Pilot |
| 2010–2013 | The Walking Dead | Merle Dixon | 14 episodes Satellite Award for Best Cast – Television Series (2012) |
| 2012 | Outlaw Country | Larkin's henchman | Television film |
| 2012 | Archer | Sheriff EZ Ponder (voice) | Episode: "Bloody Ferlin" |
Video games
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay | Centurion / Jack (voices) | |
| 2006 | Scarface: The World is Yours | Various voices | |
| 2011 | Call of Duty: Black Ops | Himself (voice) | Call of The Dead DLC |
| 2011 | Days of Thunder | Rowdy Burns (voice) | |
| 2012 | Lollipop Chainsaw | Vikke (voice) | |
| 2012 | Call of Duty: Black Ops II | Mike Harper (voice) | Also provides motion capture |
| 2013 | The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct | Merle Dixon (voice) |
References
- ^ a b "Michael Rooker". TVGuide.com. Retrieved July 19, 2014.
- ^ "'They' Command You to Score New TP/HC From Image". BloodyDisgusting.
- ^ Michael Rooker Biography - Yahoo! Movies
- ^ [1]
- ^ "Dark Sky's Hypothermia is Rolling! Full Casting News". DreadCentral.
- ^ "Michael Rooker Discusses 'Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer'". Yahoo.
- ^ "A Chat with Horror Icon Michael Rooker". DreadCentral.
- ^ "TV: Michael Rooker Becomes One of 'The Walking Dead'!". BloodyDisgusting.
- ^ "Blood-Soaked Snow in First Hi-Res Look at 'Hypothermia'". BloodyDisgusting.
- ^ "Michael Rooker Scores Leading Role in Dark Sky's 'Hypothermia'!". BloodyDisgusting.
- ^ "First Look at Michael Rooker on the Set of 'Hypothermia'!". BloodyDisgusting.
- ^ "Michael Rooker Joining AMC's The Walking Dead". DreadCentral.
- ^ "Michael Rooker interview (Merle Dixon on "The Walking Dead")". The Desk of Brian.
- ^ "Michael Rooker Joins 'Guardians Of The Galaxy'". Deadline.com. April 16, 2013. Archived from the original on April 16, 2013. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "Michael Rooker Says Yondu Will Return for Guardians of the Galaxy 2". Renegade Cinema.
External links
