Michael Rooker
Michael Rooker | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Rooker in 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 breakout role as Henry in Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1986), as well as his roles as Terry Cruger in Sea of Love (1989), Rowdy Burns in Days of Thunder (1990), Bill Broussard in JFK (1991), Hal Tucker in Cliffhanger (1993), Jared Svenning in Mallrats (1995), Merle Dixon in The Walking Dead (2010–2013) and Yondu Udonta in the Guardians of the Galaxy film series.
Early life
Michael Rooker was born in Jasper, Alabama. He has nine 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 play's director, 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" him.[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] He reprised his role as Yondu in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017).[15]
Personal life
Rooker lives in California, and is married to Margot Rooker. They have two daughters. Rooker holds a black belt in Kyokushin style of karate.[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 | |
| 1997 | Shadow Builder | Father Vassey | |
| 1998 | The Replacement Killers | Stan "Zeedo" Zedkov | |
| 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 (10-minute short used to pitch full-length film[16]) |
| 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 | The Belko Experiment | Bud Melks | |
| 2017 | Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 | Yondu |
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" |
| 2017 | SEAL Team | Big Chief | Episode: "Tip of the Spear" |
| Robot Chicken | Merle Dixon (voice) | Episode: "The Robot Chicken Walking Dead Special: Look Who’s Walking" |
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 motion capture |
| 2013 | The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct | Merle Dixon (voice) |
References
- ^ a b "Michael Rooker". TV Guide. Retrieved July 19, 2014.
- ^ "'They' Command You to Score New TP/HC From Image". Bloody Disgusting.
- ^ Michael Rooker Biography - Yahoo! Movies
- ^ Hardwick, Chris (December 20, 2011). "Nerdist Podcast #151: Michael Rooker". Nerdist.
- ^ "Dark Sky's Hypothermia is Rolling! Full Casting News". Dread Central.
- ^ "Michael Rooker Discusses 'Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer'". Yahoo. Archived from the original on 2013-11-02.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "A Chat with Horror Icon Michael Rooker". Dread Central.
- ^ "TV: Michael Rooker Becomes One of 'The Walking Dead'!". Bloody Disgusting.
- ^ "Blood-Soaked Snow in First Hi-Res Look at 'Hypothermia'". Bloody Disgusting.
- ^ "Michael Rooker Scores Leading Role in Dark Sky's 'Hypothermia'!". Bloody Disgusting.
- ^ "First Look at Michael Rooker on the Set of 'Hypothermia'!". Bloody Disgusting.
- ^ "Michael Rooker Joining AMC's The Walking Dead". Dread Central.
- ^ "Michael Rooker interview (Merle Dixon on "The Walking Dead")". The Desk of Brian. Archived from the original on 2013-11-03.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ "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.
- ^ "Truly Disturbing: Horror Icon of the Month: Michael Rooker | Michael Rooker Online". www.michaelrookeronline.com. Retrieved 2017-05-23.
External links
