Peter Weller
Peter Weller | |
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![]() Peter Weller at the February 2014 Sci-Fi in Dallas, Texas | |
Born | Stevens Point, Wisconsin, United States | June 24, 1947
Alma mater | University of North Texas (B.A.) Syracuse University (M.A.) UCLA (Ph.D) |
Occupation(s) | Actor, television director, art historian |
Years active | 1973–present |
Spouse |
Sherri Stowe (m. 2006) |
Peter Frederick Weller (born June 24, 1947) is an American film and stage actor, television director, and art historian.
Weller has appeared in more than 70 films and television series, including turns as the title character in the blockbuster hit RoboCop and its sequel RoboCop 2, and the cult classic The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension.[1] He has also appeared in such critically acclaimed films as Woody Allen's Mighty Aphrodite, the Oliver Stone-produced The New Age and David Cronenberg's movie of William Burroughs's novel Naked Lunch. He received an Academy Award nomination for his direction of the 1993 short Partners, in which he also acted. In television, he hosted the show Engineering an Empire on the History Channel. He also played Christopher Henderson in the fifth season of 24 and Stan Liddy in the fifth season of the Showtime original series Dexter. Since 2012, Weller has been involved in the A&E (now Netflix) series Longmire both as a director and an actor.
Early life
Weller was born in Stevens Point, Wisconsin, the son of Dorothy Jean (née Davidson), a homemaker, and Frederick Bradford Weller, a lawyer, federal judge, and career helicopter pilot for the United States Army.[2][3] Weller had a "middle-class Catholic" upbringing.[4] As a result of his father's army work, Weller spent many years abroad during his childhood. His family lived in Germany for several years before eventually moving to Texas, where he attended Alamo Heights High School in San Antonio. While enrolled at North Texas State University (now the University of North Texas), he played trumpet in one of the campus bands. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre[5] and began his acting career after attending the American Academy of Dramatic Arts.[citation needed]
Career
Stage
Weller's stage career began in the 1970s with appearances on Broadway in Full Circle, directed by Otto Preminger, and Summer Brave, William Inge's rewrite of his play Picnic. About this time, he became a member of the famed Actors Studio.[6]
In December 2006, Weller starred as architect Frank Lloyd Wright at Chicago's Goodman Theatre in Frank's Home, a new play by Richard Nelson.
Film
Weller was in the 1984 film Firstborn with Christopher Collet, where he played the abusive boyfriend of Collet's mother (played by Teri Garr).
Weller has appeared in more than 50 films and television series, including turns as the title characters in the cult classic The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension, and blockbuster hits RoboCop and RoboCop 2,[1] as well as Star Trek Into Darkness in 2013. He has also appeared in such critically acclaimed films as Woody Allen's Mighty Aphrodite, the Oliver Stone-produced The New Age and David Cronenberg's movie of William Burroughs's novel Naked Lunch.
In 1995, he appeared in Screamers, a science-fiction film based on the short story "Second Variety" by Philip K. Dick and directed by Christian Duguay.
Television
In a 1977 episode of the television series Lou Grant, he plays Oberster SA-Führer Donald Sterner/Stryker, a tragically disillusioned Jewish-American Neo-Nazi leader who later committed suicide off-screen with his Colt 45 near the end of the episode when his heritage was discovered.
On television, he played the shuttle captain in the short-lived series Odyssey 5 and made guest appearances as Terran supremacist John Frederick Paxton in the Star Trek: Enterprise episodes "Demons", "Terra Prime" and in Fringe as the character Alistair Peck.
Weller was a contributor to the History Channel in several productions, credited as "Peter Weller, Syracuse University", where he was an adjunct faculty member. He was later a graduate student in art history at UCLA, focusing on the Italian Renaissance.
In 2005, Weller co-starred as the Captain in a made-for-television remake of The Poseidon Adventure.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d9/Peter_Weller_%28cropped%29.jpg/220px-Peter_Weller_%28cropped%29.jpg)
In 2006, Weller joined the cast of 24 as terrorist collaborator Christopher Henderson.[7] Weller received a "cheer" in TV Guide's "Cheers & Jeers" section for his performance.
On January 15, 2010, Weller was seen in a teaser trailer for the companion documentary God of War: Unearthing the Legend that was featured in the game God of War III which Weller also hosted.[8]
On April 15, 2010, Weller guest-starred in an episode of the science fiction drama Fringe. He also guest-starred on the Showtime original series Dexter,[9] and had a guest appearance in the December 22, 2010 episode of Psych; where he played villain "Yin"[10]
Since 2012, he's recurring as Lucien Connally on the crime drama television series Longmire.
In 2013, he played the part of the villain in the remake of the "Hookman" episode of the original Hawaii Five-O. The part was originally played in 1973 by J. J. Armes. In seasons six and seven of Sons of Anarchy, he plays the ruthless ex-cop Charles Barosky, a boss at the Stockton port and has dealings with the SAMCRO motorcycle club.
Directing
Weller has also directed various projects for television, including episodes of Homicide: Life on the Street, Monk and three episodes of the aforementioned Odyssey 5. He directed a 1997 adaptation of Elmore Leonard's Gold Coast starring David Caruso and Marg Helgenberger after previously starring in a version of Leonard's thriller Cat Chaser. He has directed eleven episodes of the series Sons of Anarchy, two in Season 4, titled "Dorylus" (air date 9/20/11) and "Hands", three in Season 5, titled "Authority Vested", "Toad's Wild Ride" and "Darthy", three in Season 6, titled "One One Six", "Los Fantasmas" and "Aon Rud Pearsanta" and three in Season 7, titled "Some Strange Eruption", "What a Piece of Work Is Man" and "Suits of Woe". He has directed one episode each season of Longmire since 2012.
Voice acting
Weller voiced the character of Bruce Wayne/Batman in the two-part 2013 animated adaptation of The Dark Knight Returns.[11]
Personal life
In 2004, Weller completed a master's degree in Roman and Renaissance Art at Syracuse University and occasionally taught courses in ancient history at the university. In 2007, Weller began a Ph.D. at UCLA, in Italian Renaissance art history.[12] In October 2013 he filed his dissertation,[13] entitled "Alberti Before Florence: Early Sources Informing Leon Battista Alberti’s De pictura", and was awarded his doctorate in 2014.[14][15]
On June 24, 2006, he married longtime girlfriend and actress Sheri Stowe at the Santa Maria Assunta church in Positano, Italy. It was also Weller's 59th birthday. Guests among the wedding were Carrie Fisher and Marg Helgenberger.[16]
Awards and nominations
- (1988) Saturn Award for Best Actor – RoboCop
- (1992) Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role – Naked Lunch
- (1995) Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film – Partners- Nominated
- (2002) Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male – Ivans XTC
Filmography
Television
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1973 | The Man Without a Country | Lt. Fellows | |
1975 | The Silence | Red Sash | |
1977 | Lou Grant | Episode: "Nazi" - Donald Stryker | |
1983 | Kentucky Woman | Deke Cullover | |
1983 | Two Kinds of Love | Joe Farley | |
1986 | Apology | Rad Hungate | |
1990 | Women and Men: Stories of Seduction | Hobie | |
1994 | Partners | Doctor | Short film Nominated – Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film |
1994 | The Substitute Wife | Martin Hightower | |
1994 | Lakota Woman: Siege at Wounded Knee | Uncredited | |
1995 | Present Tense, Past Perfect | Charles | |
1990 | Rainbow Drive | Mike Gallagher | |
1997 | End of Summer | Theo Remmington | |
1997 | Gold Coast | — | Director and executive producer |
1998 | Tower of the Firstborn | John Shannon | |
2000 | Dark Prince: The True Story of Dracula | Father Stefan | |
2005 | The Poseidon Adventure | Captain Paul Gallico |
Television series
Year | Title | Role(s) | Channel | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
1977 | Lou Grant | Donald Stryker | CBS | Episode: "Nazi" |
1995–1996 | Homicide: Life on the Street | — | NBC | Director Episodes: "Hate Crimes", "White Lies" |
1997 | Michael Hayes | — | CBS | Director Episode: "The Doctor's Tale" |
2002–2003 | Odyssey 5 | Chuck Taggart | Space | 19 (20) episodes |
2005 | Star Trek: Enterprise | John Frederick Paxton | UPN | Episodes:
|
2006 | Monk | – | USA Network | Director Episode: "Mr. Monk, Private Eye" |
2006 | Monk | Actor playing Stottlemeyer | USA Network | Episode: "Mr. Monk and the Actor" |
2006 | 24 | Christopher Henderson | Fox | 11 episodes |
2007 | Las Vegas | — | NBC | Director Episode: "A Cannon Carol" |
2010 | Fringe | Scientist Alistair Peck | Fox | Episode: "White Tulip" |
2010 | Psych | Mr. Yin | USA Network | Episode: "Yang 3 in 2D" |
2010 | Dexter | Stan Liddy | Showtime | 8 episodes |
2013–2014 | Sons of Anarchy | Charles Barosky | FX | 10 episodes |
2012 | House | Dr. Penza | Fox | Episode: "Post Mortem" |
2012 | The Mob Doctor | — | Fox | Director Episode: "Confessions" |
2012–2015 | Longmire | Lucian Connally | A&E (TV channel) Netflix |
Also director 4 episodes |
2013 | Hawaii Five-0 | Curt Stoner | CBS | Episode: "Hookman" |
2013–2016 | Hawaii Five-0 | — | CBS | Director 7 episodes |
2014 | The Strain | — | FX | Director 3 episodes |
2014–2015 | Under the Dome | — | CBS | Director Episode: "The Red Door" (2014) Episode: "But I'm Not" (2015) |
2015-2016 | The Last Ship | — | TNT | Director Episode: "Uneasy Lies the Head" (2015) Episode: "Minefield" (2016) |
2015 | Tyrant | — | FX | Director Episode: "Zanjir" |
2015 | Sleepy Hollow | — | Fox | Director Episode: "I, Witness" |
Film
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1979 | Butch and Sundance: The Early Days | Joe Le Fors | |
1980 | Just Tell Me What You Want | Steven Routledge | |
1982 | Shoot the Moon | Frank Henderson | |
1983 | Of Unknown Origin | Bart Hughes | Paris Film Festival for Best Actor |
1984 | The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension | Buckaroo Banzai | |
1984 | Firstborn | Sam | |
1986 | A Killing Affair | Baston Morris | |
1987 | RoboCop | Officer Alex J. Murphy/RoboCop | Nominated – Saturn Award for Best Actor |
1988 | The Tunnel | Juan Pablo Castel | |
1988 | Shakedown | Roland Dalton | |
1989 | Leviathan | Steven Beck | |
1989 | Cat Chaser | George Moran | |
1990 | RoboCop 2 | RoboCop | |
1991 | Road to Ruin | Jack Sloan | |
1991 | Naked Lunch | William "Bill" Lee | Nominated – Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role |
1992 | Fifty/Fifty | Jake Wyer | |
1993 | Sunset Grill | Ryder Hart | |
1994 | The New Age | Peter Witner | |
1995 | Beyond the Clouds | Husband | |
1995 | Screamers | Joe Hendricksson | |
1995 | Mighty Aphrodite | Jerry Bender | |
1995 | Decoy | Baxter | |
1998 | Top of the World | Ray Mercer | |
1999 | Diplomatic Siege | Steve Mitchell | |
2000 | Shadow Hours | Stuart Chappell | |
2000 | Falling Through | Lou | |
2000 | Contaminated Man | Joseph Müller | |
2000 | Ivans Xtc | Don West | Nominated – Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male |
2001 | Styx | Nelson | |
2003 | The Order | Driscoll | |
2005 | Man of God | Rabbi | |
2005 | Undiscovered | Wick Treadway | |
2006 | The Hard Easy | Ed Koster | |
2007 | Prey | Tom Newman | |
2007 | Dating Vietnam | Jack Newton | |
2010 | Once Fallen | Eddie | |
2012 | Dragon Eyes | Mr. V | |
2012 | The Dark Knight Returns | Bruce Wayne/Batman | Direct-to-video animated film Voice role |
2013 | Star Trek Into Darkness | Alexander Marcus | |
2015 | Skin Trade | Costello |
References
- ^ a b "TV: 'RoboCop' Heads to Miami for 'Dexter'!".
- ^ "Peter Weller Biography (1947–)". Filmreference.com. 1947-06-24. Retrieved 2010-10-07.
- ^ "Obituaries". pcgazette.com. Archived from the original on 2003-03-20. Retrieved 2010-10-07.
- ^ "People Profile | Peter Weller". Cigar Aficionado. 1996-03-01. Retrieved 2010-10-07.
- ^ "2014 Emerald Eagle Honors Honorees". University of North Texas. Retrieved February 8, 2014.
- ^ "Movies & TV: Peter Weller". The New York Times. Retrieved May 9, 2012.
- ^ "Peter Weller Joins Showtime's 'Dexter'".
- ^ Chester, Nick. "Awesome: RoboCop to Host God of War Documentary".
- ^ "Peter Weller Joins Showtime's Dexter".
- ^ "'Psych' Season Finale Recap: Who Was Yin?".
- ^ "Animated THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS Cast Announced".
- ^ "An interview with Peter Weller". Theflorentine.net. 2007-10-18. Retrieved 2010-10-07.
- ^ Ebiri, Bilge (20 May 2013). "Peter Weller on Star Trek, Getting His Ph.D., and Defending J.J. Abrams". vulture.com. Retrieved 2013-08-21.
When is your dissertation due? 'I file it in October.'
- ^ "Ph.D. Recipients". 2014. Retrieved 2016-03-02.
- ^ "STLV: Pegg: Scotty Not A 'Clown' – Talks Accent & Star Trek 2016 + Weller: Marcus Not 'Villain' + more". TrekMovie.com. 3 August 2014.
Yes you read that sentence right: Dr. Peter Weller, who recently completed a PhD in Italian history. And he didn't let you forget it, including correcting one fan who addressed him as "Mister Weller."
- ^ "'Robocop' Star Weds in Italy". Zap2It. June 29, 2006. Retrieved February 8, 2014.
External links
- Peter Weller at IMDb
- Peter Weller at the Internet Broadway Database
- Peter Weller at the TCM Movie Database
- Peter Weller at AllMovie
- History Channel's Engineering an Empire site
- "RoboCop in Rome!" New York Daily News
- "RoboCop, PhD" Wired News
- "RoboCop speaks to Detroit" Funny Or Die
- 1947 births
- Male actors from Wisconsin
- Alamo Heights High School alumni
- American Academy of Dramatic Arts alumni
- American male film actors
- American male television actors
- American television directors
- Living people
- Military brats
- Male actors from San Antonio
- People from Stevens Point, Wisconsin
- Syracuse University alumni
- University of North Texas alumni
- 20th-century American male actors
- 21st-century American male actors
- University of California, Los Angeles alumni