Justin Kirk (born May 28, 1969) is an American actor. He is best known for portraying Prior Walter in

Mike Nichols Mike Nichols (born Michael Igor Peschkowsky; November 6, 1931 – November 19, 2014) was an American film and theater director, producer, actor, and comedian. He was noted for his ability to work across a range of genres and for his aptitude fo ...

's screen adaptation of ''

Angels in America ''Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes'' is a two-part play by American playwright Tony Kushner. The work won numerous awards, including the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, the Tony Award for Best Play, and the Drama Desk Award f ...

'', for which he was nominated for the

Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie This is a list of winners and nominees of the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie. Before 1975, supporting actors featured in a miniseries or movie were included in categories such as co ...

, losing to costar Jeffrey Wright. Kirk is also known for his portrayal of

Andy Botwin This is a list of characters from the television series '' Weeds''. Nancy Botwin's family Nancy Botwin Nancy Botwin ( Mary-Louise Parker, leading character)—also known as Lacey LaPlante (season two) and Nathalie Newman (season six)—was a PT ...

on the series '' Weeds''.

Early years

Kirk was born in

Salem, Oregon Salem ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of Oregon, and the county seat of Marion County. It is located in the center of the Willamette Valley alongside the Willamette River, which runs north through the city. The river forms the boundary bet ...

. His mother was of

Russian-Jewish The history of the Jews in Russia and areas historically connected with it goes back at least 1,500 years. Jews in Russia have historically constituted a large religious and ethnic diaspora; the Russian Empire at one time hosted the largest pop ...

descent and his father was of Danish and

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

ancestry. Kirk grew up in

Union, Washington Union or Union City is a small census-designated place in Mason County, Washington, United States. The community lies along the southern shore of the Great Bend of the Hood Canal, near the mouth of the Skokomish River, which flows from the near ...

, where he attended a grade school on a Native American reservation, until his family moved to

Minneapolis, Minnesota Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origi ...

, when he was 12 years old. He attended high school there and performed at

Children's Theatre Company The Children's Theatre Company is a regional theater established in 1965 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, specializing in plays for families, young audiences and the very young. The theater is the largest theater for multigenerational audiences in ...

. He moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

after graduating. Kirk played guitar in several New York bands in the early 1990s, most notably The Dimestore Darlings. He completed a two-year conservatory acting program at

Circle in the Square Theatre School Circle in the Square Theatre School is a non-profit, tax exempt drama school associated with Circle in the Square Theatre; it is the only accredited conservatory attached to a Broadway theatre. It offers two 2-year full-time programs: a Professio ...

Career

His first role on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

was a play called ''Any Given Day'', which was performed at the

Longacre Theatre The Longacre Theatre is a Broadway theater at 220 West 48th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States. Opened in 1913, it was designed by Henry B. Herts and was named for Longacre Square, now known ...

. He appeared in ''

Love! Valour! Compassion! ''Love! Valour! Compassion!'' is a play by Terrence McNally. The play opened Off-Broadway in 1994 and transferred to Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in pr ...

'' both in the film and in the original stage version – for which he received an

Obie Award The Obie Awards or Off-Broadway Theater Awards are annual awards originally given by ''The Village Voice'' newspaper to theatre artists and groups in New York City. In September 2014, the awards were jointly presented and administered with the ...

for Distinguished Performance in the Ensemble. He also appeared in '' Other Desert Cities'' with

Stockard Channing Stockard Channing (born Susan Antonia Williams Stockard; February 13, 1944) is an American actress. She is known for playing Betty Rizzo in the film '' Grease'' (1978) and First Lady Abbey Bartlet in the NBC television series '' The West Wing'' ...

Judith Light Judith Ellen Light (born February 9, 1949) is an American actress. She made her professional stage debut in 1970, before making her Broadway debut in the 1975 revival of ''A Doll's House''. Her breakthrough role was in the ABC daytime soap opera ...

, and

Stacy Keach Walter Stacy Keach Jr. (born June 2, 1941) is an American actor and narrator. He has played mainly dramatic roles throughout his career, often in law enforcement or as a private detective. His most prominent role was as Mickey Spillane's fiction ...

. He won a

Backstage Backstage most commonly refers to backstage (theatre), also in motion picture and television production. Backstage may also refer to: Film and television * ''Back Stage'' (1969 film), a silent film starring Oliver Hardy * ''Back Stage'' (1942 fil ...

West Garland Award for Outstanding Performance for his role as a piano prodigy in '' Old Wicked Songs'', staged at New York's Promenade Theater and Los Angeles' Geffen Playhouse. Kirk's other films include ''

Flannel Pajamas ''Flannel Pajamas'' is a 2006 American drama film written and directed by Jeff Lipsky. It stars Justin Kirk and Julianne Nicholson. The plot charts the course of a short-lived marriage, from its passionate beginning through the daily erosion of fe ...

'', ''Chapter Zero'', ''The Eden Myth'', ''Puccini for Beginners'', and ''Call o' the Glen''. He made his television series debut in ''

Jack & Jill "Jack and Jill" (sometimes "Jack and Gill", particularly in earlier versions) is a traditional English nursery rhyme. The Roud Folk Song Index classifies the commonest tune and its variations as number 10266, although it has been set to severa ...

''. He starred as

on the Showtime

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed be ...

'' Weeds'' alongside former ''

'' co-star

Mary-Louise Parker Mary-Louise Parker (born August 2, 1964) is an American actress. After making her Broadway debut as Rita in Craig Lucas' '' Prelude to a Kiss'' in 1990 (for which she received a Tony Award nomination), Parker came to prominence for film roles i ...

. In 2017 Kirk starred in the procedural drama '' APB'', which was cancelled by Fox after its first season.

Filmography

Film

Television

Stage

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kirk, Justin 1969 births 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors American male film actors American male stage actors American male television actors American male voice actors American people of Danish descent American people of English descent American people of Russian-Jewish descent Circle in the Square Theatre School alumni Jewish American male actors Living people Male actors from Salem, Oregon Obie Award recipients 21st-century American Jews