Michael Anthony Claudio Wincott (born January 21, 1958) is a Canadian actor. His deep, raspy voice has often led to his being cast in villainous roles. Some of his best-known roles include

Guy of Gisborne Sir Guy of Gisbourne (also spelled Gisburne, Gisborne, Gysborne, or Gisborn) is a character from the Robin Hood legends of English folklore. He first appears in "Robin Hood and Guy of Gisborne" (Child Ballad 118), where he is an assassin who atte ...

in '' Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves'' (1991); Top Dollar, the main antagonist in '' The Crow'' (1994); music mogul Philo Gant in '' Strange Days'' (1995);

mercenary A mercenary, sometimes also known as a soldier of fortune or hired gun, is a private individual, particularly a soldier, that joins a military conflict for personal profit, is otherwise an outsider to the conflict, and is not a member of any ...

Frank Elgyn in '' Alien: Resurrection'' (1997); and

hacker A hacker is a person skilled in information technology who uses their technical knowledge to achieve a goal or overcome an obstacle, within a computerized system by non-standard means. Though the term ''hacker'' has become associated in popu ...

Adrian Cross on the TV

miniseries A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. "Limited series" is another more recent US term which is sometimes used interchangeably. , the popularity of miniseries format ...

'' 24: Live Another Day'' (2014).

Early life and education

Wincott was born in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

and grew up in an east end

suburb A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separ ...

. His father is English while his mother was from

Piacenza Piacenza (; egl, label= Piacentino, Piaṡëinsa ; ) is a city and in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy, and the capital of the eponymous province. As of 2022, Piacenza is the ninth largest city in the region by population, with over ...

, Italy. Wincott also has two brothers, one of whom is actor and martial artist

Jeff Wincott Jeffrey Wincott (born 8 May 1956) is a Canadian actor and martial artist best known for his lead role in the television series ''Night Heat.'' Wincott was also the star of several martial arts films in the 1990s. In 1996 he was named one of the ...

, a star of the late 80s TV series ''

Night Heat ''Night Heat'' is a Canadian police crime drama series that aired on both CTV in Canada and CBS in the United States. Original episodes were broadcast from 1985 to 1989. ''Night Heat'' was the first Canadian original drama series that was also a ...

''. In a 2014 interview with ''L'Uomo Vogue'' (the Italian edition of '' Men's Vogue'') Wincott said he fell in love with cinema as a young child and took drama classes in High School. He was educated at the Victoria University, a

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offerin ...

of the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

then in 1982 he enrolled at the

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a Private university, private performing arts music school, conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely ...

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 ...

, graduating in 1986. Wincott credited director

Des McAnuff Desmond Steven McAnuff (born June 19, 1952) is the American-Canadian former artistic director of Canada's Stratford Festival and director of such Broadway musical theatre productions as '' Big River'', '' The Who's Tommy'' and '' Jersey Boys''. ...

, as well as his father, with encouraging him to enroll at the prestigious acting school.

Career

In 1976, Wincott starred in his first film, titled ''Earthbound'', as Cole Buckley, a troubled teenager living in a small

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

town. Actors

Kate Reid Daphne Katherine Reid (4 November 1930 – 27 March 1993) was an English-born Canadian stage, film, and television actress. She played more than one thousand roles, most notably onstage in '' Death of a Salesman'', in the 1980 film ''Atlantic C ...

and

Gerard Parkes Gerard Parkes (October 16, 1924 – October 19, 2014) was an Irish-Canadian actor. He was born in Dublin, and moved to Toronto in 1956. He is known for playing "Doc" on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation television series ''Fraggle Rock'' and ...

played his parents in the film. The film aired on

CBC-TV CBC Television (also known as CBC TV) is a Canadian English-language broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster. The network began operations on September 6, 1952. Its French-l ...

's ''Front Row Centre'' series in January 1977. In 1979 Wincott starred in the Canadian

adventure drama film An adventure film is a form of adventure fiction, and is a genre of film. Subgenres of adventure films include swashbuckler films, pirate films, and survival films. Adventure films may also be combined with other film genres such as action, anima ...

Wild Horse Hank ''Wild Horse Hank'' is a 1979 Canadian adventure drama film directed by Eric Till and starring Linda Blair, Michael Wincott and Richard Crenna. It is based on the 1978 teen novel ''The Wild Horse Killers'' written by Mel Ellis. Plot ''Wild Hors ...

'' alongside

Linda Blair Linda Denise Blair (born January 22, 1959) is an American actress and activist. She played Regan MacNeil in the horror film ''The Exorcist'' (1973), for which she won a Golden Globe Award and received a nomination for an Academy Award. The film ...

. In 1981 he appeared in the Canadian drama film ''

Circle of Two ''Circle of Two'' is a 1981 Canadian drama film starring Richard Burton. It was the last film directed by acclaimed film noir director Jules Dassin. O'Neal - sixteen at the time of filming - appears topless in one scene. The film has been d ...

'' starring

Richard Burton Richard Burton (; born Richard Walter Jenkins Jr.; 10 November 1925 – 5 August 1984) was a Welsh actor. Noted for his baritone voice, Burton established himself as a formidable Shakespearean actor in the 1950s, and he gave a memorable pe ...

. He also appeared on two episodes of the Canadian TV Series ''

The Littlest Hobo ''The Littlest Hobo'' is a Canadian television series (French title: ''Le Vagabond'') based upon a 1958 well-known film of the same name directed by Charles R. Rondeau. The series first aired from 1963 to 1965 in syndication, and was revived fo ...

'' in 1979 and 1981. After graduating from Juilliard, Wincott was cast in the 1987 film ''

The Sicilian ''The Sicilian'' is a novel by American author Mario Puzo. Published in 1984 by Random House Publishing Group (), it is based on the life of Sicilian bandit Salvatore Giuliano. It is set in the same universe as Puzo's most famous work, ''The ...

'' in the role of Corporal Silvestro Canio. That same year he was also cast in the

Eric Bogosian Eric Bogosian ( hy, Էրիկ Բոգոսյան; ; born April 24, 1953) is an American actor, playwright, monologuist, novelist, and historian. Descended from Armenian American immigrants, he grew up in Watertown and Woburn, Massachusetts, and a ...

play ''

Talk Radio Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often featu ...

'' as a stoned heavy metal fan named Kent. The following year Wincott appeared in

Oliver Stone William Oliver Stone (born September 15, 1946) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. Stone won an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay as writer of '' Midnight Express'' (1978), and wrote the gangster film remake '' Sc ...

's film based on the play. In the 1980s he also appeared on such American TV series as ''

Miami Vice ''Miami Vice'' is an American crime drama television series created by Anthony Yerkovich and produced by Michael Mann (director), Michael Mann for NBC. The series stars Don Johnson as James "Sonny" Crockett and Philip Michael Thomas as Ricardo ...

'', '' Crime Story'' and '' The Equalizer'', as well as Canadian police drama series ''

''—a series starring his brother

Jeff Jeff is a masculine name, often a short form ( hypocorism) of the English given name Jefferson or Jeffrey, which comes from a medieval variant of Geoffrey. Music * DJ Jazzy Jeff, American DJ/turntablist record producer Jeffrey Allen Townes ...

. Wincott's stage performances include the

off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer th ...

productions ''

Road A road is a linear way for the conveyance of traffic that mostly has an improved surface for use by vehicles (motorized and non-motorized) and pedestrians. Unlike streets, the main function of roads is transportation. There are many types o ...

'' (1988) starring

Joan Cusack Joan Mary Cusack (; born October 11, 1962) is an American actress. She received nominations for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her roles in the comedy-drama '' Working Girl'' (1988) and the romantic comedy '' In & Out'' (1997 ...

and

Kevin Bacon Kevin Norwood Bacon (born July 8, 1958) is an American actor. His films include the musical-drama film '' Footloose'' (1984), the controversial historical conspiracy legal thriller '' JFK'' (1991), the legal drama '' A Few Good Men'' (1992), t ...

, and the

Sam Shepard Samuel Shepard Rogers III (November 5, 1943 – July 27, 2017) was an American actor, playwright, author, screenwriter, and director whose career spanned half a century. He won 10 Obie Awards for writing and directing, the most by any write ...

play ''States of Shock'' (1991) starring

John Malkovich John Malkovich (born December 9, 1953) is an American actor. He is the recipient of several accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award, in addition to nominations for two Academy Awards, a British Academy Film Award, two Screen Actors Guild Aw ...

. He also appeared 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 ...

starring in the play '' Serious Money'' (1988) alongside

Kate Nelligan Patricia Colleen Nelligan (born March 16, 1950), known professionally as Kate Nelligan, is a Canadian stage, film and television actress. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for the 1991 film ''The Prince of Tide ...

Alec Baldwin Alexander Rae Baldwin III (born April 3, 1958) is an American actor, comedian, and producer. In his early career, Baldwin played both leading and supporting roles in a variety of films such as Tim Burton's '' Beetlejuice'' (1988), Mike Nic ...

and

John Pankow John Pankow (born April 28, 1954) is an American actor. He began his career on-stage in New York, in numerous Off-Broadway and Broadway plays including Peter Shaffer's ''Amadeus'', John Patrick Shanley's '' Italian American Reconciliation,'' a ...

, as well as appearing in '' The Secret Rapture'' (1989) starring

Blair Brown Bonnie Blair Brown (born April 23, 1946) is an American theater, film and television actress. She has had a number of high-profile roles, including in the play '' Copenhagen'' on Broadway, the leading actress in the films ''Altered States'' ...

. Wincott again worked with Oliver Stone in 1989, appearing in the film ''

Born on the Fourth of July ''Born on the Fourth of July'', published in 1976, is the best-selling autobiography by Ron Kovic, a paralyzed Vietnam War veteran who became an anti-war activist. Kovic was born on July 4, 1946, and his book's ironic title echoed a famous line ...

'' as a bedridden

Vietnam veteran A Vietnam veteran is a person who served in the armed forces of participating countries during the Vietnam War. The term has been used to describe veterans who served in the armed forces of South Vietnam, the United States Armed Forces, and ot ...

, then yet again in 1991 in the film ''

The Doors The Doors were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most controversial and influential rock acts ...

'' where he played the role of

Paul Rothchild Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) *Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity * Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...

, the producer of

' first five albums. In 1991 he also played the part of

in '' Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves'', a

henchman A henchman (''vernacular:'' "hencher"), is a loyal Employment, employee, supporter, or aide to some powerful figure engaged in nefarious or criminal enterprises. Henchmen are typically relatively unimportant in the organization: minions whose val ...

of the

Sheriff of Nottingham The Sheriff of Nottingham is the main antagonist in the legend of Robin Hood. He is generally depicted as an unjust tyrant who mistreats the local people of Nottinghamshire, subjecting them to unaffordable taxes. Robin Hood fights against him, ...

(

Alan Rickman Alan Sidney Patrick Rickman (21 February 1946 – 14 January 2016) was an English actor and director. Known for his deep, languid voice, he trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and became a member of the Royal Shakespe ...

) who is also the Sheriff's cousin in the film. In 1993 he appeared in the film ''

Romeo Is Bleeding ''Romeo Is Bleeding'' is a 1993 neo-noir crime thriller film directed by Peter Medak, written and produced by Hilary Henkin, and starring Gary Oldman, Lena Olin, Annabella Sciorra, Juliette Lewis, and Roy Scheider. It follows a psychosexual cat ...

'' as Sal, a mafioso, and also played the part of

Rochefort Rochefort () may refer to: Places France * Rochefort, Charente-Maritime, in the Charente-Maritime department ** Arsenal de Rochefort, a former naval base and dockyard * Rochefort, Savoie in the Savoie department * Rochefort-du-Gard, in the Ga ...

in the

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

film ''

The Three Musketeers ''The Three Musketeers'' (french: Les Trois Mousquetaires, links=no, ) is a French historical adventure novel written in 1844 by French author Alexandre Dumas. It is in the swashbuckler genre, which has heroic, chivalrous swordsmen who fight ...

'' starring Kiefer Sutherland,

Charlie Sheen Carlos Irwin Estévez (born September 3, 1965), known professionally as Charlie Sheen, is an American actor. He has appeared in films such as ''Platoon'' (1986), ''Wall Street'' (1987), '' Young Guns'' (1988), '' The Rookie'' (1990), ''The Thr ...

and

Chris O'Donnell Christopher Eugene O'Donnell (born June 26, 1970) is an American actor and former model. He played Charlie Sims in '' Scent of a Woman'', Chris Reece in ''School Ties'', D'Artagnan in ''The Three Musketeers'', Jack Foley in the drama film '' ...

. The following year Wincott starred as kingpin Top Dollar opposite

Brandon Lee Brandon Bruce Lee (February 1, 1965 – March 31, 1993) was an American actor and martial artist. Establishing himself as a rising action star in the early 1990s, he landed his breakthrough role as Eric Draven in the dark fantasy film '' T ...

in '' The Crow''. In 1995 he appeared in ''

Dead Man ''Dead Man'' is a 1995 American acid western film written and directed by Jim Jarmusch. It stars Johnny Depp, Gary Farmer, Billy Bob Thornton, Iggy Pop, Crispin Glover, John Hurt, Michael Wincott, Lance Henriksen, Gabriel Byrne, Mili ...

'' with Johnny Depp. He played poet

Rene Ricard Rene Ricard (July 23, 1946 – February 1, 2014) was an American poet, actor, art critic, and painter. Life and career Albert Napoleon Ricard was born in Boston and grew up in Acushnet, Massachusetts near New Bedford. As a young teenager he ran ...

in the 1996 biographical film ''

Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat (; December 22, 1960 – August 12, 1988) was an American artist who rose to success during the 1980s as part of the Neo-expressionism movement. Basquiat first achieved fame as part of the graffiti duo SAMO, alongside Al ...

''. He also played the role of

Frank Elgyn in the 1997 film ''Alien Resurrection''. Wincott starred as a psychopathic Kidnapping, kidnapper opposite Morgan Freeman in the 2001 film ''Along Came a Spider (film), Along Came a Spider''. The following year he played Armand Dorleac, a sadistic prison warden in the 2002 film version of ''The Count of Monte Cristo (2002 film), The Count of Monte Cristo'' starring Jim Caviezel. In 2004 he played Julius Bicke, the brother of Samuel J. Bicke (played by Sean Penn) in ''The Assassination of Richard Nixon''. In 2006 Wincott appeared in the western film ''Seraphim Falls'' starring Pierce Brosnan and Liam Neeson. He also appeared in ''The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (film), The Diving Bell and the Butterfly'' and ''What Just Happened (2008 film), What Just Happened'' in 2007 and 2008 respectively. In 2009 he starred in ''A Lonely Place for Dying'' as CIA project manager Anthony Greenglass. In early 2012 he was cast as notorious serial killer Ed Gein in the biographical drama film ''Hitchcock (film), Hitchcock''. In 2014 Wincott played

Adrian Cross in the

'' 24: Live Another Day''. The following year he starred in the Canadian Western (genre), western drama film ''Forsaken (2015 film), Forsaken'' alongside Kiefer Sutherland, Kiefer and Donald Sutherland. In 2016 he also played the role of Old Bill in two episodes in season 1 of the science fiction Western (genre), western TV series ''Westworld (TV series), Westworld''. In 2017 he appeared in the Modern Times Group, MTG drama series ''Veni Vidi Vici (TV series), Veni Vidi Vici''. The Sweden, Swedish series stars Danes, Danish actor Thomas Bo Larsen and centers around the porn industry. Wincott plays the part of Georgina, a transgender former porn director. The show was selected as one of the top new European series at the MIPTV Media Market, MIPDrama Screenings held annually in Cannes. The series was also streamed on Hulu in 2017. Wincott starred in Jordan Peele's 2022 thriller, ''Nope (film), Nope'', as Antlers Holst, a renowned cinematographer. In preparation for the role, Wincott job shadow, shadowed the film's director of photography, Hoyte van Hoytema. Wincott has also lent his voice to several characters in video games and animated features: In 2002 he provided the voice of Scroop, a malevolent spider/crab-like creature in the

animated film ''Treasure Planet''; he also provided the voice of Scroop in the accompanying PlayStation (console), Sony PlayStation video game of the same name. In 2004 he provided the voice for the Prophet of Truth in the video game ''Halo 2''. He also provided the voice of Mr. Big in the 2005 re-launch of the video game ''Narc (video game), Narc''. In 2012 he provided the voices for several video game characters: Jules Merit in the game ''Syndicate (2012 video game), Syndicate'', Griffin in the interactive graphic novel ''Infex'', and Death in the game ''Darksiders II''.

Filmography

Film

Television

Self

YouTube videos

Short film

Video shorts

* ''Treasure Planet, The Treasure Planet Read Along DVD'' (2003) - Scroop (voice)

Thanks

* ''The Iceman (film), The Iceman Movie'' (2012) - (special thanks)

Video games

Theatre

* 1987 - ''

'' - Kent * 1988 - '' Serious Money'' - Grevett, Frosby, Jake Todd * 1988 - ''Road'' - Eddy, DJ, Skin Lad * 1989 - '' The Secret Rapture'' - Irwin Posner * 1991 - ''State of Shock'' - Stubbs

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wincott, Michael 1958 births 20th-century Canadian male actors 21st-century Canadian male actors Living people Canadian male film actors Canadian male video game actors Canadian male voice actors Canadian male stage actors Canadian male television actors Canadian people of English descent Canadian people of Italian descent Juilliard School alumni Male actors from Toronto