James Spader's Main TV Roles Show Character(s) Boston Legal Alan Shore The Practice Alan Shore The Blacklist Red Discovery Atlas Narator (2) The Family Tree Jake Nichols

Main Movie Roles 2009 - Shorts 2003 - Alien Hunter 2002 - The Stickup 2002 - Secretary 1999 - Curtain Call 1996 - 2 Days in the Valley 1996 - Crash 1994 - Stargate 1994 - Wolf 1992 - Bob Roberts 1991 - True Colors 1990 - Bad Influence 1989 - The Rachel Papers 1988 - Jack's Back 1987 - Wall Street 1987 - Baby Boom 1987 - Less Than Zero 1987 - Mannequin 1986 - Pretty in Pink 1985 - Tuff Turf 1981 - Endless Love

BIOGRAPHY:

Son of teachers Todd and Jean Spader. Attended Phillips Academy in Andover with director Peter Sellars; dropped out in eleventh grade. Bused tables, shoveled manure, and taught yoga before landing his first roles. Graduated from TV movies to Brat Pack Films, playing the bad guy. His performance in Sex, Lies, and Videotape (1989) (Best Actor, Cannes 1989) led to bigger and more varied roles.


TRIVIA:

• Is quick to point out that, unlike the sleazy, slime ball characters he is best known for playing, he is actually a nice, friendly guy in real life.
• Children: Sebastian Spader (born 1989) and Elijah Spader (born 1992).
• Has very poor eyesight, and cannot wear contact lenses. Has said that in roles in which he does not wear his eyeglasses, he can barely make out the face of the actor across from him in the scene.
• Good friends with actor 'Eric Stoltz' (qv).
• He was working as a janitor at a rehearsal studio in Times Square when he landed his first feature film, Endless Love.
• Greatly admires the work of 'Charles Laughton' (qv).
• Has a photographic memory. He can look at a script and he remembers what the pages look like. As he films a scene he "reads" the page. The only reason he screws up a line is if very similar words (e.g. it and is) are written fairly close together.
• Auditioned for the film Taps, but eventually lost the part to 'Sean Penn (I)' (qv).