John C. Reilly's Main TV Roles Show Character(s) Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! Dr. Steve B… Tenacious D Sasquatch

Main Movie Roles 2009 - 9 2009 - Zombieland 2009 - Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant 2008 - The Promotion 2008 - Step Brothers 2007 - Walk Hard - The Dewey Cox Story 2006 - Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby 2006 - A Prairie Home Companion 2005 - Dark Water 2005 - Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny 2004 - Criminal 2004 - The Aviator 2003 - Anger Management 2002 - Chicago 2002 - The Hours 2002 - The Good Girl 2002 - Gangs of New York 2001 - The Anniversary Party 2000 - The Perfect Storm 1999 - Magnolia 1999 - For Love of the Game 1999 - Never Been Kissed 1998 - The Thin Red Line 1997 - Boogie Nights 1997 - Nightwatch 1996 - Boys 1995 - Dolores Claiborne 1993 - What's Eating Gilbert Grape 1992 - Hoffa 1990 - State of Grace 1990 - Days of Thunder 1989 - We're No Angels 1989 - Casualties of War

BIOGRAPHY:

With a homely mug, lumbering gait and unruly mop of curly hair tailor-made for offbeat character work, John C. Reilly played a host of seamy characters to great effect over the years. Of late, however, he has defied the odds by drawing in the ladies with his touching "common man" portrayals of lovable, good-natured schlepps. The fifth of six children born to an Irish father and Lithuanian mother, Reilly was brought up on Chicago's tough Southwest territory. On the amateur stage from age eight, he trained at the Goodman School of Drama and eventually became a member of Chicago's renowned Steppenwolf Theatre. His film break came with a small role in the Vietnam War drama Casualties of War (1989), wherein Brian De Palma liked his work so much during the early stages that he recast him in a major role by the start of shooting as a soldier bent on rape. Reilly gained momentum throughout the 1990s and showed his dazzling stretch of talent in such films as Days of Thunder (1990), Shadows and Fog (1991), What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993) and The River Wild (1994). He became a major stock player in director Paul Thomas Anderson's films, while finding some of his best roles in Sydney (1996) as a compulsive gambler, Boogie Nights (1997) in which he played a narcissistic porn star, and in Magnolia (1999) as a compassionate policeman. He went on to earn further critical points for his role of the soldier sent to the front lines in Terrence Malick's war epic The Thin Red Line (1998). On stage, Reilly has wowed audiences in "The Grapes of Wrath" on Broadway, "A Streetcar Named Desire" and "Othello" at Steppenwolf, and earned an Outer Critics Circle Award and Tony nomination for "True West" alongside another impeccable character player Philip Seymour Hoffman. Reilly finally received the film recognition he deserved in 2002 with a slew of choice, high-profile parts in The Hours (2002), The Good Girl (2002), Gangs of New York (2002), and especially Chicago (2002) as the put-upon husband, Amos Hart, who is played for a patsy by murderous wife Roxie (Renée Zellweger). For this last part, he received both Golden Globe and Academy Award nominations for best supporting actor. Though he didn't win either, it's only a matter a time for this talented thespian who can easily switch from being a dream of a nice guy to your worst nightmare on any given day. Reilly is married to producer Alison Dickey.


TRIVIA:

• Was nominated for Broadway's 2000 Tony Award as Best Actor (Play) for a revival of 'Sam Shepard' (qv)'s "True West."
• For not only his broad, almost 6' 2" frame, curly hair, and everyman's mug, but also his straight-forward but thoughtful acting style, Reilly has frequently been dubbed "his generation's 'Gene Hackman' (qv)".
• In April 2004 he left the filming of _Manderlay (2005)_ (qv) to be replaced by Slovenian actor 'Zeljko Ivanek' (qv). According to a report in Entertainment Weekly, he did so to protest against the killing of a donkey during production.
• Attended DePaul University in Chicago.
• His first plane ride was to Thailand to film _Casualties of War (1989)_ (qv).
• Made a home video of himself singing in a bow tie and suit for director 'Rob Marshall (I)' (qv) who gave him his role in _Chicago (2002)_ (qv).
• He met his wife in Thailand while he was filming _Casualties of War (1989)_ (qv), who, at the time, was 'Sean Penn (I)' (qv)'s assistant.
• In the tradition of 'Alan Young (I)' (qv)'s Filby from _The Time Machine (1960)_ (qv), Reilly plays a teenager aged 14 in his forties - aged 41, for _Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story (2007)_ (qv).