Griffin Dunne
Thomas Griffin Dunne (born June 8, 1955) is an American actor, film producer, and film director. Dunne studied acting at The Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre in New York City. He is known for portraying Jack Goodman in An American Werewolf in London (1981) and Paul Hackett in After Hours (1985), for which he was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.
Griffin Dunne | |
|---|---|
 Dunne at the 2010 Tribeca Film Festival | |
| Born | Thomas Griffin Dunne June 8, 1955 New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Education | The Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre |
| Occupation | Actor, producer, director |
| Years active | 1975–present |
| Spouse(s) | Anna Bingemann (m. after 2009) |
| Children | Hannah Dunne |
| Parent(s) | Dominick Dunne Ellen Griffin |
| Relatives | Dominique Dunne (sister) John Gregory Dunne (uncle) Joan Didion (aunt)[1] |
Early life
Dunne was born Thomas Griffin Dunne in New York City, the son of Ellen Beatriz (née Griffin) and Dominick Dunne. He is the older brother of Alexander and Dominique Dunne. His mother founded the victims' rights organization Justice for Homicide Victims after Dominique's murder in 1982. His father was a producer, writer, and actor.[2][3] He is also the nephew of writers John Gregory Dunne and Joan Didion. Raised in Los Angeles, Dunne attended the Fay School in Southborough, Massachusetts and then went to Fountain Valley school in Colorado Springs, Colorado where he developed an interest in acting, appearing in many school plays. He was scheduled to perform in a school production of Othello when on the eve of a performance, Dunne was found smoking marijuana by a teacher. He was immediately expelled and soon after, he moved back to New York to pursue his acting interests.[4] He studied acting at HB Studio[5] in New York City.
Career
Acting
Dunne began his professional acting career at age 19 with a small supporting role in The Other Side of the Mountain in 1975. He has since appeared on both film and television, starring in An American Werewolf in London (1981) as Jack Goodman, Johnny Dangerously (1984) as Tommy Kelly, After Hours (1985) as Paul Hackett, Who's That Girl (1987) as Loudon Trott opposite Madonna, My Girl (1991) as Jake Bixler, Quiz Show (1994) as the Geritol Account Executive, Game 6 (2005) as Elliott Litvak, and I Like It Like That (1994) as Stephen Price. Dunne also played Dr. Vass, opposite Matthew McConaughey, in the Oscar-nominated 2013 film Dallas Buyers Club.[6]
Dunne's TV appearances include Frasier (pilot episode "The Good Son" as caller Russell, season 3 episode 11 "The Friend" as Bob), Saturday Night Live, Alias, and Law & Order: Criminal Intent (Episodes 5, 118, and 128). He portrayed Tony Mink in the comedy Trust Me on TNT. In 2012, Dunne guest-starred as management consultant Marco Pelios in seven episodes of the premiere season of the Showtime TV series House of Lies.
In 2018 he joined the cast of This is Us where he currently stars as Nicky Pearson, Jack Pearson's brother.
Producing
In 1995, Griffin Dunne was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film for Duke of Groove, which he directed and co-wrote. He shared the nomination with producer Thom Colwell. Along with his producing partner, actress/producer Amy Robinson, he has produced several films including Baby It's You, After Hours, Running on Empty and Game 6 through their company, Double Play Productions.
Directing
Dunne's directorial debut was the 1995 short film Duke of Groove. Since then, he has directed five feature films, including Addicted to Love (1997) and Practical Magic (1998). He also directed one segment of the 2012 anthology film Movie 43. Dunne produced and directed Joan Didion: The Center Will Not Hold (2017), a documentary about his aunt, author Joan Didion, whom Dunne interviews and appears with on screen.
Personal life
From 1989 to 1995, he was married to American actress Carey Lowell, with whom he has one daughter, actress Hannah Dunne.
In July 2009, he married his second wife, Anna Bingemann, an Australian stylist.[7]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Credited as | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Director | Producer | Actor | Role | Notes | ||
| 1975 | The Other Side of the Mountain | Yes | Herbie Johnson | |||
| 1979 | Head Over Heels | Yes | Yes | Dr. Mark | ||
| 1981 | An American Werewolf in London | Yes | Jack Goodman | |||
| The Fan | Yes | Production Assistant | ||||
| 1983 | Baby It's You | Yes | ||||
| Cold Feet | Yes | Tom Christo | ||||
| 1984 | Johnny Dangerously | Yes | Tommy Kelly | |||
| 1985 | After Hours | Yes | Yes | Paul Hackett | ||
| Almost You | Yes | Alex Boyer | ||||
| 1987 | Amazon Women on the Moon | Yes | Doctor | Segment: "Hospital" | ||
| Who's That Girl | Yes | Loudon Trott | ||||
| 1988 | The Big Blue | Yes | Duffy | |||
| Me and Him | Yes | Bert | ||||
| Running on Empty | Yes | |||||
| 1990 | White Palace | Yes | ||||
| 1991 | My Girl | Yes | Mr. Jake Bixler | |||
| Once Around | Yes | Yes | Rob | |||
| 1992 | Big Girls Don't Cry... They Get Even | Yes | David | |||
| Straight Talk | Yes | Alan Riegert | ||||
| 1993 | Naked in New York | Yes | Auditioner | |||
| The Pickle | Yes | Planet Cleveland Man | Uncredited | |||
| 1994 | I Like It Like That | Yes | Stephen Price | |||
| Quiz Show | Yes | Geritol Account Executive | ||||
| 1995 | Search and Destroy | Yes | Martin Mirkheim | |||
| 1996 | Duke of Groove | Yes | Short film | |||
| Joe's Apartment | Yes | |||||
| 1997 | Addicted to Love | Yes | ||||
| 1998 | Practical Magic | Yes | ||||
| 2000 | Lisa Picard Is Famous | Yes | Yes | Andrew | ||
| 2001 | Piñero | Yes | Agent | |||
| Sam the Man | Yes | Man in Bathroom | ||||
| 2002 | 40 Days and 40 Nights | Yes | Jerry Anderson | |||
| Cheats | Yes | Mr. Davis | ||||
| 2003 | Stuck on You | Yes | Himself | |||
| 2005 | Fierce People | Yes | Yes | |||
| Game 6 | Yes | Yes | Elliott Litvak | |||
| 2006 | Bondage | Yes | Dr. Simon | |||
| Your Product Here | Yes | Short film | ||||
| 2007 | Snow Angels | Yes | Don Parkinson | |||
| 2008 | The Accidental Husband | Yes | ||||
| The Great Buck Howard | Yes | Jonathan Finerman | ||||
| 2009 | Shrink | Yes | Uncredited | |||
| 2010 | Last Night | Yes | Truman | |||
| 2012 | The Discoverers | Yes | Lewis Birch | |||
| 2013 | Broken City | Yes | Sam Lancaster | |||
| Blood Ties | Yes | McNally | ||||
| Movie 43 | Yes | Segment: "Veronica" | ||||
| Dallas Buyers Club | Yes | Dr. Vass | ||||
| 2014 | Rob the Mob | Yes | Dave Lovell | |||
| Fugly! | Yes | Jefferey | ||||
| 2015 | Touched with Fire | Yes | George | |||
| Tumbledown | Yes | Upton | ||||
| Consumed | Yes | Peter | ||||
| 2016 | My Dead Boyfriend | Yes | Joey Lucas / Nick McCrawley | |||
| 2017 | War Machine | Yes | Ray Canucci | |||
| Joan Didion: The Center Will Not Hold | Yes | Yes | ||||
| 2018 | Ocean's 8 | Yes | Parole Board Officer | |||
| Alright Now | Yes | Joanne's Dad | ||||
| 2019 | Bittersweet Symphony | Yes | Griffin | |||
| 2021 | The French Dispatch | Yes | Story Editor | |||
| TBA | With/In | Yes | Yes | |||
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Amazing Stories | Dick | Episode: "Secret Cinema" |
| 1986 | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Knoll | Episode: "The Jar" |
| 1986 | Saturday Night Live | Frankie Toussaint | Episode: "William Shatner/Lone Justice"; uncredited |
| 1989 | Trying Times | David | Episode: "Hunger Chic" |
| 1990 | Secret Weapon | Mordechai Vanunu | Television film |
| 1992 | Screenplay | Michael Tyne | Episode: "Buying a Landslide" |
| 1993 | Hotel Room | Robert | Episode: "Getting Rid of Robert" |
| 1993 | L.A. Law | Gerard Samuels | Episode: "F.O.B." |
| 1993 | Frasier | Russell (voice) | Episode: "The Good Son" |
| 1995 | The Android Affair | Teach / William | Television film |
| 1996 | Frasier | Bob | Episode: "The Friend" |
| 2001 | Blonde | The Playwright | 2 episodes |
| 2001–07 | Law & Order: Criminal Intent | Henry Talbott | Episode: "Jones" |
| 2002 | Warning: Parental Advisory | Frank Zappa | Television film |
| 2002 | A Nero Wolfe Mystery | Nicolas Losseff | 2 episodes |
| 2002 | What Leonard Comes Home To | Leonard | Television short |
| 2004 | Alias | Leonid Lisenker | 2 episodes |
| 2006 | 3 lbs | Dr. Jerry Cole | 2 episodes |
| 2006–07 | Law & Order: Criminal Intent | Seamus Flaherty | 2 episodes |
| 2009 | Trust Me | Tony Mink | 13 episodes |
| 2009 | Leverage | Marcus Starke | Episode: "The Two Live Crew Job" |
| 2010 | How to Make It in America | Fresconi | Episode: "Crisp" |
| 2010 | White Collar | Wesley Kent | Episode: "Company Man" |
| 2010 | The Good Wife | Judge Jared Quinn | Episode: "Cleaning House"; also director |
| 2011 | Damages | Dean Gullickson | 3 episodes |
| 2012–14 | House of Lies | Marco Pelios | 8 episodes |
| 2013 | Girls | Thomas - John's Father | Episode: "It's a Shame About Ray" |
| 2013 | The League | Burt | Episode: "The Von Nowzick Wedding" |
| 2014 | Red Band Society | Ruben Garcia | 3 episodes; also director |
| 2015 | Manhattan | Woodrow Lorentzen | 4 episodes |
| 2015–16 | Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll | Music Therapist | 2 episodes |
| 2016 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Benno Gilbert | Episode: "Fashionable Crimes" |
| 2016–17 | I Love Dick | Sylvère | 8 episodes |
| 2018 | Imposters | Herman | 2 episodes |
| 2018 | Succession | Dr. Alon Parfit | Episode: "Austerlitz" |
| 2018 | The Romanoffs | Frank Shefflied | Episode: "Panorama" |
| 2018–present | This Is Us | Nicky Pearson | 13 episodes |
| 2019 | Better Things | Durham | Episode: "The Unknown" |
| 2019 | Goliath | Gene | 5 episodes |
| 2021 | Search Party | Richard Wreck | 2 episodes |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Title | Association | Category | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | After Hours | Golden Globe Award | Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical | Nominated | [8] |
| 1986 | After Hours | Independent Spirit Award | Best Feature (shared with Robert F. Colesberry & Amy Robinson) | Won | |
| 1994 | Love Matters | CableACE Award | Actor in a Movie or Miniseries | Nominated | |
| 1996 | Duke of Groove | Academy Award | Best Short Film – Live Action (shared with Thom Colwell) | Nominated | |
| 1996 | Frasier | Primetime Emmy Award | Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series | Nominated | |
| 2000 | Lisa Picard Is Famous | Cannes Film Festival | Un Certain Regard Award | Nominated | |
| 2000 | N/A | Deep Ellum Film Festival | Pioneer Filmmaker Award | Won | |
| 2013 | The Discoverers | Sarasota Film Festival | Achievement in Acting | Won | |
| 2013 | The Discoverers | Sedona International Film Festival | Outstanding Actor | Won | |
| 2014 | Movie 43 | Golden Raspberry Award | Worst Director | Won |
References
- Syme, Rachel (October 24, 2017). "Their Love Letter to Aunt Joan (Didion)". The New York Times. p. 1.
- "Paid Notice: Deaths DUNNE, ELLEN GRIFFIN". The New York Times. November 3, 1997.
- "Griffin Dunne Biography (1955-)". www.filmreference.com.
- Nathan, Jean (May 18, 1997). "He's Adding Director to His List of Credits". The New York Times.
- "HB Studio Alumni". Hbstudio.org. Retrieved September 26, 2019.
- Radish, Christian (January 20, 2013). "Griffin Dunne Talks Directing a Segment in Comedy Anthology MOVIE 43, Matthew McConaughey's Weight Loss in DALLAS BUYER'S CLUB, and More". Collider. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
- "Done and Dunne! Interior Designer Woos New York Royalty with Soho Loft". June 15, 2010.
- "Griffin Dunne". IMDb. Retrieved September 16, 2018.
External links
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