John Malkovich

John Malkovich is one of the most compelling minds in entertainment. His celebrated performances span the range of thought-provoking indie films to big-budget franchises, while taking on the roles of actor, director, producer, and artist.

John was seen in “Red” for Summit Entertainment, opposite Bruce Willis, Helen Mirren, and Morgan Freeman, and “Secretariat” for Disney where he stars opposite Diane Lane. He also starred in The Coen brothers’ comedy “Burn After Reading,” as part of a stellar ensemble featuring Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Frances McDormand, and Tilda Swinton. The film premiered at the 2008 Venice Festival. He re-teamed with Clint Eastwood in the critically acclaimed film, “Changeling,” alongside Angelina Jolie and Amy Ryan, produced by Ron Howard and Brian Grazer’s Imagine Entertainment. In the film, John portrays an activist reverend who champions the poor and disenfranchised.

Other credits include: Gilles Bourdos’ “Afterwards;” Sean McGinly’s film “The Great Buck Howard,” which had its premiere at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival; “Disgrace,” an independent which tells the story of a Cape Town professor who after having an affair with a student gets caught up in a mess of post-apartheid politics; Robert Zemeckis’ “Beowulf” opposite Angelina Jolie; Spike Jonze’s “Being John Malkovich;” Jane Campion’s “The Portrait of a Lady;” Wolfgang Petersen’s in “The Line Of Fire;” Gary Sinise’s “Of Mice and Men;” Bernnardo Bertolucci’s The Sheltering Sky; Stephen Frears’ “Dangerous Liaisons;” Steven Spielberg’s “Empire of the Sun;” Paul Newman’s “The Glass Menagerie;” Roland Joffé’s “The Killing Fields;” and Robert Benton’s “Places in the Heart.”

John has twice been nominated for the Academy Award® for Best Supporting Actor, for “Places in the Heart” (1985) and for “In the Line of Fire” (1994). His performance in “Places in the Heart” also earned him the Best Supporting Actor Award from the National Society of Film Critics and the National Board of Review. In 1999, he won New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor for “Being John Malkovich.”

In 1998, John joined producing partners Lianne Halfon and Russ Smith to create the production company, Mr. Mudd, whose debut film was the celebrated feature “Ghost World” directed by Terry Zwigoff. In 2003, John followed this up with his own feature directorial debut, “The Dancer Upstairs,” starring Academy Award® winner Javier Bardem. Other Mr. Mudd credits include “The Libertine” starring Johnny Depp and Samantha Morton and “Art School Confidential” also directed by Zwigoff and written by Screenwritter/Cartonist Dan Clowes. In 2008, Mr. Mudd landed its biggest box office and critical success with “Juno,” starring Ellen Page, Jennifer Garner and Jason Bateman. The film, distributed through Fox Searchlight, received an Academy Award® for Best Original Screenplay (Diablo Cody) and three nominations for Best Motion Picture, Best Actress (Ellen Page) and Best Director (Jason Reitman).

John also served as Executive Producer on the documentary “How to Draw a Bunny,” a portrait of artist Ray Johnson, which won the Jury Prize at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival and the Prix de Public at the famed Recontre Film Festival in Paris. The film was also nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for best documentary in 2003. John’s mark in television includes his Emmy Award winning performance in the telefilm “Death of a Salesman,” directed by Volker Schlöndorff and co-starring Dustin Hoffman. Other notable credits include the miniseries “Napoleon” and the acclaimed HBO telefilm RKO 281, both of which garnered John separate Emmy Award nominations.

Between 1976 and 1982 John acted in, directed or designed sets for more than fifty Steppenwolf Theatre Company productions. His debut on the New York stage in the Steppenwolf production of Sam Shepard’s “True West” earned him an Obie Award. Other notable plays include “Death of a Salesman;” “Slip of the Toungue;” Sam Shepard’s “State of Shock;” and Landford Wilson’s “Burn This in New York,” London and Los Angeles. He has directed numerous plays at Steppenwolf, including the celebrated “Balm in Gilead” in Chicago and Off-Broadway; “The Caretaker” in Chicago and on Broadway; and “Libra,” which John adapted from Don LeLillo’s novel.

John’s 2003 French stage production of “Hysteria” was honored with five Moliere Award nominations including Best Director. In addition to his film directorial debut on “The Dancer Upstairs,” John has directed three fashion shorts (Strap Hangings, Lady Behave, Hideous Man) for London designer Belle Freud.

He received a Moliere Award as Best Director for his production of Zach Helm’s “Good Canary in Paris.’ As a guiding member of Chicago’s landmark Steppenwolf Theatre Company, John Malkovich, as a producer, director and actor, as undoubtedly had a profound impact on the American theatre landscape.

Paramount Pictures