| Jeffrey Dean Morgan | |
|---|---|
 Morgan at the Twilight premiere in Los Angeles, 2008 |
|
| Born | April 22, 1966 Seattle, Washington, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1991–present |
Jeffrey Dean Morgan (born April 22, 1966) is an American actor, best known to TV audiences as Denny Duquette on Grey's Anatomy, patriarch John Winchester on Supernatural, and Judah Botwin on the Showtime series Weeds. He also was in the 2007 film P.S. I Love You as William, an Irish singer, along with Hilary Swank and Gerard Butler. He played The Comedian in the 2009 superhero film Watchmen.
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Early life
Morgan was born an only child in Seattle, Washington and attended Ben Franklin Elementary School, Rose Hill Junior High and Lake Washington High School in the nearby smaller city of Kirkland. Morgan was a basketball player in high school and university, until a knee injury ended his desire for a career in the sport. He was a graphic artist for a time, until he helped a friend move to Los Angeles.
Career
Starting with the 1991 movie Uncaged, Morgan has appeared in 15 feature films. The bulk of Morgan's work has been in television. He was the star of the 1996-1997 television show The Burning Zone; his character, Dr. Edward Marcase, appeared in 10 out of 19 episodes that season. Since 2000, he has amassed a number of credits in television shows such as ER, JAG, Walker, Texas Ranger, Angel, Tru Calling, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Sliders, The O.C., and Monk.
In 2005 and 2006, Morgan simultaneously appeared in three separate television series: On the CW series Supernatural as John Winchester, the mysterious father of Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean (Jensen Ackles); in a recurring role on ABC's Grey's Anatomy as heart transplant patient Denny Duquette, who carried on a relationship with intern Izzie Stevens (Katherine Heigl) and died in the show's second-season finale, though his character made an appearance in a three show arc during Meredith's death scene in season 3 and also appears in season 5 in a multi-episode arc as a figment of Dr. Isobel "Izzie" Steven's imagination. He also appeared in two episodes as Judah Botwin on the Showtime series Weeds. Morgan's three roles are notable in that all three of the characters are now deceased, two of whom died onscreen.
Morgan was cast in a new project by Grey's Anatomy creator Shonda Rhimes. The show, tentatively titled "Correspondents", was to have started production in summer 2007. ABC picked up a spinoff of Grey's Anatomy, called Private Practice, that was also created by Rhimes, and that project has rendered the future of "Correspondents" uncertain. Morgan is also among the cast of a movie that is based on a novel by the Irish novelist Cecelia Ahern, PS, I Love You. The movie was released on December 21, 2007. Another 2007 film starring Morgan is The Accidental Husband, which finished filming in New York City in March 2007. Morgan also recently finished filming Days of Wrath, a film about gangland violence in Los Angeles.
Morgan portrayed The Comedian, a cigar-chomping vigilante, in Watchmen, based on Alan Moore's graphic novel.[1]
He is currently shooting the thriller Invasion of Privacy with two-time Oscar winner Hilary Swank. He finished filming Taking Woodstock directed by Ang Lee and Shanghai starring John Cusack. He also finished filming All Good Things with Ryan Gosling and Kirsten Dunst. However, rumor has it that his part in the film was recently cut out. He is slated to play 'Clay' in a comic book movie adaptation of The Losers. He is also rumored to appear in one episode in the supposed final season of Supernatural, in which he has always had an open invitation to appear as a guest star in. Jeffrey is also confirmed as one of the leads in the 2010 reboot of Red Dawn.
Personal life
At some point in his young adulthood he was married, according to a 1997 interview in Playgirl.[2] Little is known publicly about the marriage, other than that it ended in divorce.
Morgan began dating his former Weeds costar, Mary-Louise Parker in December 2006.[3] The couple briefly split in June 2007,[4] though they later reconciled.[3] On February 12, 2008, Morgan and Parker announced their engagement,[5] only to break it off in April 2008.[6] Billy Crudup, Parker's previous live-in boyfriend, co-starred with Morgan in the 2009 film Watchmen.
He is often confused with Javier Bardem[7] and Robert Downey Jr., though he is much taller than Downey Jr, and about an inch taller than Bardem at 6' 2".[8]
Filmography
| Film | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
| 1991 | Uncaged | Sharkey | |
| 1995 | Dillinger and Capone | Jack Bennett | |
| Undercover Heat | Ramone | ||
| 1997 | Legal Deceit | Todd Hunter | |
| 1999 | Road Kill | Bobby | |
| 2003 | Something More | Daniel | Short film |
| 2004 | Dead & Breakfast | The Sheriff | |
| Six: The Mark Unleashed | Tom Newman | Direct-to-DVD Release | |
| 2005 | Chasing Ghosts | Det. Cole Davies | |
| 2006 | Jam | Dale | |
| 2007 | Live! | Rick | |
| Kabluey | Brad | ||
| PS, I Love You | William Gallagher | ||
| 2008 | The Accidental Husband | Patrick Sullivan | |
| Days of Wrath | Bryan Gordon | ||
| 2009 | Watchmen | Edward Blake/The Comedian | |
| Taking Woodstock | Dan | ||
| 2010 | Shanghai | Connor | completed |
| The Resident | Max | post-production | |
| The Losers | Clay | filming | |
| Red Dawn | Lt. Andrew Tanner | filming | |
| The Courier | TBA | pre-production | |
| Television | |||
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1995, 2002 | JAG | Weapons Officer CIA Technician Wally CIA Technician Wally |
Episode: Shadow Episode: Defending His Honor Episode: Enemy Below |
| 1996 | In the Blink of an Eye | Jessie | ABC TV-Movie |
| Sliders | Sid | Episode: El Sid | |
| 1996–1997 | The Burning Zone | Dr. Edward Marcase | |
| 2000 | Walker, Texas Ranger | Jake Horbart | Episode: Child of Hope |
| 2001 | ER | Firefighter Larkin | Episode: The Crossing |
| 2002 | The Practice | Daniel Glenn | Episode: The Test |
| Angel | Sam Ryan | Episode: Provider | |
| The Division | Father William Natali | Episode: Forgive Me, Father | |
| 2003 | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Undercover Agent #1 | Episode: All for Our Country |
| Star Trek: Enterprise | Xindi-Reptilian | Episode: Carpenter Street | |
| 2004 | The Handler | Mike | Episode: Give Daddy Some Sugar Episode: The Big Fall |
| Tru Calling | Geoffrey Pine | Episode: Two Pair | |
| Monk | Steven Leight | Episode: Mr. Monk Takes Manhattan | |
| 2005 | The O.C. | Joe Zukowski | Episode: The Accomplice |
| Weeds | Judah Botwin | Episode: Free Goat Episode: Dead in the Nethers |
|
| 2005–2008 | Supernatural | John Winchester | |
| 2006–2009 | Grey's Anatomy | Denny Duquette | recurring role |
| 2009–2010 | Supernatural | John Winchester | |
References
- ^ Watchmen Cast Confirmed! - Superhero Hype!
- ^ [1]
- ^ a b "Weeds Star's Relationship Hasn't Gone To Pot". December 10, 2007. http://www.dose.ca/celeb/story.html?id=9a8752bc-6408-473b-9853-32981fe7b48b&k=84069.
- ^ Mary-Louise Parker, Jeffrey Dean Morgan Split - Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Mary-Louise Parker : People.com
- ^ "Mary-Louise Parker and Jeffrey Dean Morgan Engaged". The New York Daily News. http://www.nydailynews.com/gossip/2008/02/12/2008-02-12_marylouise_parker_and_jeffrey_dean_morga.html.
- ^ Mary-Louise Parker, Fiancé Break Off Engagement
- ^ [2]
- ^ Empire Magazine interview, Issue 236, February 2009
External links
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