Robert Hammond Patrick, Jr. (born November 5, 1958) is an American actor, perhaps best known for his portrayals of villainous characters. He is a Saturn Award winner with four nominations.
Patrick dropped out of college when drama class sparked his interest in acting, and entered film in 1986. After playing a supporting role in Die Hard 2 (1990), Patrick starred as the T-1000, the main antagonist of Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) â€" a role he reprised for cameo appearances in Wayne's World (1992) and Last Action Hero (1993). Other notable film credits include Fire in the Sky (1993), Striptease (1996), Cop Land (1997), The Faculty (1998), Spy Kids (2001), Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle (2003), Walk the Line (2005), Flags of Our Fathers (2006), We Are Marshall (2006), Bridge to Terabithia (2007), The Men Who Stare at Goats (2009), and Safe House (2012).>
In television, Patrick is known for his portrayals of FBI Special Agent John Doggett in The X-Files and Brigadier General Tom Ryan in The Unit, and has played ongoing roles in series such as The Outer Limits, The Sopranos, Elvis, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Burn Notice, Last Resort, Sons of Anarchy, and From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series. He currently stars in CBS drama Scorpion.
AllMovie journalist Tracie Cooper wrote that, by the conclusion of The X-Files in 2002, Patrick had "developed a solid reputation within the industry", with critics, fans, and co-stars alike praising his "work ethic, personality, and consistent performances". He was described by director Jason Bateman as "real scary" and "one of the great heavies".
Early life
Patrick, the oldest of five siblings, was born in Marietta, Georgia, the son of Nadine and Robert Patrick, Sr., a banker. His siblings are Richard Patrick (who is the lead singer for the rock band Filter), Cheri, Karen, and Lewis. He spent his early life in Bay Village, a small suburb of Cleveland, Ohio, while he moved around the country. Patrick did not start to pursue an acting career until his mid-twenties. During his childhood years, Patrick did not like to act. In third grade he refused to wear a pair of green tights required for Peter Pan. He graduated from Farmington High School in Farmington, Michigan, in 1977. Patrick was a track and field and football athlete at Bowling Green State University, although he dropped out before graduating when he found interest in Drama and acting.
After leaving college, Patrick secured a position as a house painter and continued as such until a boating accident in 1984 in Lake Erie. He swam for three hours in order to save the others still stranded on the accident site, nearly drowning in the attempt. After the accident, he moved from Ohio to Los Angeles, California, at the age of 26. His main income during the first years was as a bartender, and he often lived in his car. Patrick was then picked up for various small roles and cameos in low-budget films. Looking back, Patrick credited his early appearances in films for his "tough-looking exterior".
Career
Early work
Patrick made a short appearance in Die Hard 2 as the main villain's henchman before landing a role in Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1990) as the main villain, the T-1000; it was his first starring role. James Cameron, the film's director, said he chose Patrick for the role because of his physical appearance, which he felt fit the role. During the filming of Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Patrick was "broke", living in a cheap apartment with his girlfriend, Barbara, whom he married during filming. He has credited the film with starting his career.
After Terminator 2, Patrick landed roles in various feature films such as Last Action Hero, Fire in the Sky (both 1993) and Striptease (1996). Because of his fondness for martial arts, Patrick starred in two martial arts films titled Double Dragon and Hong Kong 97, both released in 1994. His performance in Fire in the Sky caught the attention of The X-Files creator, Chris Carter. After David Duchovny distanced himself from the show during the seventh season, Carter immediately contacted Patrick to audition for the role of John Doggett. Patrick's brother, Richard, had previously worked for the series by adding music for the soundtrack album The X-Files: The Album. Patrick was cast as Doggett in 2000. The X-Files was canceled two seasons later, after Duchovny left the show following season 7, which resulted in low ratings for the show. Patrick made several appearances on many genre magazines, with TV Guide going so far as to label him one of the Ten Sexiest Men of Sci-Fi.
In 2000, Patrick appeared in three episodes of The Sopranos ("The Happy Wanderer", "Bust Out", and "Funhouse") as David Scatino, a store owner struggling with gambling debts owed to Richie Aprile and Tony Soprano. Four years later, he made a guest appearance in the pilot episodes for Sci-Fi Channel's original series Stargate Atlantis, "Rising", as the military component commander of the Atlantis expedition, Marshall Sumner. He accepted the role, since he had worked with the same crew on The Outer Limits, a show which he appeared in during the early 1990s.
Later work
Patrick played Johnny Cash's father, Ray Cash, in the Academy Award-winning film Walk the Line and Elvis's father, Vernon Presley in the Golden Globe winning and Emmy Award nominated TV miniseries Elvis. He had a regular role on The Unit, and played Elvis Presley in Lonely Street (2008). In October 2006, he starred in the WWE Films production The Marine as Rome. He also appeared in We Are Marshall as Marshall University head coach Rick Tolley, who lost his life when Southern Airways Flight 932 crashed in 1970. His credits also include a guest starring role in the Lost episode "Outlaws", as well as a recurring role as the voice of Master Piandao in Season 3 of the Nickelodeon animated series Avatar: The Last Airbender.
He has also appeared in Meat Loaf's "Objects in the Rear View Mirror" music video with Will Estes. Director McG, who directed Terminator Salvation, said that he wanted to reintroduce characters from the previous Terminator films: "I like the idea and the perspective for the next picture that you meet Robert Patrick the way he looks today, and he's a scientist that's working on, you know, improving cell replication so we can stay healthier and we can cure diabetes and do all these things that sound like good ideas, and to once again live as idealized expressions as ourselves." Patrick also starred in the psychological thriller The Black Water of Echo's Pond, which was directed by Italian filmmaker Gabriel Bologna. In recent years, he has appeared in such TV shows as Burn Notice, NCIS, and True Blood, among others. From 2012 to 2013, he also starred in Last Resort as Chief of the Boat Joseph Prosser. He played a supporting character in Identity Thief (2013). Since 2014, he also starred in Robert Rodriguez's From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series as Jacob Fuller. He currently plays Agent Cabe Gallo on the CBS Series Scorpion.
Personal life
Patrick married actress Barbara Hooper during the filming of Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991). Patrick and Barbara have appeared together in various media releases such as Zero Tolerance and The X-Files. He has two children, a son, Samuel, and a daughter, Austin (named after the police officer the T-1000 impersonates in Terminator 2). Almost every year, he does the Love Ride, a charity motorcycle ride held annually in Southern California. His brother is Richard Patrick, former guitarist of Nine Inch Nails and lead singer of the rock bands Filter and Army of Anyone. On 22 October 2010, the brothers sang guest vocals on the Filter song "So I Quit" on stage in Dallas, Texas.
Filmography
Film
Television
Video games
Awards and nominations
References
External links
- Robert Patrick at the Internet Movie Database
- Robert Patrick on Twitter
- Robert Patrick bio at CBS, The Unit
