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Peter Sarsgaard

Born: 1971

Biography

John Peter Sarsgaard (born March 7, 1971) is an American actor. His first feature role was in Dead Man Walking in 1995. He then appeared in the 1998 independent films Another Day in Paradise and Desert Blue. That same year, Sarsgaard received a substantial role in The Man in the Iron Mask (1998), playing Raoul, the ill-fated son of Athos. Sarsgaard later achieved critical recognition when he was cast in Boys Don't Cry (1999) as John Lotter. He landed his first leading role in the 2001 film The Center of the World. The following year, he played supporting roles in Empire, The Salton Sea, and K-19: The Widowmaker. For his portrayal of Charles Lane in Shattered Glass, Sarsgaard won the National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor and was nominated for the 2004 Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor. Sarsgaard has appeared in an eclectic range of films, including the 2004 comedy-drama Garden State, the biographical film Kinsey (2004), the drama The Dying Gaul (2005), and big-budget films such as Flightplan (2005), Jarhead (2005), The Skeleton Key (2005), Orphan (2009), An Education (2009), Knight and Day (2010), Green Lantern (2011), Lovelace (2013), Kelly Reichardt's Night Moves (2013), Blue Jasmine (2013), Black Mass (2015), and The Magnificent Seven (2016). Sarsgaard also appeared in the American TV series The Killing (2013) as a man on death row perhaps wrongfully convicted for the brutal murder of his wife—a performance which he says included "some of the best acting I have ever done in my life." In 2021, he had a recurring role on the Hulu miniseries Dopesick. Sarsgaard has appeared in Off-Broadway productions including Kingdom of Earth, Laura Dennis, Burn This, and Uncle Vanya. In September 2008, he made his Broadway debut as Boris Alexeyevich Trigorin in The Seagull. He is married to actress Maggie Gyllenhaal.
Known For Acting
Gender Male
Place of Birth Belleville, Illinois, USA

Resources

Movies

Jarhead

Alan Troy in Jarhead

Boys Don't Cry

John Lotter in Boys Don't Cry

Garden State

Mark in Garden State

Pet Shop Days

in Pet Shop Days

The Mysteries of Pittsburgh

Cleveland Arning in The Mysteries of Pittsburgh

Kinsey

Clyde Martin in Kinsey

Orphan

John in Orphan

Rendition

Alan Smith in Rendition

The Salton Sea

Jimmy the Finn in The Salton Sea

An Education

David Goldman in An Education

Elegy

Kenneth Kepesh in Elegy

K-19: The Widowmaker

Vadim Radtchinko in K-19: The Widowmaker

The Center of the World

Richard Longman in The Center of the World

The Man in the Iron Mask

Raoul in The Man in the Iron Mask

Flightplan

Carson in Flightplan

Empire

Jack in Empire

The Skeleton Key

Luke Marshall in The Skeleton Key

Shattered Glass

Charles 'Chuck' Lane in Shattered Glass

Year of the Dog

Newt in Year of the Dog

The Dying Gaul

Robert Sandrich in The Dying Gaul

In the Electric Mist

Elrod Sykes in In the Electric Mist

Desert Blue

Billy Baxter in Desert Blue

Knight and Day

Fitzgerald in Knight and Day

Green Lantern

Hector Hammond in Green Lantern

Unconditional Love

Window Washer in Unconditional Love

The Damning of a Country Merchant

in The Damning of a Country Merchant

Mama's Little Devils: Bad Seeds and Evil Children

Self in Mama's Little Devils: Bad Seeds and Evil Children

Very Good Girls

Fitzsimmons in Very Good Girls

Robot & Frank

Robot (voice) in Robot & Frank

Lovelace

Chuck Traynor in Lovelace

Night Moves

Harmon in Night Moves

The Bride!

in The Bride!

Blue Jasmine

Dwight in Blue Jasmine

Freak City

Cal Jackson in Freak City

Memory

Saul in Memory

Pawn Sacrifice

Father Bill Lombardy in Pawn Sacrifice

Death of a Dynasty

Brendon III in Death of a Dynasty

Housebound

Mignon in Housebound

Experimenter

Stanley Milgram in Experimenter

Black Mass

Brian Halloran in Black Mass

Ladygrey

Samuel in Ladygrey

Dead Man Walking

Walter Delacroix in Dead Man Walking

Coup!

Floyd Monk in Coup!

Valley Uprising

Narrator (Voice) in Valley Uprising

Vengeance in the Making

Self in Vengeance in the Making

Jackie

Robert Kennedy in Jackie

The Magnificent Seven

Bartholomew Bogue in The Magnificent Seven

Another Day in Paradise

Ty in Another Day in Paradise

High Falls

Pedro in High Falls

The Cell

Julia Hickson's Fiancee (uncredited) in The Cell

September 5

Roone Arledge in September 5

Loving Pablo

Shepard in Loving Pablo

Jake Gyllenhaal Challenges the Winner of the Nobel Peace Prize

Alan Troy (archive footage) in Jake Gyllenhaal Challenges the Winner of the Nobel Peace Prize

Wormwood

Frank Olson in Wormwood

Mr. Jones

Walter Duranty in Mr. Jones

Starring Austin Pendleton

Self in Starring Austin Pendleton

The Lie

Jay Logan in The Lie

The Sound of Silence

Peter Lucian in The Sound of Silence

Human Capital

Quint Manning in Human Capital

The Survivor

Emory Anderson in The Survivor

The Batman

District Attorney Gil Colson in The Batman

Subway Stories

Boy No. 1 (segment "Underground") in Subway Stories

Best Summer Ever

Camera Man in Best Summer Ever

The Lost Daughter

Professor Hardy in The Lost Daughter

The Guilty

Henry Fisher (voice) in The Guilty

Presumed Innocent

Tommy Molto in Presumed Innocent

TV Shows