David Strathairn
Acting • Born 1949-01-26
Biography
David Russell Strathairn (born January 26, 1949) is an American actor, best known for his portrayal of journalist Edward R. Murrow in the feature film Good Night, and Good Luck (2005), for which he was nominated for an Academy Award. He also starred in L.A. Confidential (1997), Godzilla (2014), and the Bourne franchise (2007–2012). Strathairn appeared in supporting roles in many notable films such as A League of Their Own (1992), Sneakers (1992), The Firm (1993), The River Wild (1995), Lincoln (2012), Nomadland (2020), and Nightmare Alley (2021). He is a frequent collaborator with director John Sayles, who is a fellow graduate of Williams College. On television, Strathairn is known for his recurring roles in The Sopranos (2004), Alphas (2011–2012), The Blacklist (2015–2016), Billions (2017–2019), and The Expanse (2018–2019). He received a Primetime Emmy Award win and a Golden Globe Award nomination for his performance in the HBO television film Temple Grandin (2010).
Filmography
152 credits
The Miracle Worker
Movie • 2000
Captain Keller
The Feud
Movie • 1989
The Stranger
L.A. Confidential
Movie • 1997
Pierce Patchett
A Midsummer Night's Dream
Movie • 1999
Theseus
City of Hope
Movie • 1991
Asteroid
Sneakers
Movie • 1992
Whistler
Good Night, and Good Luck.
Movie • 2005
Edward R. Murrow
Mother Night
Movie • 1996
Bernard B. O'Hare
Bob Roberts
Movie • 1992
Mack Laflin
The Bourne Ultimatum
Movie • 2007
Noah Vosen
My Blueberry Nights
Movie • 2007
Arnie
We Are Marshall
Movie • 2006
President Dedmon
Cold Souls
Movie • 2009
Dr. Flintstein
Fracture
Movie • 2007
Joe Lobruto
Matewan
Movie • 1987
Police Chief Sid Hatfield
Dolores Claiborne
Movie • 1995
Joe St. George
Iceman
Movie • 1984
Dr. Singe
The Spiderwick Chronicles
Movie • 2008
Arthur Spiderwick
Steel Toes
Movie • 2007
Danny Dunkelman
Harrison's Flowers
Movie • 2000
Harrison Lloyd
The River Wild
Movie • 1994
Tom Hartman
Home for the Holidays
Movie • 1995
Russell Terziak
The Brother from Another Planet
Movie • 1984
Man In Black
Temple Grandin
Movie • 2010
Professor Carlock
Silkwood
Movie • 1983
Wesley
Eight Men Out
Movie • 1988
Eddie Cicotte
Twisted
Movie • 2004
Dr. Melvin Frank
Heavens Fall
Movie • 2006
Judge James Horton
Losing Isaiah
Movie • 1995
Charles Lewin
At Close Range
Movie • 1986
Tony Pine
Missing in America
Movie • 2005
Henry R. Hocknell Jr.
Passion Fish
Movie • 1992
Rennie
The Uninvited
Movie • 2009
Steven
Call Me
Movie • 1988
Sam
The Firm
Movie • 1993
Ray McDeere
Limbo
Movie • 1999
Joe Gastineau
The Notorious Bettie Page
Movie • 2006
Estes Kefauver
Lathe of Heaven
Movie • 2002
Mannie
The Sensation of Sight
Movie • 2006
Finn
The Tempest
Movie • 2010
King Alonso
Day One
Movie • 1989
J. Robert Oppenheimer
In the Gloaming
Movie • 1997
Martin
Howl
Movie • 2010
Ralph McIntosh
The Supreme Court
Movie • 2007
Narrator
The Bourne Legacy
Movie • 2012
Noah Vosen
Big Girls Don't Cry... They Get Even
Movie • 1992
Keith
Blue Car
Movie • 2003
Auster
The Whistleblower
Movie • 2010
Peter Ward
The Giraffe
Movie • 1998
Charles Kaminski
Lovesick
Movie • 1983
Marvin Zuckerman
Racing Daylight
Movie • 2007
Henry / Harry
Los Angeles Plays Itself
Movie • 2004
Pierce Patchett in L.A. Confidential (archive footage)
Lincoln
Movie • 2012
William Seward
Matadors
Movie • 2010
Roman Lodari
A Map of the World
Movie • 1999
Howard Goodwin
The Trials of J. Robert Oppenheimer
Movie • 2008
J. Robert Oppenheimer
Master Spy: The Robert Hanssen Story
Movie • 2002
Jack Hoschouer
O Pioneers!
Movie • 1992
Carl Linstrum
Relative Evil
Movie • 2001
Dr. Charlie
Speakeasy
Movie • 2002
Bruce Hickman
Love, Marilyn
Movie • 2013
Self
A Dangerous Woman
Movie • 1993
Getso
Godzilla
Movie • 2014
Admiral William Stenz
Hemingway & Gellhorn
Movie • 2012
John Dos Passos
A Good Baby
Movie • 2000
Truman Lester
The Climb
Movie • 1998
Earl Himes
Area 51 Declassified
Movie • 2010
Himself - Narrator
Maladies
Movie • 2012
Delmar
Beyond the Call
Movie • 1996
Russel Gates
Song of Hiawatha
Movie • 1997
Marcel
Enormous Changes at the Last Minute
Movie • 1983
Jerry
No God, No Master
Movie • 2014
William Flynn
The American Clock
Movie • 1993
Young Arthur Huntington
Inside Area 51's Secrets
Movie • 2010
Narrator
Memphis Belle
Movie • 1990
Craig Harriman
The Victim
Movie • 2001
Mark Zingerline
Broken Vows
Movie • 1987
Stuart Chase
The Shovel
Movie • 2006
Paul Mullin
Evidence of Blood
Movie • 1998
Jackson Kinley
Remember This
Movie • 2023
Jan Karski
Louder Than Bombs
Movie • 2015
Richard Weissman
Lost in Yonkers
Movie • 1993
Johnny
The Debt
Movie • 2015
Nathan
Without Warning: The James Brady Story
Movie • 1991
Dr. Arthur Kobrine
Stars & Bars
Movie • 1988
Charlie
A Little Prayer
Movie • 2025
Bill
The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Movie • 2015
Ty Burley
Trumbo
Movie • 2007
Self
The Making of ‘Sneakers’
Movie • 2003
Self
The Human Behavior Experiments
Movie • 2006
Narrator
Bad Manners
Movie • 1998
Wes Westlund
Freedom Song
Movie • 2000
Peter Crowley
Willa Cather: The Road Is All
Movie • 2005
Narrator
O Horizon
Movie • 2025
Warren
Judgment
Movie • 1990
Father Frank Aubert
Heat Wave
Movie • 1990
Bill Thomas
The Luckiest Man in America
Movie • 2025
Bill
The People Speak
Movie • 2009
Self
When Nature Calls
Movie • 1985
Weejun
American Pastoral
Movie • 2016
Nathan Zuckerman
April One
Movie • 1994
John McCowan
Return of the Secaucus Seven
Movie • 1980
Ron
November Criminals
Movie • 2017
Theo
UFO
Movie • 2018
Franklin Ahls
With Friends Like These
Movie • 1998
Armand Minetti
Fast Color
Movie • 2019
Ellis
Simon Birch
Movie • 1998
Rev. Russell
Darkest Hour
Movie • 2017
President Roosevelt (voice)
The Devil Has a Name
Movie • 2019
Fred Stern
An Interview with God
Movie • 2018
God
Walkaway Joe
Movie • 2020
Joe Haley
My Dinner with Hervé
Movie • 2018
Marty Rothstein
Matters of Life and Death
Movie • 2007
Mr. Jennings
Nomadland
Movie • 2021
Dave
Godzilla: King of the Monsters
Movie • 2019
Admiral William Stenz
The Gettysburg Address
Movie • 2025
Ralph Waldo Emerson (voice)
Paradise
Movie • 2004
Reverend Bobby Paradise
Them That Work
Movie • 2019
Self
Nightmare Alley
Movie • 2021
Pete
The Oedipus Project
Movie • 2020
Messenger 1
A League of Their Own
Movie • 1992
Ira Lowenstein
Dominick and Eugene
Movie • 1988
Martin Chernak
Whatever You Desire: Making 'L.A. Confidential'
Movie • 2008
Self
Sunlight and Shadow: The Visual Style of 'L.A. Confidential'
Movie • 2008
Self
Where the Crawdads Sing
Movie • 2022
Tom Milton
Lincoln@Gettysburg
Movie • 2013
Self - Narrator (voice)
He Does Not Want Peace
Movie • 2016
Richard Englebright
By Any Means
Movie
The Bard
Movie
Zootopia 2
Movie • 2025
Milton Lynxley (voice)
This Ordinary Thing
Movie • 2025
Self (voice)
Babies
Movie
Clementine
Movie • 2014
Henry
The Sopranos
TV • 1999
Robert Wegler
Spenser: For Hire
TV • 1985
Monk
TV • 2002
Patrick Kloster
Miami Vice
TV • 1984
Marty Lang
The Equalizer
TV • 1985
Phillip Borchek
Hallmark Hall of Fame
TV • 1951
Carl Linstrum
Wiseguy
TV • 1987
McMafia
TV • 2018
Semiyon Kleiman
The Oscars
TV • 1953
Self
The Emmy Awards
TV • 1949
Self
Alphas
TV • 2011
Lee Rosen
Z: The Beginning of Everything
TV • 2015
Anthony Sayre
The Blacklist
TV • 2013
Peter Kotsiopulos
The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd
TV • 1987
Moss Goodman
House
TV • 2004
Nash
The Expanse
TV • 2015
Commander Klaes Ashford
Interrogation
TV • 2020
Henry Fisher
The Expanse
TV • 2015
Klaes Ashford
A Man on the Inside
TV • 2024
Dr. Benjamin Cole