American actor (born 1950)
Brad Dourif
|
---|
Dourif in 2002
|
Born
| Bradford Claude Dourif
(
1950-03-18
)
March 18, 1950
(age 74)
|
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Occupation
| Actor
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Years active
| 1973?present
|
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Spouses
|
Janet Stephanie
(
m.
1974;
div.
1980)
Jonina Dourif
(
m.
1981;
div.
1986)
|
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Children
| 2, including
Fiona Dourif
|
---|
Awards
| See awards
|
---|
Bradford Claude Dourif
[1]
(
[
citation needed
]
; born March 18, 1950)
[2]
is an American semi-retired actor. He is best known for voicing
Chucky
in the
Child's Play
franchise
(1988?present), portraying
Grima Wormtongue
in
The Lord of the Rings
film series
and his
Oscar nominated
role as
Billy Bibbit
in
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
(1975).
Brad Dourif's other film roles include
Wise Blood
(1979),
Ragtime
(1981),
Dune
(1984),
Blue Velvet
(1986),
Mississippi Burning
(1988),
The Exorcist III
(1990),
Alien Resurrection
(1997), and the 2007 remake of
Halloween
and
its sequel
. He also appeared in many television series, notably
Deadwood
(2004?2006,
2019
), for which he received
Primetime Emmy
and
Satellite Award
nominations for his portrayal of Amos "Doc" Cochran.
Early life
[
edit
]
Bradford Claude Dourif was born in
Huntington, West Virginia
, on March 18, 1950, to Joan Mavis Felton (
nee
Bradford), an actress, and Jean Henri Dourif, an art collector who owned and operated a dye factory.
[1]
[2]
[3]
His paternal grandparents emigrated from
France
, and his paternal grandfather co-founded the Standard Ultramarine and Color Company in Huntington.
[4]
After Dourif's father died in 1953, his mother remarried champion golfer
William C. Campbell
, who helped raise Dourif and his five siblings (four sisters and one brother).
[5]
From 1963 to 1965, Dourif attended the private
Aiken Preparatory School
in
Aiken, South Carolina
. There, he pursued his interests in art and acting. Although he briefly considered becoming a flower arranger,
[
citation needed
]
he was eventually inspired to become an actor by his mother's participation as an actress in a community theater called Give Me Shelter.
After Aiken, he attended
Fountain Valley School
in
Colorado Springs, Colorado
, graduating in 1968. Dourif appeared as an amateur at the Fountain Valley Film Festival in 1969, taking second place in the 8 mm film category with his 10-minute entry "Blind Date."
[6]
Dourif attended
Marshall University
for a time, before quitting college and moving to
New York City
to study acting on the advice of actress
Conchata Ferrell
.
[7]
Career
[
edit
]
Stage
[
edit
]
Starting in school productions, Dourif progressed to community theater, joining up with the Huntington Community Players while attending Marshall University. In
New York City
, he studied with
Sanford Meisner
, and worked with Marshall Mason and
Lanford Wilson
at the
Circle Repertory Company
. During the early 1970s, Dourif appeared in a number of plays, off-Broadway and at
Woodstock, New York
, including
The Ghost Sonata
,
The Doctor in Spite of Himself
, and
When You Comin' Back, Red Ryder?
, in which he was spotted by director
Milo? Forman
[7]
who cast him in
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
(1975).
In 2013, after a three-decade absence from the stage, Dourif chose to star alongside
Amanda Plummer
in the
Off-Broadway
revival of
Tennessee Williams
'
The Two-Character Play
that played to critical acclaim at the
New World Stages
.
[8]
He explained, in a filmed interview released by the producers, why he broke his 29-year hiatus from acting in live theater: "I hated the stage, did not want to do it. And then somebody said, 'Will you do a play? It's with Amanda Plummer', and I said, 'Oh shit! No. Oh God, I'm gonna have to do this...'".
[9]
It opened on June 10, 2013, and closed on September 29, 2013.
[10]
The play was subject to a number of performance cancellations, one relating to Dourif's absence due to a death in the family. Plummer refused to perform without Dourif, notwithstanding the presence of an understudy.
[11]
Film
[
edit
]
Dourif had a small role in the film
W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings
(1975), but was omitted from the final cut of the film.
[12]
His portrayal of the vulnerable Billy Bibbit in
Cuckoo's Nest
ended up being his big break, earning him a
Golden Globe Award
(Best Actor Debut) and a
British Academy Award
(Supporting Actor) as well as a nomination for
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor
.
[7]
In 1981,
Vincent Canby
listed Dourif as one of twelve actors to watch, calling Dourif "one of the most intense, most interesting young film actors of his generation."
[13]
Dourif returned to New York, where he continued in theater and taught acting and directing classes at
Columbia University
until 1988 (
Don Mancini
[14]
was among his students).
He continued with
Eyes of Laura Mars
(1978),
John Huston
's
Wise Blood
(1979),
[15]
Forman's
Ragtime
(1981),
Marc Didden
's
Istanbul
(1985) and
David Lynch
's
Dune
(1984) and
Blue Velvet
(1986).
Dourif has appeared in a number of horror films, most notably as the voice of
Chucky
in the
Child's Play
franchise
. He portrayed the Gemini Killer in
The Exorcist III
(1990) and appeared in
Death Machine
(1994),
Sworn to Justice
with
Cynthia Rothrock
and
Alien Resurrection
(1997). He later appeared as Sheriff Lee Brackett in
Rob Zombie
's
Halloween
(2007) and
Halloween II
(2009). In 2013, Dourif reprised his role as Chucky in the sixth installment of the
Child's Play
franchise,
Curse of Chucky
, and then again in the 2017 sequel,
Cult of Chucky
. His daughter,
Fiona Dourif
, also starred with him in both films.
Other notable film roles include
Grima Wormtongue
in the
Lord of the Rings
trilogy
and supporting roles in
Fatal Beauty
(1987),
Mississippi Burning
(1988),
Hidden Agenda
(1990),
London Kills Me
(1991) and
Sinner
(2007).
Dourif has worked with director
Werner Herzog
on many occasions, appearing in
Scream of Stone
(1991),
The Wild Blue Yonder
(2005),
Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans
(2009), and
My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done?
(2009).
Television
[
edit
]
In 1984, Dourif played a suspected serial killer in the episode "Number Eight" of
Tales of the Unexpected
. In 1994, he appeared in
The X-Files
episode "
Beyond the Sea
" as the psychic serial killer Luther Lee Boggs. He also portrayed
Lon Suder
in a three episode story arc on
Star Trek: Voyager
and guest starred as a troubled monk haunted by visions in
Babylon 5
. Dourif later won acclaim as
Doc Cochran
in
Deadwood
, receiving a 2004
Emmy Award
nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series.
In 2011, he guest-starred in the
third-season finale
of
Fringe
[16]
and, in 2014, appeared in the
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
episode "
End of the Beginning
".
In 2021, Dourif reprised his role as Chucky in the television series adaption of the Child's Play franchise titled
Chucky
.
[17]
Music
[
edit
]
In 2012, Dourif contributed spoken word vocals to three songs on the album
Misery Together
by the Norwegian duo Thinguma*jigSaw.
[18]
Dourif also appears in the music videos for "
Stranger in Town
" (1984) by
Toto
and "
Drinking from the Bottle
" (2012) by
Calvin Harris
.
Retirement
[
edit
]
On April 18, 2024, Dourif announced that he would be retiring from acting, with the exception of any Chucky-related projects involving the character.
[19]
The reason behind this was because of his daughter,
Fiona
and he considered
Chucky
creator Don Mancini to be "family".
[19]
Personal life
[
edit
]
Dourif has been married twice;
[20]
first to Janet Stephanie, with whom he had daughter Kristina/Christina Dourif (born c. 1976),
[2]
[1]
and then to the late
[21]
Jonina Dourif,
[1]
[22]
with whom he had another daughter, actress
Fiona Dourif
(born 1981).
[23]
[21]
Filmography
[
edit
]
Film
[
edit
]
Television
[
edit
]
Video games
[
edit
]
Awards and honors
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
c
d
"Brad Dourif"
.
Turner Classic Movies
.
Archived
from the original on November 6, 2019
. Retrieved
June 23,
2020
.
- ^
a
b
c
"Brad Dourif Biography (1950-)"
. Film Reference.
Archived
from the original on March 1, 2017
. Retrieved
February 18,
2015
.
- ^
"Bradford-Dourif"
.
The New York Times
. June 11, 1944.
Archived
from the original on July 22, 2018
. Retrieved
October 10,
2010
.
- ^
Baptista, Robert J. (September 22, 2006).
"Henry Dourif Biography"
. Colorants Industry History. Archived from the original on September 26, 2010
. Retrieved
October 10,
2010
.
{{
cite web
}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (
link
)
- ^
Yardley, William (September 8, 2013).
"William C. Campbell, a Leader in Golf, Dies at 90"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
March 21,
2023
.
- ^
"Fountain Valley Names Film Festival Winners"
.
Colorado Springs Gazette-Telegraph
. April 14, 1968. p. 31.
Archived
from the original on June 23, 2020
. Retrieved
March 13,
2018
– via
Newspapers.com
.
- ^
a
b
c
Roberts, Jerry (October 26, 1990). "CRAZED ? With two Hollywood films opening today and seven more in the can, Brad Dourif may just be Hollywood's busiest actor".
Daily Breeze
. Torrance, California. p. E3.
- ^
Dourif (on camera interview), Brad (May 7, 2013).
"Video: Press"
(Video)
.
Amanda Plummer & Brad Dourif in Tennessee Williams' The Two Character Play
. TwoCharacterPlayNYC
. Retrieved
May 11,
2013
.
- ^
Dourif (on camera interview), Brad; Two Character Play LLC (May 7, 2013).
"Amanda Plummer & Brad Dourif in Tennessee Williams' Two Character Play"
(Video)
.
YouTube
. Retrieved
May 11,
2013
.
- ^
'Two Character Play, starring Amanda Plummer and Brad Dourif, will end run in September'
,
Playbill
, August 28, 2013, Andrew Gans. Retrieved October 13, 2013.
- ^
Michael Riedel
,
Diva Amanda Plummer ‘a nightmare’ backstage
Archived
September 14, 2017, at the
Wayback Machine
.
New York Post
, September 5, 2013. Retrieved January 29, 2015.
- ^
Taylor, Brett (Summer 2004). "From Cuckoo Patient to Deadwood Doc: An Interview with Brad Dourif".
Shock Cinema
(25): 32?34, 47.
- ^
Canby, Vincent
(January 18, 1981).
"Film View ? Speculating on Talent: 12 Actors to Watch in 1981"
.
The New York Times
. p. D19
. Retrieved
April 29,
2010
.
- ^
"Brad Dourif | Bloody Good Horror - Horror movie reviews, podcast, news, and more!"
.
- ^
"
Wise Blood
: Screening and Discussion with Michael Fitzgerald"
. Crossroads Cultural Center. November 11, 2017.
Archived
from the original on July 28, 2018.
- ^
Fitzpatrick, Kevin (April 5, 2011).
"Fringe's Latest Casting Told You To Take The Wizard's Staff"
.
UGO Networks
. Archived from
the original
on April 10, 2011
. Retrieved
April 15,
2011
.
- ^
Reimann, Tom (July 17, 2020).
"
'Chucky' Series Teaser Offers a First Look at SYFY's New Take on the Franchise"
.
Collider
. Retrieved
July 17,
2020
.
- ^
Profile
Archived
November 4, 2012, at the
Wayback Machine
, desertedvillage.bandcamp.com. Retrieved February 18, 2015.
- ^
a
b
Scott, Ryan (April 18, 2024).
"Brad Dourif Has Retired From Acting, But There's One Exception: CHUCKY"
.
www.fangoria.com
. Retrieved
April 27,
2024
.
- ^
"California has failed the homeless and the mentally ill. It's time for change"
.
Orange County Register
. June 4, 2022
. Retrieved
November 12,
2022
.
his second wife ? my mother, Joni
- ^
a
b
Crow, David (August 2, 2018).
"The
Purge
TV Series: Fiona Dourif Finds Compassion in Suicide Cult"
.
Den of Geek
.
Archived
from the original on June 23, 2020
. Retrieved
September 18,
2018
.
"Also my mother was a psychic when she was alive...
- ^
"
Remote Viewing Memories
"
.
Doc NYC
. November 11, 2017.
Archived
from the original on November 8, 2017
. Retrieved
June 23,
2020
.
...Jonina Dourif (wife of actor Brad Dourif)...
- ^
"Brad Dourif"
.
Turner Classic Movies
.
Archived
from the original on November 6, 2019
. Retrieved
June 23,
2020
.
- ^
Woburn, Daniel (March 15, 2020).
"Chucky Is Ready Player One's Best Cameo"
.
ScreenRant
. Retrieved
September 15,
2022
.
External links
[
edit
]
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International
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National
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Artists
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People
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Other
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