Matthew Avery Modine is an American film actor. His best-known film roles include Private
Joker in Stanley Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket, the title character in Alan Parker's Birdy,
high school wrestler Louden Swain in Vision Quest, and oversexed Sullivan Groff on Weeds.
Early life Modine, the youngest of seven children, was
born in Loma Linda, California, the son of Dolores, a bookkeeper, and Mark Alexander
Modine, who managed drive-in theaters. He is a nephew of a stage actress Nola Modine
Fairbanks. He lived in Utah before moving to New York City in 1980.
Career His first film role was in John Sayles' Baby
It's You. His performance caught the eye of director Harold Becker, who cast him in Vision
Quest based on the novel by Terry Davis. He appeared in the sex comedy Private School,
co-starring Phoebe Cates and Betsy Russell. The director Robert Altman propelled Modine
to international stardom with his film adaptation of David Rabe's play Streamers. Modine and
his fellow castmates won an unprecedented Best Actor prize from the Venice Film Festival
for the tragic story of young American soldiers about to be shipped to Vietnam. Modine played
Mel Gibson's brother in Mrs. Soffel and starred with Nicolas Cage in Alan Parker's Birdy.
The film was awarded Gran Prix at the Cannes Film Festival. The actor also famously turned
down the role of LT Pete "Maverick" Mitchell because he felt the film's pro-military stance
went against his politics.
Modine may be best known for his role as Private Joker, the central character of Stanley Kubrick's
1987 war movie Full Metal Jacket. Subsequently, he played the dangerous young criminal Treat
in Alan Pakula's film version of the Lyle Kessler stageplay Orphans. Modine played the
goofy, earnest FBI agent Mike Downey in Jonathan Demme's screwball comedy Married to the Mob
opposite Michelle Pfeiffer. In 1990 he led the cast of Memphis Belle, a fictionalized
account of the famous B-17 Flying Fortress. Modine has twice been nominated for an Emmy
Award. First for his performance in And the Band Played On and the dark comedy What the
Deaf Man Heard. In 1995, he appeared opposite Geena Davis
in the romantic action-adventure film Cutthroat Island. Modine made his feature directorial
debut with If... Dog... Rabbit, which came after the success of three short films debuting
at the Sundance Film Festival: When I Was a Boy, Smoking written by David Sedaris, and
Ecce Pirate written by Modine. The dark comedy, I Think I Thought debuted at the Tribeca Film
Festival. The film tells the story of a Thinker who ends up in Thinkers Anonymous. Other short
films include, To Kill an American, Cowboy, and The Love FIlm. In 2011, he completed Jesus
Was a Commie, an avant garde-dialectical conversation about the world and the prominent issues of
modern society. Modine co-directed the short film with Terence Ziegler, the editor of I
Think I Thought. Modine's short films have played internationally.
In 2003, he guest starred on The West Wing in the episode "The Long Goodbye". He portrayed
the character Marco, who went to high school with Cregg, and who helped her deal with her
father's steady mental decline due to Alzheimer's disease. Modine agreed to the role because
he is a longtime friend of Janney.. That same year, he played Fritz Gerlich in the CBS miniseries
Hitler: The Rise of Evil. In 2004, Modine appeared in Funky Monkey as
ex-football star turned spy Alec McCall, who teams up with super-chimp Clemens and his
friend Michael Dean to take down the villainous Flick. The film was critically panned, yet
has gained a cult status. In 2005, Abel Ferrara's Mary won the Special
Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival. In the film, Modine portrayed a director recounting
the story of Mary Magdalene. The following year, he guest-starred in the Law and Order:
Special Victims Unit episode "Rage" as a serial killer of young girls.
In 2009, he rejoined Full Metal Jacket costar Adam Baldwin in the direct-to-DVD indie film
Little Fish, Strange Pond.
In 2010, Modine appeared in The Trial, which was awarded the Parents Television Council's
Seal of Approval™. The PTC said: "'The Trial' combines the best features of courtroom drama,
murder mystery and character story. 'The Trial' is a powerful drama which shows the power
of healing and hope." Modine played a corrupt Majestic City developer
named "Sullivan Groff" throughout Season 3 on Weeds. Groff has affairs with Nancy Botwin
and Celia Hodes. In 2010, Modine appeared in HBO's Too Big
to Fail, a film about the Wall Street financial crisis. Modine stars as John Thain, former
Chairman and CEO of Merrill Lynch, who famously spent millions decorating his office.
In 2011, Modine completed two independent films, Family Weekend and Girl In Progress,
opposite Eva Mendes. In 2012, he appeared in Christopher Nolan's
The Dark Knight Rises as Deputy Commissioner Peter Foley, a Gotham City police officer
and peer to Gary Oldman's Commissioner James Gordon.
In February 2013, Modine was cast in the Ralph Bakshi animated film Last Days of Coney Island
after coming across the film's Kickstarter campaign online.
Theatre Modine appeared in Arthur Miller's Finishing
the Picture at Chicago's Goodman Theatre, and Miller's Resurrection Blues at London's
Old Vic. He played Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird at Connecticut's Hartford Stage.
This production became the most successful play in the theatre's 45-year history. In
2010, he starred with Abigail Breslin in the 50th Anniversary Broadway revival of the The
Miracle Worker at the Circle in the Square theatre.
In fall 2013, he starred in a self-parodying play in L.A., Matthew Modine Saves the Alpacas.
Activism Biking has been his main mode of transportation
since moving to New York City from Utah in 1980. He heads a pro-bike organization called
Bicycle for a Day and was honored for his work on June 2, 2009 by the environmental
arts and education center on the East River, Solar 1.
Personal life He is married with two children and lives
in West Chelsea, Manhattan. He was friends with Natasha Richardson before her death.
Filmography
References
External links Official website
Matthew Modine at the Internet Movie Database Matthew Modine at the Internet Broadway Database
Bicycle for a Day Full Metal Jacket Diary